Finland–Kosovo relations are foreign relations between
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
and
Kosovo
Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...
. Kosovo
declared its independence from
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
on 17 February 2008 and Finland
recognised it on 7 March 2008.
Finland maintains an embassy in
Pristina
Pristina, ; sr, / (, ) is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. The city's municipal boundaries in Pristina District form the largest urban center in Kosovo. After Tirana, Pristina has the second largest population of ethnic Albanians and ...
.
History
In 1999, the President of Finland,
Martti Ahtisaari
Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari (; born 23 June 1937) is a Finnish politician, the tenth president of Finland (1994–2000), a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and a United Nations diplomat and mediator noted for his international peace work.
Ahtisa ...
, was reported as wanting to step up attempts to secure a peace agreement for Kosovo in his new role as a leading negotiator for the European Union. It was also reported that "Correspondents say that despite Mr Ahtisaari's support for air strikes, his position as president of a non-
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
country could make him palatable to Belgrade
erbian Government" In 2007, United Nations envoy for Kosovo says independence was the "only viable option" for the territory of Kosovo.
However, Ahtisaari's plan for peace failed and he was unable to reconcile Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo and that "Serbians see him as a leading player in the break-up of their country."
Following Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008, Kosovo Albanians living in Finland celebrated and expressed their gratitude to the Finnish Government and President Ahtisaari.
Military
As of 2009, Finland has 411 troops serving in Kosovo as peacekeepers in the
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
led
Kosovo Force
The Kosovo Force (KFOR) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO-led international NATO peacekeeping, peacekeeping force in Kosovo. Its operations are gradually reducing until Kosovo Security Force, Kosovo's Security Force, established in 2 ...
.
"Kosovo Force (KFOR)"
www.nato.int Link accessed 21-07-09
See also
* Foreign relations of Finland
The foreign relations of Finland are the responsibility of the president of Finland, who leads foreign policy in cooperation with the government. Implicitly the government is responsible for internal policy and decision making in the European ...
* Foreign relations of Kosovo
Foreign relations of Kosovo are accomplished by efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kosovo. Kosovo operates 33 embassies abroad and is host to 22 embassies in Pristina. Kosovo has membership in several international organisations.
On ...
* Finland–Serbia relations
Finnish-Serbian relations are foreign relations between Finland and Serbia. Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1929 (then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia). Finland has an embassy in Belgrade. Serbia has an embassy in Helsinki. Both cou ...
* Finland–Yugoslavia relations
Notes and references
Bilateral relations of Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...
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