NATIONAL MINORITIES HAVE NO RIGHT TO ESTABLISH SEPARATE STATE: ROMANIAN SECRETARY OF STATE
Trend News Agency
June 9 2009
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, Baku, June 9 /Trend News, E. Ostapenko/ "We support
sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states. This is our major
principle. But we do not think that national minorities have right
to establish a separate state," Secretary of State of the Romanian
Foreign Ministry for Strategic Issues Bogdan Aurescu said in Baku.
Aurescu made clear Bucharest’s official position about Kosovo’s
independence at a seminar "NATO in the 21st century" held as a part
of the NATO Week in Azerbaijan.
Romanian secretary of state said Bucharest is of the same position
on Nagorno-Karabakh.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed
forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including
the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts. Azerbaijan
and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of
the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia, France, and the U.S. – are currently
holding the peace negotiations.
In February 2008, Kosovo Albanians declared their independence,
which was immediately recognized by United States and leading EU
member states. Kosovo has been recognized by 60 of the 192 UN member
countries.
Spain, Greece, Slovakia and Romania refused to recognize the European
Parliament resolution calling for the five EU member states to
recognize Kosovo’s independence.
On February 5, 2009, Member of the European Parliament adopted a
resolution calling on member states – Cyprus, Spain, Greece, Slovakia
and Romania – to recognize the independence of the Serbian province
of Kosovo as has already been done 18 EU member states.