Maldives recognize Kosovo independence: gov't

The Maldives, the Indian Ocean atoll nation, on Thursday officially recognized Kosovo, the government said.

Kosovo celebrated the first anniversary of its declaration of independence from Serbia on Tuesday.

The Maldives becomes the 55th country to recognize Kosovo since it declared independence on February 17, 2008, among them the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan and all but five of the 27 EU member states.

Serbia still considers Kosovo as one of its provinces and fiercely opposes its independence although it has had no control over the territory since the end of 1998-1999 conflict when a U.N. mission took over the administration.

Source: hurriyet.com.tr