When linking arms with the Arab and Muslim world, official Washington is keen to point out Kosovo would be a Muslim state. But of course, if anyone points out an independent Muslim Kosovo might be a bad idea, he is whipping up “Islamophobia.”
Says the U.S. envoy to Kosovo, Ambassador Frank G. Wisner: “To be able to secure a Muslim-majority state inside the European whole is a terrific signal that the Muslim world and the non-Muslim word can live side by side in peace and cooperation, one with the other.”
That is, unless Kosovo becomes a jihad base in Europe, and proves just the opposite. And to that end, President Bush has just authorized arming our newest Islamic protégé.
From the Washington Times’s Embassy Row (thanks to James Jatras):
The U.S. envoy to Kosovo is urging Arab governments to invest in Europe’s newest Muslim-majority nation.
Ambassador Frank G. Wisner called on the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to build on its statement of support issued after Kosovo declared independence from Serbia on Feb. 17.
“I think Kosovars are ready for that and want it,” Mr. Wisner told America.gov, a U.S. State Department Web site.
Mr. Wisner, a former ambassador to India, the Philippines and Zambia, as well as to the OIC, argued that Kosovo is a good place for foreign investment.
“It’s a good investment in the future,” he said. “It’s a profitable investment in terms of the eventual economic evolution of southeastern Europe, and I hope a strong economic signal will accompany a political signal.”
He argued that the creation of the Kosovo republic has implications beyond Europe.
“To be able to secure a Muslim-majority state inside the European whole is a terrific signal that the Muslim world and the non-Muslim word can live side by side in peace and cooperation, one with the other,” he said.
“I believe that for most of the Muslim world, it’s very important that one looks at [Kosovo] as a matter of justice.”
So far, however, Kosovo’s declaration of independence has sparked rioting from Serbs, who consider the ancient province part of Serbia’s historical heritage. Russia, Serbia’s main ally, has criticized the United States and other nations for recognizing Kosovo.
Kosovar militants rebelled against Serbian domination in 1999 but were crushed by a fierce Serbian counteroffensive that led to charges of “ethnic cleansing” against Kosovars and the intervention of NATO forces. Since 2004, Kosovo was administered by the United Nations.