Barack Obama Pledges Support to Kosovo

Pristina _ US Democrat Presidential candidate Barack Obama has pledged to support Kosovo’s independence and back its economic development.

Recalling his support for Kosovo, the Democrat Senator from Illinois and the party’s candidate for the White House, Obama said he will work in fostering Kosovo’s sovereignty.

“The US will work in helping to build a vibrant democratic society in Kosovo, ensuring equality for all the people living there,” it was reported in Obama for Illyria, an Albanian–American newspaper, published in the United States.

He vowed to help Pristina in its Euro–Atlantic integration and promised to do all he can in developing Kosovo’s infrastructure and energy sectors.

The declaration is the first attempt by Obama to communicate directly with the diaspora Albanian community living in the US.

Media in Pristina report that Obama’s declaration was issued to ease Albanian fears over his attitude towards Belgrade.

It was reported that some Albanians were concerned that Obama did not fully understand developments in the Balkans in the 1990s and the fact that he may also have been influenced by the strong and vocal Serb lobby, prominent in Illinois.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia on February 17 in a move bitterly opposed by Belgrade.