PRISTINA (AFP) — A month after it declared independence, Kosovo has come under a threat of possible secession of its Serb minority amid fears of fresh violence that could compromise the international community’s efforts to push the new state on a promising path.
Ethnic Albanians, who make up 90 percent of Kosovo’s population of almost two million, proclaimed independence on February 17, fulfilling a long dream to separate from Serbia proper.
But Serbia, backed by its long-time ally Russia, has rejected the move, insisting that “Kosovo is and will always be Serbian.” But the refusal could not harm a wide-spread joy throughout Kosovo.
“People are relaxed, there is no longer any tension. There is an attitude of responsibility, although some feared an exaggerated euphoria,” said Kosovo Albanian analyst Azem Vlassi.
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s parliament re-elected Wen Jiabao as premier on Sunday, but a next-generation leader was passed over for promotion to a top military job.
The rubber-stamp National People’s Congress gave Wen, ranked third in the Communist Party hierarchy, a second five-year mandate with 2,926 votes for, 21 against and 12 abstentions.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — With Dextre the robot’s power problem solved, astronauts ventured outside the international space station on Saturday to put together the bulk of the gigantic walking and working machine.
The robot’s hands were attached to its 11-foot arms during the first spacewalk of Endeavour’s space station trip. This time, astronauts aimed to connect the arms to the shoulders. First, though, the robot was going to sit up on its transport bed, rising like Frankenstein as one astronaut put it.
Spacewalkers Richard Linnehan and Michael Foreman had to use brute force and a pry bar to get one of the robot’s arms off the transport bed, where it had been latched down for launch. Two of the bolts wouldn’t budge, even when the astronauts banged on them and yanked with all their might.
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