BELGIUM PLEDGES EARLY RECOGNITION OF KOSOVO, WILL

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRUSSELS 000255 SIPDIS SIPDIS NOFORN E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/13/2018 TAGS: PREL BE SUBJECT: BELGIUM PLEDGES EARLY RECOGNITION OF KOSOVO, WILL OPPOSE RUSSIA ON ABKHAZIA ISSUE REF: A. A. STATE 14840 ¶B. B. STATE 13716 ¶C. C. BRUSSELS 238 (NOTAL) Classified By: Political Counselor Theodore H Andrews, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) The Belgian government will be at the "front" of the line of countries recognizing Kosovo's independence, according to senior officials in both the Prime Minister's office and the Foreign Minister's private office. The "core cabinet" of senior party leaders had approved this position already; formal approval by the full cabinet would be forthcoming on February 15. The Belgians do not intend to publicize this position before the Kosovars actually took the step of declaring independence. ¶2. (C) In response to the reftel A demarche concerning the breakaway Georgian state, the Chief of Staff said explicitly that his Minister would oppose any Russian maneuvers to equate the Kosovo situation with any of the frozen conflicts, including Abkhazia. Walter Stevens, De Gucht's Chief of Staff, told polcouns that the MFA would remain alert to this issue, about which the UK and French embassies already had been in contact. ¶3. (C) During the course of discussing Kosovo, Stevens repeatedly sought to assure us that Belgium "would be one of the good guys" on recognition. He added that the head of the Balkan desk and the MFA's Director General for Multilateral Affairs, two officials who earlier had suggested that Belgium would follow a go-slow policy, "do not set the line" on this issue. Fox .