Kosovo's countdown plays out to Beethoven
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The Kosovo Philharmonic is  rehearsing for the biggest performance in its short history,  Beethoven's Ode to Joy.
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PRISTINA, Serbia  - Albanians flooded the Kosovo capital Pristina on Saturday, celebrating the territory's independence from Serbia a day ahead of schedule.
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"We have seen what happened in former Yugoslavia when the European Union did not take things in hand."  European Union leaders, worried that Kosovo's push for independence could trigger instability in the Balkans, were set to offer Serbia a fast-track route to joining the bloc at a summit on Friday. via Reuters
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PRISTINA, Serbia  - Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci said on Friday about 100 countries were ready to recognize the province's independence from Serbia as soon as it was declared.
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A long-lost adagio by Beethoven will be performed for the first time next month.
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Celebrations are beginning to herald the enlargement of the Schengen zone to include nine more EU countries.
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An explosion in Kosovo's capital Pristina has killed at least two people and injured eleven more.The blast scattered glass and debris from shops on Bill Clinton Boulevard. Part of a building collapsed. Police reportedly believe there may have been a criminal motive. The blast came amid rising tension over the province's stalled bid for independence from Serbia. Kosovo has been run by the United Nations and patrolled by NATO since 1999. A new round of negotiations on Kosovo's future status is set to take place this Friday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.  Leaders of Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority have threatened to declare independence after the talks end, with or without a UN resolution.
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Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova is already celebrating his party's victory, anticipated by unofficial poll results.
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Kastriot Sadiku has a confession: Like a good Muslim, he was near a mosque when Kosovo declared independence. But like a good Kosovar, he was just around the corner, sipping suds at his favorite pub.
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Kosovo's PM gives the clearest indication yet that independence from Serbia will be declared on Sunday.
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The United Nations has granted Belgrade more time to prepare for a final round of talks on the future status of Kosovo, the breakaway Albanian-majority province of Serbia.
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PODGORICA, Montenegro  - Montenegro's people, media and even politicians are feverish with anticipation over a Rolling Stones concert on Monday, the biggest cultural event ever held in the small Adriatic republic.
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"Kosovo directly affects the security and stability of our region"  Surrounded by photographers, NATO's Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, center right, talks to Macedonian Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki, center left, during an informal dinner for ministers, in the ... via The Macon Telegraph
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Kosovo on Saturday inched closer to its historic declaration of independence, with a growing sense of excitement among its people and the European Union launching a police and judicial mission to smoothen the birth of the world's newest state.
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BELGRADE -- Suspense gripped Serbia yesterday, a day before the unveiling of a UN proposal for Kosovo's future -- a historic plan that officials say will map out a road to conditional nationhood for the bitterly contested province.
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Thousands turned out in Kosovo's capital Monday to see rapper 50 Cent perform in the territory known more for its political woes than party tunes.
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"There is virtual unity on Kosovo."  By David BrunnstromBRUSSELS  - Kosovo Albanian leaders said on Monday they will start immediate talks with Western backers towards an independence declaration as the EU came closer to unity in support of the province's drive to secede from Serbia.With a United Nations deadline for agreement on the future of the breakaway province expiring on Monday, Russia warned any unilateral recognition could trigger problems around the world."From today, Kosovo begins consultations with key international partners to coordinate the next steps to a declaration of independence," Skender Hyseni, spokesman of Kosovo's negotiating team with Serbia, said in Pristina. Read more