Muhaxhiri: A change in Crimea’s status could trigger a domino effect

Political analyst Artan Muhaxhiri stated that potential US recognition of Russian sovereignty over Crimea could produce a domino effect in a geostrategic and geopolitical sense, potentially influencing the future stance of Russia and China toward Kosovo.

“This is a very important issue, and if it happens, it will trigger a domino effect in geostrategic and geopolitical terms,” Muhaxhiri told Kosovo Online.

He points out that while there are similarities between Crimea and Kosovo, the contexts were different because Yugoslavia disintegrated through war.

He is convinced that if Ukraine accepts Russian sovereignty over Crimea, it will change “the entire context.”

“Then the perception of Kosovo will also change, and I think it would even become easier for Russia or China to accept the new reality regarding Kosovo-Serbia relations, perhaps even to stop blocking Kosovo’s inclusion in the UN. I don’t know if they would recognize Kosovo’s independence, but I believe they might remain neutral in the Security Council, and even that would be a major change, a major tectonic shift,” Muhaxhiri said.

He emphasizes that Ukraine will play a decisive role in Crimea’s fate.

“Everything depends on Ukraine’s willingness to accept it, and in what political format, in what political design it would be done,” Muhaxhiri concluded.