Three years ago, Kosovo's interim assembly adopted a declaration which defines Kosovo as “an independent and sovereign state formed on the basis of the Martti Ahtisaari Plan.”

The independence was declared despite the fierce opposition of Serbia's top officials, and contrary to UN Resolution 1244 and provisions of the international law. Just one day after the proclamation of independence, eight countries recognized the unilateral decision- first Afghanistan, then the US, France, Albania, Turkey, the UK and Senegal.

To this day, 75 countries recognized Kosovo's independence, 22 of which are EU member states. However, in the last two years the wave of approval has significantly lost its momentum.

Kosovo was recognized by 53 countries in 2008, 11 in 2009, 8 in 2010, and 3 this year.

A vast majority of the UN member states (117) have not recognized the unilaterally proclaimed independence of Kosovo, some of them holding the right of veto in the UN Security Council. The EU is still divided over the issue since Slovakia, Romania, Spain, Greece and Cyprus did not recognize Kosovo, and have no intention of doing that.

The declaration of independence was passed on February 17, 2008, after having been approved in the interim assembly. The Serb MPs, head of UNMIK, and KFOR commander were not present.

The declaration defines Kosovo as “an independent and sovereign state formed on the basis of the Martti Ahtisaari Plan”, a document which has never been considered in the UN Security Council, nor approved by the Republic of Serbia.

Serbs: Kosovo cannot survive as independent state

Political representatives of Kosovo Serbs assessed that three years after Kosovo declared independence, the situation on the ground remains practically unchanged and offers no room for hope.

The last three years have shown that Kosovo cannot survive as an independent state, and that the Serb people here still have not found a way to survive and live normally, point out the Serb representatives.

State Secretary with the Serbian Ministry for Kosovo Oliver Ivanovic told Tanjug that the situation has calmed in the last three years, but that it still cannot be called stable.

He stressed that the current situation "does not leave enough room for hope for the future, and the constant political instability prevents institutions from combating corruption and organized crime."

Ivanovic said that Serbs still feel extremely threatened, and assessed that upcoming talks between Belgrade and Pristina should yield some solutions that will improve daily life.

President of the Assembly of the Community of Kosovo Municipalities Marko Jaksic said that the past three years have shown that Kosovo cannot survive as an independent state.

"We see today that Kosovo cannot survive as an independent country, it is isolated island that has no access anywhere, and for that reason the EU is insisting on the talks. This means they care about improving the life of the Albanians, and not the Serbs, because if they cared about the Serbs, they would at least bring back the 200,000 displaced persons," Jaksic told Tanjug.

Head of the Gracanica healthcare center Rada Trajkovic stressed in a statement with Tanjug that the Serb people in Kosovo have yet to find a method of functional survival, and that everyone needs to work together to ensure long-term survival.

The authorities in Pristina declared independence on February 17, 2008. Over the past three years, Kosovo has been recognized by 75 countries, including countries in the region and 22 EU members.

Trajkovic: Kosovo failed as country

The Kosovo leaders have shown in the past three years that they are on a course to compromise the western powers' attempts to form a country out of Kosovo, future member of the Kosovo parliament and member of the United Serb List Rada Trajkovic has stated.

"Seeing that the Kosovo Albanian leadership has continuously lacked moral and formal credibility, I think they are on the right course to compromise the creation of what they call an independent state," Trajkovic told Tanjug.

Commenting on the third anniversary of the unilateral declaration of independence, Trajkovic noted that Kosovo was far from the civilized achievements like inter-ethnic dialogue, regional cooperation and institutions that lived up to EU standards.

Independent Liberal Party President Slobodan Petrovic, who was a member of the Kosovo parliament presidency and will most likely be a deputy prime minister in the next government, said that the party had done a lot for the Serb community.

That is confirmed by the number of votes Serbs gave the party at the last local and parliamentary elections, he argued.

His party is in charge of the return of Serbs who fled the war in Kosovo. There have been successes in that process over the past three years, but still more could have been done, he commented.

Homes and the infrastructure have been built, but the number of the people returning is not at the expected level, which poses a challenge for the next term, he explained.