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UÇKHistory and Memory

17 February 2008 · The postwar period and legacy

Kosovo's declaration of independence

On 17 February 2008, at an extraordinary meeting in Prishtina, Kosovo's elected leaders declared Kosovo “an independent and sovereign state”. On 22 July 2010 the International Court of Justice gave its opinion that the declaration did not violate international law.
Evidence status: Documented. Supported by contemporaneous documents, institutional reports or independent studies that corroborate one another.After June 1999PoliticsPostwar
The large yellow NEWBORN letters covered in signatures on an empty square.
The NEWBORN monument in Prishtina at dawn on 18 February 2008, covered with citizens' signatures.Photo: Karrota · 2008-02-18 · CC BY-SA 3.0

The ICJ's advisory opinion was adopted by 10 votes to 4 and addressed only whether the declaration violated international law [1] [2]. International recognition remains contested.

Photographs

The yellow NEWBORN letters lit at night, surrounded by a large crowd.
The NEWBORN monument in Prishtina on 17 February 2008, the day independence was declared.Photo: Cradel · 2008-02-17 · CC BY 3.0The identification of this image is not fully certain.
A crowd in a café with raised fists and phones in front of a television showing the signing.
People follow the signing of the Declaration of Independence on television, 17 February 2008.Photo: Shkumbins · 2008-02-17 · CC BY-SA 3.0The identification of this image is not fully certain.
A crowd with Albanian flags before a stage with thank-you banners, beneath an equestrian statue.
Celebration of Kosovo's declaration of independence in Vienna, 17 February 2008.Photo: Tsui · 2008-02-17 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Elevated view of a dense crowd with red-and-black flags; several men in white plis caps.
A crowd of citizens with flags 'awaiting independence', according to the uploader's title; February 2008.Photo: Planeti · 2008 · CC BY-SA 3.0The identification of this image is not fully certain.
Young people wave the Albanian flag from car windows; passers-by greet them.
Kosovars celebrate Kosovo's declaration of independence in Switzerland, 17 February 2008; photograph by Thomas Guignard.Photo: Thomas Guignard from Lausanne, Switzerland · 2008-02-17 · CC BY-SA 2.0
Cars on a boulevard with an Albanian flag flying from a window.
Kosovars in Brussels (Botanique crossing) celebrate the Declaration of Independence, waving Albanian flags, 17 February 2008.Photo: Steven Fruitsmaak · 2008-02-17 · CC BY 2.5
Courtroom with judges seated at a long bench and delegations facing them.
The Great Hall of Justice in the Peace Palace, The Hague, during the International Court of Justice proceedings on the accordance with international law of Kosovo's declaration of independence, 10 December 2009.Photo: Lybil BER · 2009-12-10 · CC BY-SA 4.0The identification of this image is not fully certain.
Large crowd with Serbian flags in a square at dusk.
The 'Kosovo is Serbia' rally in Belgrade on 21 February 2008, four days after Kosovo's declaration of independence.Photo: White Writer, Wikipedia · 2008-02-21 · CC BY-SA 3.0

Sources

  1. [1]Kuvendi i Kosovës (kopje e arkivuar nga ETH Zürich, ISN). Kosovo Declaration of Independence, 17 February 2008. 2008-02-17. https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/125409/8009_Kosovo_Independence.pdf. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  2. [2]Gjykata Ndërkombëtare e Drejtësisë (ICJ). Accordance with International Law of the Unilateral Declaration of Independence in respect of Kosovo — Summary of the Advisory Opinion of 22 July 2010. 2010-07-22. https://www.icj-cij.org/node/103912. Accessed 2026-09-16.

Editorial status: Awaiting verificationDrafted from the cited sources; not yet fully reviewed by the editors.

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