Kosovo, a country that has been recognized by 85 members of the UN so far, is considering the Macedonian strategy, which uses a different diplomatic title when it conducts its diplomacy with international organizations due to disputes with Greece over its name since the declaration of independence in 1992, to start dialogue with the EU over visa liberalization despite the objections of some EU countries.

Waiting for the next EU summit that will take place in Brussels next month Kosovo's major objective is to start visa liberalization dialogue with the EU similar to that of the other Balkan states. On the other hand, there are still major obstacles to surmount considering the fact that five EU members, Spain, Slovakia, Greece, Romania and Greek Cyprus, do not recognize the small Balkan country.

During an international conference jointly organized by the European Council on Foreign Relations and Kosovo's Foreign Ministry in Kosovo last week, Kosovo officials in remarks to Today's Zaman under the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said there would be an alternative way to overcome the objection of those countries by employing the same method that Macedonia has been using for over a decade now. Macedonia conducts its diplomatic relations with both NATO and the EU as the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) due to the fact that Greece strongly opposes the usage of Macedonia as a diplomatic title for the Macedonian state. When Macedonia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1992, Greece demanded that the newly independent country change its name by saying that Macedonia is also the name of a Greek region. Greece has blocked Macedonia's bid to become a member of NATO. Macedonia thus uses FYROM as a diplomatic title in its relations with international institutions and organizations to appease Greece.

Despite the fact that the EU is preoccupied with the current debt crisis, Kosovo officials aim to accomplish full integration with the EU in order to restructure Kosovo's institutions and economy.