Kosovo

Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a partially recognized state and disputed territory in Southeastern Europe. Defined in an area of 10.887 km², Kosovo is landlocked in the center of the Balkans and bordered by the uncontested territory of Serbia to the north and east, North Macedonia to the southeast, Albania to the southwest and Montenegro to the west.

The earliest known human settlements in what is now Kosovo were the Paleolithic Vinča and Starčevo cultures. During the Classical period, it was inhabited by the Illyrian-Dardanian and Celtic people. In 168 BC, the area was annexed by the Romans. In the Middle Ages, it was conquered by the Byzantine, Bulgarian and Serbian Empires. The Battle of Kosovo of 1389 is considered to be one of the defining moments in Serbian medieval history. The region was the core of the Serbian medieval state, which has also been the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church from the 14th century, when its status was upgraded to a patriarchate. Kosovo was part of the Ottoman Empire from the 15th to the early 20th century. In the late 19th century, it became the centre of the Albanian National Awakening. Following their defeat in the Balkan Wars, the Ottomans ceded Kosovo to Serbia and Montenegro. Both countries joined Yugoslavia after World War I. The post-World War II Yugoslav constitution established the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within the Yugoslav republic of Serbia. Tensions between Kosovo's Albanian and Serb communities simmered through the 20th century and occasionally erupted into major violence, culminating in the Kosovo War of 1998 and 1999, which resulted in the withdrawal of the Yugoslav army and the establishment of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo. On 17 February 2008, Kosovo unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia. It has since gained diplomatic recognition as a sovereign state by 101 United Nations member states. Serbia does not recognize Kosovo as a sovereign state, although with the Brussels Agreement of 2013, it has accepted its institutions. While Serbia recognizes administration of the territory by Kosovo's elected government, it continues to claim it as the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija.

Kosovo is a member of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Regional Cooperation Council, and has applied for membership of Interpol and for observer status in the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation.

During the Briefmarken-Messe in Essen in May 2017 I left stamped envelopes at almost every foreign postal administration hoping they would send them back when they arrived home. The envelope from Kosovo arrived after almost three weeks, perfectly cancelled. The stamp is one of the 2017 Europa stamps with the castles theme and the postmark is from Pristina. The air mail label was affixed by the Kosovo Post.

The website of Posta, the Post of Kosova: postakosoves.com. The philately section on the Albanian (SQ) version of the website has more information on it than the English section.

Date sent: 12 May 2017

Date postmark: 26 May 2017

Date received: 30 May 2017

Number of days: 18

Envelope in collection: 125