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NEWS ABOUT: independence

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Scotland Schedules Independence Vote

Vote in 2014 could break apart United Kingdom

(Newser) - Scottish voters will finally get their chance to throw off the, er, iron hand of Queen Elizabeth in 2014, Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond has announced. Salmond's Scottish National Party has long argued that Scotland should seek independence from the UK , and Salmond wants a referendum on it held... More »

Border Fights Erupt as Sudan Votes

23 dead in north-south clashes

(Newser) - Violence has broken out in Sudan as the country votes this week on southern independence , with at least 23 dead in fighting near the north-south border, the Guardian reports. Observers are carefully watching the Abyei region, which was promised its own referendum to decide whether it would join the north... More »

The Millennial: Tech-Savvy, Still Living With Mom

Peter Pan lurks among underemployed 20somethings

(Newser) - Maybe it's the crap economy, or maybe they're just sensitive, but 20-something millennials are proving you can go home again—in fact, you can never leave. Long lauded for their tech savvy, the Washington Post notes that 20-somethings are not only not flying the coop later than previous generations, they're... More »

Greenland Votes for Self-Rule

Danish territory wants to control own police force, oil fields

(Newser) - Three-fourths of the Greenlanders who voted in yesterday’s referendum on self-rule want more autonomy from Denmark, Time reports. The historic vote—which must still be adopted by parliaments in Copenhagen and Nuuk—puts the world’s largest island on the path to becoming the first independent Inuit state. But... More »

In Kosovo Visit, Gates Walks a Fine Line With Russia

But defense sec says US troops will remain

(Newser) - The US will maintain its current troop levels in Kosovo until at least the end of 2009, according to Defense Secretary Robert Gates. His trip to Kosovo is the first by an American cabinet member since the republic declared independence in February. The move of support is meant to show... More »

'Independent' South Ossetia Dreams Big

Locals want to make province into a tax haven, ski resort

(Newser) - When the Russian government recognized South Ossetia as an independent state last week, the international reaction was not only anger but incredulity. The breakaway Georgian province has only 70,000 citizens, and they have suffered both wretched poverty and years of fighting. But citizens insist that theirs is a viable... More »

Medvedev: Why I Recognized 2 Provinces

Georgia's 'madman' forced us to act, writes Russian president

(Newser) - Yesterday Russia recognized the Georgian provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states—a move that Dmitry Medvedev calls "a heavy decision." Writing in the Financial Times, the Russian president says that independence for the two breakaway regions, which have suffered under Georgia's "vicious war on... More »

Russia's 'Buffer Zone' Includes Georgia Territory

Moscow moves closer to recognizing breakaway enclaves

(Newser) - Russia may soon officially recognize the sovereignty of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, lawmakers said today, even as the military moved to establish so-called buffer zones that include Georgian territory, the Wall Street Journal reports. Then-president Vladimir Putin used the move to recognize the secessionist republics to criticize countries which did... More »

Iraqi Troops: 'We're Not Ready to Go It Alone'

Officers decry lack of equipment; US pushes independence

(Newser) - Iraq’s army has taken strides toward independence—but it still needs the help of American forces, say Iraqi troops and officers interviewed by the New York Times. “We are too many years behind other countries. We need the coalition forces until 2015,” said one officer. But American... More »

A Weekend for 2 Nations to Celebrate

400th anniversary of Quebec City offers chance to reflect: historian

(Newser) - Tomorrow is Independence Day, but north of the border today marks the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City, the first settlement of New France and one of the oldest cities in Canada. David Hackett Fischer, a historian writing in the New York Times, uses the occasion to explore... More »

Post-Soviet States May Be Hot Zone in New Cold War

As NATO creeps eastward, imperial ambition ties Russia to breakaway regions

(Newser) - Unsettled ex-Soviet republics could become the scenes of proxy battles in a new cold war, the Christian Science Monitor reports, with the breakaway Georgia region of Abkhazia a case in point. The US and NATO are backing Georgia, with Russia supporting the separatists. "Tensions are growing very fast, and... More »

This Is 'Playing.' This Is 'Outside.'

Backlash against oversheltering kids gains some traction

(Newser) - Using the flap over a New York 9-year-old allowed to find his own way home from Bloomingdale's as an example of a sea change, Rosa Brooks, writing in the Los Angeles Times, reminds us that allowing children to be outside on their own used to be the norm. "'Play,... More »

Israel Celebrates, Reflects at 60

'Yes, there are flaws ... but behind the flaws a wonderful country is hidden,' speaker says

(Newser) - Thousands gathered across Israel today for the nation’s 60th Independence Day celebration, the Jerusalem Post reports. At one ceremony, lawmaker Dalia Itzik first remembered the 22,437 Israelis killed in conflict since 1860. "Friends, you are not, and you will never be alone. We will never be able... More »

Ex-Soviet Monkeys Survive 15-Year Limbo

Breakaway republic can barely support survivors from better times

(Newser) - Traumatized monkeys once the subjects of Soviet experiments are odd remnants of a more prosperous time in Abkhazia, an area of Georgia that calls itself independent, the Los Angeles Times reports. The area was crippled in its effort to break away from Georgia, but the 286 primates living in a... More »

Kosovo Eager for Freedom's Ring

New nation resents being stuck with Serbian dialing code

(Newser) - Kosovo has won recognition as an independent state from three dozen countries, but a call to the world's newest nation is a reminder of its history. Telephone numbers in Kosovo still begin with the old Serbian dialing code, and the breakaway republic now wants its own international prefix. It's not... More »

Taiwan Moves Toward Closer Ties With China

Prez candidates favor warmer relations, despite Tibet violence

(Newser) - Both candidates in Taiwan's presidential election Saturday favor mending fences with China, the Wall Street Journal reports. Beijing has recently eased its once-blustery rhetoric over the breakaway island, and both Taiwanese parties are betting that closer ties with the mainland's booming economy could help pull theirs out of a slump. More »

US, EU States Recognize Independent Kosovo

Spain withholds nod; prez gets ahead of US State Dept.

(Newser) - The US and major European states recognized Kosovo as an independent state today, reports Reuters. Condoleezza Rice issued an official statement several hours after President Bush jumped the gun by saying in a speech in Africa that Kosovo is "now independent." His Secretary of State said later: "... More »

Taiwanese Nationalists Win Big

Party seeks reunification, while independence-seeking president reels from results

(Newser) - Taiwan’s China-friendly opposition party dominated parliamentary elections today, the BBC reports, dealing a blow to the hard-line president 2 months before his own poll. The KMT, which supports closer ties with Beijing, trounced the ruling DPP, winning 72% of the seats in the 113-seat chamber. President Chen Shui-bian, resigning... More »

Rhodesian PM Ian Smith Dies at 88

Broke from Britain and defended white minority rule for 15 years

(Newser) - Ian Smith, the Rhodesian leader who unilaterally declared independence from Britain in 1965 and defended white rule for 15 tumultuous years, died today at 88. Seen as a symbol of  African colonial-era racism, Smith was unrepentant during his lifetime, arguing that what is now Zimbabwe suffered more under the tenure... More »

Taiwan Leader Pans Chinese Peace Proposal

Chen eschews 'one China,' maintains nation's independence

(Newser) - Taiwan's Chen Shui-bian panned a Chinese peace overture, criticizing the adherence to what he calls "the framework of the 'one China' principle." "I think this would mean, for the 23 million people of Taiwan, a treaty of surrender," said the president, referring to China's refusal to... More »

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