The Prime Minister Hashim Thaci of Kosovo and the already former Serbian province's parliament officially declated Kosovo's independence from Serbia. It is favored by the European Union and USA, but opposed by Serbia and Russia.

A Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Wednesday that if Kosovo unilaterally declared independence it would lead to a new escalation in the Balkans.

A party led by ex-guerrilla Hashim Thaci has won Kosovo's parliamentary election, according to unofficial results, and is set to lead it into a showdown with Serbia on the ethnic Albanian majority's demand for independence.

Serbia's predominantly Albanian province of Kosovo is holding parliamentary elections Saturday, amid the breakaway region's drive for officially recognized statehood.

A senior State Department official Wednesday reaffirmed U.S. backing for giving Kosovo supervised independence if negotiations over the status of the United Nations-administered Serbian province do not produce an agreement by December 10.

Russia’s foreign minister insists there are alternatives to Kosovo becoming independent. Serbian and ethnic Albanian leaders remain bitterly opposed about Kosovo's future.

Members of the international contact group on Kosovo Thursday urged parties to the dispute to engage in serious and constructive talks as negotiations on the region's final status enter their final stage with a December 10 deadline looming. Serbia warned at the U.N. that an independence move by Kosovo would destabilize the world.

Any proclamation of independence by Albanian-dominated Kosovo from Serbia could trigger a chain reaction around the globe, Russia's foreign minister said Tuesday.

Kosovo's Prime Minister set the scene for continued standoff over the political status of the contested province Monday by refusing to consider any solution other than independence at meetings this week.

In recent days, Serbian officials have offered mixed messages about how Serbia would react if Kosovo declared independence. Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic told London's "Financial Times" that Serbia would not threaten military action, although he said a declaration of independence by Kosovo would open a "Pandora's box" in the region.

What future for Kosovo? Early last spring, it seemed the formally Serbian province populated mostly by ethnic Albanians was poised to gain full independence, in accordance with a plan by United Nations envoy Martti Ahtisaari, the former Finnish president.

Serbia's minister for Kosovo confirmed that Belgrade has been receiving off-the-record proposals that it form a confederation with its predominantly Albanian province, but said such an agreement was out of the question.