Throng of Kosovo Serbs Seek Russian Citizenship; 21,733 Request Citizenship for Russian Protection

The Russian website RIA Novosti reports on November 15, 2011 that more than 21,000 Kosovo Serbs have applied for Russian citizenship, according to Zlatibor Djordjevic, a spokesman for the Old Serbia movement.

"We have handed over 21,733 Russian citizenship requests to the Russian embassy in Belgrade," Djordjevic said.

He said the letter -- addressed to the Russian State Duma -- will be delivered to the lower chamber of the Russian parliament via the Foreign Ministry. Djordjevic added that more Serbs may turn to Russia for protection.

"By all possible means, we tried to get protection from our country, but it pushes us back into the state which we refuse to recognize," Djordjevic said.

Kosovo -- a state comprised mainly of Albanian Muslims -- seceded and declared its independence from Serbia in February 2008. About 10 percent of Kosovo's two million people are Serbs, who are primarily of the Eastern Orthodox faith.