UNESCO rejects membership for Kosovo in victory for Serbia.

PARIS (AP) — Members of the U.N. cultural agency narrowly rejected Kosovo's bid for membership Monday, in a victory for Serbia and Russia and a blow to Kosovo's mission for global recognition as a state.

Most nations that participated in the vote at UNESCO headquarters in Paris favored Kosovo's membership, with 92 "yes" votes and 50 "no" votes and 29 abstentions.

The bid needed the support of two-thirds of those voting, or more than 94 "yes" votes, said Stanley Mutumba Simataa, the Namibian diplomat presiding over the vote.

In Pristina, Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga told The Associated Press that the narrow vote was a "missed opportunity" for UNESCO, but vowed to push on with efforts to become "an equal member of the international community."

Serbian officials, on the other hand, were jubilant.

"This decision reflects our intention never to give up Kosovo," Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said in hailing the diplomatic triumph.


By THOMAS ADAMSON.
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