Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, on the evening of January 4, in his annual presentation to present Serbia's achievements, among other things, spoke about the recognitions of Kosovo. According to him, there are nine countries that have already withdrawn their recognition of Kosovo, including Somalia, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Eswatini, Libya, Guinea, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Lucia and the Maldives.
Despite the fact that Vučić publishes the names of the states that have withdrawn recognition of Kosovo, he does not provide official information or facts (diplomatic notes) to support his claim.
Vučić's claims made headlines in Serbian-language media on January 4.
Links to articles published in Serbian-language media:
https://www.alo.rs/vesti/politika/711437/povlacenje-priznanja-vucic-kosovo/vest
Excerpts from articles published in Serbian-language media:
THE PRESIDENT of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, has warned of difficult challenges regarding Kosovo and Metohija and listed the countries that have withdrawn recognition of the so-called Kosovo.
We have not provoked anyone, unless someone considers it a provocation that we respect our Constitution and protect citizens. We did not make a single incident, not a single wrong move. We cannot stand up to great powers, we are small, Germany, America and Europe are big… We are small, but today as things are in the world, 106 countries do not recognize Kosovo. All 84 unequivocally admit that three countries are not clean. Nine have withdrawn: Somalia, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Eswatini, Libya, Guinea, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Lucia, Maldives – said Vučić.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić announced at his annual press conference the names of the countries that have withdrawn their recognition of Kosovo's independence. Somalia, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Eswatini, Libya, Guinea, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Lucia and the Maldives withdrew their recognition of Kosovo's independence, Vučić said.
Apart from publishing the names of the states that, according to him, have withdrawn recognition of the state of Kosovo, he does not provide credible diplomatic documentation (diplomatic notes) as evidence of his claims.
Hibrid.info has researched the official websites of the ministries of foreign affairs of the states mentioned as withdrawing recognition of Kosovo and has not found any information or public statements about withdrawing recognition of Kosovo as an independent state. (The websites of the ministries of foreign affairs of Somalia, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Eswatini or Swaziland, Libya, Guinea, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Lucia and Maldives)
Furthermore, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora of the Republic of Kosovo has announced that there is no announcement in the official diplomatic institutions of Kosovo about the withdrawal of recognitions of Kosovo.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora of the Republic of Kosovo announces that there is NO notification in the MFA nor in the missions of the Republic of Kosovo about yesterday's claims by the Serbian president that some countries have withdrawn recognition. Such a claim has not been confirmed either after conversations with representatives at various levels of these countries, or after consultation with important partners of our country." (here)
The Serbian president's claims have also been translated and published in several Albanian-language media outlets, leaving room for these claims to be taken for granted. (see here, here and here)
Analyze:
The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, does not provide official diplomatic information (diplomatic notes) to substantiate the claims made about the withdrawal of recognitions.
Likewise, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora of the Republic of Kosovo has announced that there is no notification in the official diplomatic institutions of Kosovo regarding the withdrawal of recognitions.
Hibrid.info has researched the official websites of the ministries of foreign affairs of the states mentioned as withdrawing recognition of Kosovo and has not found any information or public statements about withdrawing recognition of Kosovo.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info considers the Serbian president's claims to be "unverified content".
Reasoning:
The “Unverified” rating is given to those media reports that do not provide sufficient information to confirm the claims made in the report, and which have not been able to confirm the same due to the lack or non-possession of reliable sources.