The vote for independence for Montenegro
means that this year's World Cup in Germany has actually just gained
another country in the draw. Having qualified as Serbia and Montenegro
the narrow vote (as yet not finalised) over the 55% threshold means
that the team will have representatives of two states in their squad.
In
political terms it would mean that Serbia, once the hub of Yugoslavia,
will be returned to roughly the same land-locked area it occupied before
the outbreak of World War One. Montenego was last independent in 1918
and follows Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina in voting to
secede from Serbia. Pressure might now also be mounting in the
semi-autonomous Kosovo region to press ahead for their independence as
well.
