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Flares thrown in Melbourne protest

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Tina Greco - Melbourne:
Flares were thrown and a police car was damaged during a protest in Melbourne last night against Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia.

About 200 people protested outside the United States consulate in St Kilda Road, after earlier gathering at Federation Square about 9pm, police said.

According to police, a couple of flares and some bottles were thrown during the protest, which lasted outside the consulate for about one hour.

"One police vehicle had a back window damaged when it was hit by a bottle in St Kilda Road,'' a Victoria Police spokesman said.

Police said no arrests were made as a result of the noisy protest, and there were no reported injuries.

In world news, Serbia said it was recalling its ambassador to the US after Washington recognised Serbia's breakaway province of Kosovo as independent.

Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica told a special session of parliament the US move continued NATO's aggression, which began when it bombed Serbia in 1999 to expel its forces from Kosovo and stop a brutal Serbian crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists.

He said Serbia would announce similar steps against any other countries that recognised Kosovo but did not mention the EU states that also said today they were recognising Pristina.

Kostunica said recognition showed the "true face" of America's policy of force.

"Kosovo has not been lost but a new page in our history has begun. The main goal of Serbia's state policy is the return of Kosovo to Serbia," he said in the address carried live on state television.

He said an EU police and justice mission that would soon be deployed to Kosovo was illegal and represented a breach of Serbian sovereignty.

He appealed for peaceful protests by Serbs after two days of at times violent protests in Belgrade.

"Serbia has to maintain stability in order to regain Kosovo," he said.

Kosovo declared independence yesterday after almost nine years under UN administration. The US and the EU's biggest nations recognised it as a new country today.

with Reuters

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