Macedonia announced on Thursday that it has officially recognized Kosovo's independence after the parliament adopted earlier in the day a resolution calling for the recognition of the breakaway Serbian province, news reaching here from Skopje reported.

Macedonia's Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki said his government made the decision following a parliament's resolution calling for Kosovo recognition.

A total of 85 out of 120 lawmakers in the parliament voted for the resolution submitted by ethnic Albanian legislators while one voted against it. Another 16 abstained from casting their ballots.

Kosovo, a southern Serbian province where 90 percent of its 2 million people are ethnic Albanians, unilaterally declared independence in February.

It has been recognized by more than 40 countries, but its independence is vehemently opposed by Serbia and Russia.

"The decision to recognize Kosovo by Macedonia, as EU candidate country and Montenegro, as a potential EU candidate country is a result of careful political assessment," the governments of both countries said in a joint statement.

(Xinhua News Agency October 10, 2008)