Croatia, Bulgaria and Hungary recognized Kosovo today, joining Canada and Japan who recognized the country earlier this week.

Croatia’s governing coalition, which includes the SDSS, the party of Croatia’s Serbian minority, may pay the price. The SDSS minister, Slobodan Uzelac, tendered his resignation from the government, which was rejected by PM Ivo Sanader. The SDSS will now vote whether to remain in the governing coalition, or whether to try to bring the government down in protest.

For some Croats, recognizing Kosovo is a moral imperative—memories are fresh of Croatia eagerly awaiting international recognition when it declared independence in 1991. For others, especially those with business interests in Serbia, recognition unnecessarily complicates things. The decision to finally recognize Kosovo, however, was probably a precondition set by Washington in exchange for smoothing Croatia’s entry into NATO.

Earlier this year, noises were being made in official circles that Croatia was not yet ready to be admitted within NATO’s ranks. Then, about a week or so ago, it was announced that George W. Bush would visit Croatia immediately following the Bucharest NATO summit where a decision on the country’s NATO accession would be made. Some quid pro quo was probably arrived at.

So is recognizing Kosovo a smart move for Croatia? It’s hard to say. Geostrategically, it’s important that Croatia has decided to firmly place itself in the U.S.-centered NATO camp, thereby rejecting any dalliances with a resurgent Russia, a rising power with clear designs on the Balkans. SDSS’s position—to delay recognition until after Serbian parliamentary elections—was not without merits, however, especially if a more moderate, pro-EU government was to arise in Serbia.