Z6 Prefix: A More Accurate Characterization By N7NG, Wayne A. Mills
The ARRL recently reported that the ITU Secretary General, Houlin Zhou, stated "the ITU has not allocated call sign series Z6 to any of its member states." http://www.arrl.org/news/assigning-k...y-general-says
"Consequently, the utilization of call signs series Z6 by any entity without a formal allocation and consent of the ITU represents an unauthorized and illegal usage of this international numbering resource." - Houlin Zhou
A highly professional legal opinion states that "Kosovo is not an ITU member state and is therefore not eligible to receive a call sign block allocation from the ITU. [The Kosovo] administration has been blocked from joining the ITU and becoming a party to the Radio Regulations. Therefore the characterization of [the] use of the radio callsign prefix Z6 to identify [radio transmissions in Kosovo] as "illegal" is without foundation in international law. At this time the Republic of Kosovo is not a signatory to the [ITU] treaty, although it would be so if objections by others were removed".
Another opinion can be found at
http://www.amateurradio.eu/2018/06/2...litical-arena/
There is little that I can - or should - add to the above. In attempting to find a useful characterization for Kosovo's fit into the DXCC program I looked at sovereignty. In fact, I did considerable research on the topic. Sovereignty is difficult to define. As one ITU/Amateur Radio expert put it: The concept of sovereignty is "squishy". Simply put, it is difficult to define.
There are several generally accepted criteria for sovereignty, but IMO, they are all somewhat vague, and not universally accepted. The ARRL, recognizing this, chose to rely on a third party - The United States Department of State - to simplify matters. For a number of reasons - and IMO - this solution is more than adequate for ARRL's purposes.
The ARRL recently reported that the ITU Secretary General, Houlin Zhou, stated "the ITU has not allocated call sign series Z6 to any of its member states." http://www.arrl.org/news/assigning-k...y-general-says
"Consequently, the utilization of call signs series Z6 by any entity without a formal allocation and consent of the ITU represents an unauthorized and illegal usage of this international numbering resource." - Houlin Zhou
A highly professional legal opinion states that "Kosovo is not an ITU member state and is therefore not eligible to receive a call sign block allocation from the ITU. [The Kosovo] administration has been blocked from joining the ITU and becoming a party to the Radio Regulations. Therefore the characterization of [the] use of the radio callsign prefix Z6 to identify [radio transmissions in Kosovo] as "illegal" is without foundation in international law. At this time the Republic of Kosovo is not a signatory to the [ITU] treaty, although it would be so if objections by others were removed".
Another opinion can be found at
http://www.amateurradio.eu/2018/06/2...litical-arena/
There is little that I can - or should - add to the above. In attempting to find a useful characterization for Kosovo's fit into the DXCC program I looked at sovereignty. In fact, I did considerable research on the topic. Sovereignty is difficult to define. As one ITU/Amateur Radio expert put it: The concept of sovereignty is "squishy". Simply put, it is difficult to define.
There are several generally accepted criteria for sovereignty, but IMO, they are all somewhat vague, and not universally accepted. The ARRL, recognizing this, chose to rely on a third party - The United States Department of State - to simplify matters. For a number of reasons - and IMO - this solution is more than adequate for ARRL's purposes.