The north has ruled Nigeria since independence (a southerner was in charge for just six years), but the rioting after Abiola's death is said to have persuaded many northerners that it is time to cede power.
Although Serbia's president, Boris Tadic, congratulated the Montenegrins on independence (and said he would be in charge of Serbia's armed forces), Mr Kostunica and the nationalists around him appeared barely capable of taking in what had happened.