ODYSSEY (A Greek Magazine)-USA Roots of the Kosovo Crisis

Banner of Liberty ^ | September/October 2006 | Stella L. Jatras

[Doctor13]

John Sitilides and Sarah K. Norman are correct when they state that "U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns has been the leading architect of Kosovo policy in the Bush Administration." [The Kosovo Connection, May/June 2006]. What should have been added, however, is Mr. Burns' anti-Serb animosity that was evident when he was spokesman for the Clinton administration.

A critical question is whether "a democratic referendum" for independence will be open only to the residents of Kosovo which are over ninety percent Kosovo Albanian, or will it be opened to all of Serbia since Kosovo is still a province of Serbia. If the case is the latter, then Kosovo Albanians make up only nineteen percent of the country. It is interesting to note that Albanians became the majority in Kosovo primarily after Communist dictator Josip Broz Tito, in his hatred for the Orthodox Christian Serbs, encouraged the illegal crossing of Muslim Albanians into Christian Kosovo.

The roots of this crisis in Kosovo can be traced back to the breakup of Yugoslavia and the formation of Bosnia. The tragedy is that all of the suffering, bloodshed, and deaths in the Balkans might never have happened if it had not been for the meddling of our Department of State. In what is known as The 1992 Lisbon Agreement, the three Bosnian leaders representing the Croats, Muslims and Serbs, endorsed a proposal that the republic be a confederation divided into three ethnic regions, similar to the "Benelux in the Balkans" proposal by Dr. Achilles Skordas. It was then that our American Ambassador to Yugoslavia, Mr. Warren Zimmermann, advised Mr. Izetbegovic, who representing the Muslim party of Bosnia, that "if he didn't like it, why sign it?" Although the Lisbon Agreement was the best opportunity to achieve peace, it failed primarily due to the misguided, ill-advised advice given to the Bosnian president by our state department official that encouraged Mr. Izetbegovic not to sign the agreement which he had originally accepted in Lisbon, a decision which made the war inevitable.

While the Clinton administration was supporting the Bosnian government of Alija Izetbegovic, the embassy in Vienna issued a passport to Osama bin Laden which enabled him to visit Bosnia and Kosovo on four different occasions. As a result many Kosovo Liberation Army fighters were trained in bin Laden's terrorist training camps in Afghanistan.

Former UNPROFOR Commander, Canadian Maj. Gen (Ret.) Lewis MacKenzie said it best: "The Kosovo-Albanians have played us like a Stradivarius. We have subsidized and indirectly supported their violent campaign for an ethnically pure and independent Kosovo.We have never blamed them for being the perpetrators of the violence in the early '90s and we continue to portray them as the designated victim today in spite of evidence to the contrary. When they achieve independence with the help of our tax dollars combined with those of bin Laden and al-Qaeda, just consider the message of encouragement this sends to other terrorist-supported independence movements around the world."

After 9/11, President Bush said that we would do whatever it takes to defend our country, yet we denied the Serbs the right to defend themselves against the same enemy we are fighting today. One thing is evident. If Kosovo Albanians achieve independence, Serbian culture, language and religion will be eradicated. Furthermore the consequences of an independent Kosovo may well result in another mini-Afghanistan, which is certainly not in the best interest of the United States nor of Europe.

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[Southside_Chicago_Republican]

One thing is evident. If Kosovo Albanians achieve independence, Serbian culture, language and religion will be eradicated.

Not to mention that of Montenegro and Macedonia.

See also: "Six U.S. Citizens Have Planned Terrorist Attack in Montenegro"

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1699383/posts

[sandra_789]

bump

[montyspython]

bump

[Bokababe]

Way to go Stella!

[MadelineZapeezda]

After 9/11, President Bush said that we would do whatever it takes to defend our country, yet we denied the Serbs the right to defend themselves against the same enemy we are fighting today

Deserves to be repeated again this 9/11 day.

[eleni121]

critical question is whether "a democratic referendum" for independence will be open only to the residents of Kosovo which are over ninety percent Kosovo Albanian, or will it be opened to all of Serbia since Kosovo is still a province of Serbia

---

I posted a solution such as this months ago. A referendum by all residents of the region...including kosovo and serbia.

They're taking my ideas! At least I had never heard of this solution before I posted it.

As for Burns...nothing personal against him...except he is a state dept creature whose loyalties extend to a bureaucracy that has a dracula like life of its own apart from who occupies the WH. Yes, he should have been demoted just as Tenant should have been sent packing...but that didn't happen.

[sandra_789]

Former UNPROFOR Commander, Canadian Maj. Gen (Ret.) Lewis MacKenzie said it best:

"The Kosovo-Albanians have played us like a Stradivarius. We have subsidized and indirectly supported their violent campaign for an ethnically pure and independent Kosovo.We have never blamed them for being the perpetrators of the violence in the early '90s and we continue to portray them as the designated victim today in spite of evidence to the contrary. When they achieve independence with the help of our tax dollars combined with those of bin Laden and al-Qaeda, just consider the message of encouragement this sends to other terrorist-supported independence movements around the world."

[Banat]

It would be rejected out of hand. My guess is they would use the Quebec case to fight such a proposal (Quebec's sovereignty referenda have been limited to those who have a permanent residence in Quebec). But then again, Kosovo and Quebec are two totally different situations: Quebec/Lower Canada joined the Confederation of its own volition, whereas Kosovo has ALWAYS been part of Serbia. Moreover, it was part of Serbia before even Belgrade became Serbian.

[apro]

Freaken Clintonites, if another one takes office I'm moving to Canada!

[Hoplite]

Although the Lisbon Agreement was the best opportunity to achieve peace, it failed primarily due to the misguided, ill-advised advice given to the Bosnian president by our state department official that encouraged Mr. Izetbegovic not to sign the agreement which he had originally accepted in Lisbon, a decision which made the war inevitable.

This BS again?

After several rounds of talks our "principles for future constitutional arrangements for Bosnia and Hercegovina" were agreed by all three parties (Muslim, Serb and Croat) in Sarajevo on March 18th 1992) as the basis for future negotiations. These continued, maps and all, until the summer, when the Muslims reneged on the agreement. Had they not done so, the Bosnian question might have been settled earlier, with less loss of (mainly Muslim) life and land. To be fair, President Izetbegovic and his aides were encouraged to scupper that deal and to fight for a unitary Bosnian state by well-meaning outsiders who thought they knew better.

Jose Cutiliero, from a letter to The Economist in 1995.

In short, by the time Izetbegovic renounced the Lisbon Agreement, the Serbs were already a couple months into their Bosnian murder/rape/ethnic cleansing spree and had made clear their choice to settle the matter through force of arms rather than negotiations.

Alas, it didn't turn out well, so we're left with this pitiable web based disinformation campaign which looks to distort history and absolve the Serbs of any guilt.

No dice, Doc.