Posted on 12/21/2007 10:06:55 AM PST by kronos77
NATO commanders are now contemplating certain unfavorable scenarios that no one wanted to talk about 8 years ago when the war plans were still on the table and an exit strategy could have been forged. While diplomatic recognition can come as swiftly as the victors care to uncap their pens, real control on the ground will be a different matter. The geographic partitioning of Serbia, in this case, will look interestingly similar to another failed peace initiative: the treaty of Versailles and the disappearance of Weimar Germany.
Firstly, there are simple strategic problems on the ground that will deny Kosovo any sovereignty if NATO troops do not commit to a long and drawn-out presence there, because Serbia and the Kosovar Serbians could easily strangle the tiny country into eventual submission for the following reasons. Firstly, Kosovo's only water supply comes from a Serb enclave in the north of the province, and it would take the permanent presence of NATO troops to guarantee that this source is not threatened by the local community or Serbian terrorists. Further, the future of reliable power generation for Kosovo is also at stake for similar reasons. The only electrical plant is old and in need of repairs, and it is likewise located in the Serbian north of the region. Evidence coming from Iraq and Afghanistan attest to the fact that power plants are extremely susceptible to terrorism and political control, and protecting any investment by the international community to upgrade the capacity would require a substantial investment of troops by NATO. Lastly, Serbia has already announced that it would impose a general embargo for the land-locked territory, virtually guaranteeing that the only major trade and travel routes will be subject to Serbian control.
(Excerpt) Read more at uspolitics.einnews.com ...
Ping!
And exactly when did Clinton say the troops would be home?
Bump!
By this prediction by X-mass 2027.
Great find kronos...here is imo the point of this article:
If Kosovo is to be supported by the US and the EU in its bid for independence, then both partners better be ready to commit for the long run. This seems unlikely with Iraq and Afghanistan draining the national morale of the only partner left in the Coalition of the Willing, so it is just as unlikely that Kosovo will survive as a separate. The last parallel can perhaps already be guessed: out in the darkness, beyond the eastern frontier, lies an oil-rich Russia with close ties to Serbia, and just like the Soviet Union became Germany’s first ally in 1922, it may be that Kosovo- like Poland- could cost the West’s shortsightedness more than was bargained for when the first war began in 1999.
If Kosovo can’t make it without permanent support, then perhaps they shouldn’t become independent. Bunch of dumbasses.
I agree. Autonomy, not independence.
Given that Kosovo has already gone the 'autonomy' route, nobody in their right mind is going to ask the K-Albanians to trust their future to the tender mercies of Belgrade, where Tomislav Nikolic and his band of unreformed nutjobs waits in the wings, again.
I can see our resident Jihadist-supporter (think athletic supporter and you’ll have his true dedication to the cause in mind) can’t stand that the writing for his beloved terrorist state is already on the wall.
Peace and justice will return to Kosovo-Metohija alongside the Serbian Army.
It’s no long a question of if it will happen, only when?
Tough luck, pancakes!
Wake up Hoplite...(shake-shake)...wake up...You were just having a nightmare.
As for the article, the water and energy issue is the least of Kosovo's worries. Had they been paying taxes like the rest of Serbia's citizens, the power and water plants wouldn't have been in such a sad state (we won't go into gross mismanagement and misappropriation of state funds by the Kosovo-Albanian ruling elite).
Far more important realities that make this province's separate existence undesirable are rampant crime, ties with Al-Qaeda, corruption and general backwardness, which is a consequence of the Albanians' long tradition of self-isolation and unwillingness (inability?) to co-exist with non-Albanians. Such a state would only serve as a destabilizing factor in a region that needs anything but.
:)
Ofcourse:)
It never deserved autonomy in the first place, Tito made that mistake in ‘74’ so to give Kosovo to the Albanians on grounds based purely on demographics is an exercise in complete buffoonery, of course YOU would support it.
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