Ltr in response to "Kosovo cannot wait." Financial Times

Ltr in response to "Kosovo cannot wait." Financial Times

letters.editor@ft.com

 

The Financial Times

 

Letter to the Editor(s)

 

13 November 2006

 

Regarding "Kosovo cannot wait," of 13 November, it never ceases to amaze me how generous other people are with other people's sovereign property, considering today that there are more practicing Muslims in Britain than there are practicing Anglicans, where British banks no longer give piggy banks as gifts for fear of offending the Muslim community, or where Muslims have openly declared, "We will replace the Bible with the Koran!" and where signs were carried in front of British Parliament saying, "Islam.  Our religion today; your religion tomorrow!

 

It may not be too long before Britain will have the same problem as there exists in Kosovo between Muslims and Christians and where today Kosovo is a region dominated by Muslim war criminals engaged in sex slavery, prostitution, murder, kidnapping and drugs. 

 

I wonder how generous the advice from The Financial Times will be when (not "if") the Muslim population outnumbers Britain's Christian citizens upon their demand for either autonomy or independence.

 

Be careful what you wish for.  You just may get it!

 

Stella L. Jatras

USA

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The following is from today’s Financial Times.

Kosovo cannot wait              http://www.ft.com/cms/s/3ba4939a-72bb-11db-a5f5-0000779e2340.html

Published: November 13 2006 02:00 | Last updated: November 13 2006 02:00

The international deadline set for the settlement of the Kosovo question - the last big territorial issue left by the collapse of Yugoslavia - is starting to slide. On Friday, Martti Ahtisaari, the United Nations' Kosovo talks envoy, postponed the announcement of his settlement proposals until 2007, abandoning plans to act before the year-end.

While a few weeks' delay is tolerable, any longer postponement could undermine hopes of a peaceful settlement and of a brighter future for one of Europe's most troubled regions.

Kosovo's majority ethnic Albanians want independence for a province that has been UN-ruled since 1999, when Nato troops forced out Slobodan Milosevic, former Serb leader. But Kosovo remains legally a part of Serbia - and Serbs insist it must remain so.

Mr Ahtisaari is expected to propose conditional independence in which Kosovo wins limited de facto sovereignty minus the full trappings of statehood. But even this will be too much for most Serbs. So he has delayed his announcement until after Serbian elections on January 21 - for fear that his plans would fuel extremist support.

Moderate Serb leaders are playing for time. Their tactics are not utterly hopeless. Russia, Belgrade's old ally, is pursuing more assertive foreign policies in every quarter - Kosovo is no exception. Moscow has signalled it sees the Ahtisaari plan as only a draft. With the US favouring early independence, the real bargaining is yet to come.

There are risks in imposing an early settlement. Belgrade could stir up Kosovo's Serbs, break transport links and - just possibly - provoke violence. But it must see that only the Serb-majority zone in northern Kosovo could possibly benefit. Serb communities in the south would face total isolation, or worse.

However, the dangers of international inaction are greater. Delay poisons Kosovo by preventing ethnic Albanians taking responsibility for their future and hampers economic development, as few companies will invest in a stateless zone. And, worst of all, it risks provoking renewed violence from frustrated ethnic Albanians.

An early settlement would give maximum political benefit to moderate ethnic Albanian leaders, creating the best environment for them to deal in future with Kosovo's Serbs and with Belgrade.

The likely settlement would also, rightly, impose tough conditions on Kosovo, including the presence of foreign troops and of a European Union supervisory mission. Local Serbs would have a lot of autonomy under decentralisation plans. Kosovo would be forbidden from merging with next-door Albania or the ethnic Albanian region of Macedonia. There must be no talk of Greater Albania.

Belgrade must be wooed with pledges of more solid EU ties. The Union faces huge challenges in the region. It must show it is still ready to shoulder the burden. The former Yugoslavia is too close to home to ignore.

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2006

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Kosovo: False calm before the real storm?

Kosovo: False calm before the real storm?

Kosovo: False calm before the real storm?

By M. Bozinovich

In the immediate aftermath of the successful referendum in Serbia on its new constitution, the EU foreign Minister Javier Solana congratulated Belgrade on referendum's orderly conduct and suggested that it is an important step in aligning Serbian legal structure with that of the European Union whose membership Serbia covets. In Washington, likewise, there was an approval of the referendum, while both, the EU and US stressed that the Kosovo status process must go on and Serbia is obligated to accept the results of the negotiating process.

Solana's and Washington's favorable reaction to the Serbian constitutional referendum was immediately objected by Albania, Kosovo Albanians and the International Crisis Group.

Albania blasted the Serbian constitutional referendum as "unacceptable" because it complicates the diplomatic negotiation on Kosovo at a time when, presumably, the UN Security Council is suppose to vote on amputating Kosovo from Serbia, and Serbia, finally got itself a constitution that major powers recognize and will have to consider what it says for any decision making process.

Albanian President Alfred Moisiu then raised the specter of violence with a claim that in case the Serbian referendum complicated the decision on Kosovo and precludes its independence then such "postponement of the decision on the final status of Kosovo will activate the extremist forces in the two countries." The countries Moisiu was referring to that will turn violent and extremist is Albania and Kosovo.

Kosovo Albanians dutifully dismissed the referendum as "not deserving a comment" so that by keeping their silence, Kosovo Albanians endorsed Moisiu's threat of violence and thus escalated their hostility against Serbia with whom Kosovo shares the longest border in case it ever becomes independent.

The International Crisis Group, however, sought to produce, at least some, civilized evidence for this forlorn dud and join the ethnic Albanian political body in malevolent attacks of spite on the Serbian state. In it's media release titled Serbia's Constitutional Referendum: A Question Of Validity, the Group sought to delegitimize Serbian referendum by making claims that it has witnesses that saw mass voter fraud although the only authoritativeness of that press release may be the appearance of a colon in the title that imitates serious analysis.

So says the Group: "Witnesses and videotape evidence indicate that many voters were permitted not only to vote without providing photographic identification," writes the Group and adds that "entire referendum process was deliberately skewed in advance by the authorities."

That ethnic Albanian political leadership is, indeed, seriously upset by the Western endorsement of the new Serbian constitution was expressed by ICG’s Belgrade director, James Lyon, who roared in his blog on the web site of B92 with a Stalinist parody of the Serbian referendum.

Anywho…

Land-for-protection offer

The EU appears less alarmed by the ethnic Albanian threats of violence then Washington.

"The issue of the future status of Kosovo is a different matter that is being dealt with by [UN envoy] Martti Ahtisaari," said European Commission spokeswoman Krisztina Nagy and left the matter at that.

Washington, however, was quick to send its envoy Frank Wisner to Kosovo while some "unnamed" diplomats told the Kosovo Albanian newspaper Ekspres that UN is prepared to take away Serbian sovereignty over Kosovo but was not willing to grant full independence.

"Although the draft solution on the status of Kosovo, presented to the Contact Group by the mediator in the negotiations Martti Ahtisaari, does not contain the term independence, it provides for authorizations that could lead to conditional independence", wrote the daily citing some unnamed source who may have spoken in order to lay some ground work in advance of Frank Wisner's discussion with Kosovo Albanians.

Nevertheless, this is a significant development because it is the first time that, supposedly a Washington-based, unnamed source has altogether sidelined independence, unconditional and conditional, from the negotiating table.

In the past, this "unnamed" source close to the Contact Group was first promising an unconditional independence, then a "precisely worded" Security Council Resolution that will recognize Kosovo independence once some 13 criteria are met by Albanians, then rumors floated of a supervised independence and now the independence is sidelined altogether and replaced by administered sovereignty.

The point here is that there is a gradual and sustained reduction in the levels of independence that the Contact Group is offering to Kosovo Albanians and that for every reduction in the independence offer we have an escalation of independence rhetoric in the media in order to compensate for the anger the reduction may cause to the ethnic Albanian political leaders.

Exhausting All Independence Options

It then emerges that the deadline that Washington is chasing may be more for military reasons then for any practical matters of diplomacy that sound logic dictates.

"You need only three people, one landmine, one flag and a press communique to have an incident," says Macedonian Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki after talks with EU officials. Then he added that it is always best to take difficult decisions in the Balkans in winter before the snows melt and fighters can take to the mountains.

Since the Serbian army is mostly a mechanized mobile force that prefers to stay away from mountains, it follows that whatever the tough decision Contact Group makes, that decision will trigger Kosovo Albanian military reaction against the NATO troops on the ground.

It is perhaps this forward diplomatic knowledge of the effects of the actual decision that prompted NATO to sign military withdrawal rights through Serbia last year while using media to raise Kosovo Albanian expectations through the heavens not that they will ever be delivered but in order to tranquilize and perhaps set the most extremist elements of the Kosovo Albanian leadership in power and for a dramatic fall.

It is unlikely that the 1,100 US military personnel will institute the fall because they are there to stay. Recent beating of an American serviceman by Kosovo Albanians in a gas station demonstrates the precariousness of these troops that are afraid to even retaliate for that brutal beating although many know the names of these Kosovo Albanian drug-military gangsters that did the beating.

Before and if any military action breaks out in Kosovo, Washington appears to be engaged in a demonstration to the Kosovo Albanian leadership that it is willing to explore all diplomatic venues and thus exhaust all independence options. Given that independence is taken off the table, Washington has delinked sovereignty from independence and is publicly peddling that mantra.

Promising that he will press on the issue of an administered sovereignty with Belgrade, Wisner probably asked Kosovo Albanians in his recent visit for some additional token bargain that he could offer once he arrives in Belgrade.

According to a UPI report, once in Belgrade, Wisner said that in an independent Kosovo minority Serbs will be the best protected national group in the Balkans although, a wise diplomat that Wisner is, he should have known how ridiculous this "land-for-protection" offer sounds.

Wisner then proceeded to real business of reminding Serbia that status decision is near, a code word for urging Belgrade to quickly ratify the constitution because the idea of writing a new Serbian constitution suddenly became a paramount issue in Serbian politics only after Serbian President Tadic's visit to Washington in early October.

As the showdown on the decision on Kosovo status rapidly approaches the Security Council table, Washington and the British are also refining their promises to Kosovo Albanians arguing that, despite Russian and Chinese promises to veto independence, the Security Council will allow other states to recognize Kosovo Albanian independence.

“The Security Council would issue a mandate for a mission led by the European Union and invite individual countries to recognize Kosovo,” says said Anthony C. Welch of Britain, the coordinator of a review of Kosovo’s future security needs commissioned by the United Nations.

In other words, Kosovo Albanians are no longer promised any independence and, based on the track record of broken promises, a sane Kosovo Albanian politician now in power should not believe anything that the West is saying.

Instead of independence then, Washington and London are telling Kosovo Albanians that the Security Council will veto independence, that the EU will come in to rule Kosovo and perhaps, if they are good pets, individual countries may recognize them.

Will there be criteria for recognition? If so what is it? Is there a time line and if so what is it? Kosovo Albanians have no answer to any of these concrete questions yet they are blindly believing anything that Washington and the British promise to them.

According to a Reuters report, Agim Ceku expressed this blind trust in Western powers to grant Kosovo independence by the end of 2006.

“We trust the international community to drive this process through to the correct conclusion," Ceku said in a speech at Chatham House, the foreign policy think-tank, after meeting the British government on final status talks.

According to another unnamed senior European diplomat in the Kosovo capital Pristina the Security Council will offer Kosovo Albanians a solution proposal that only appears to have characters of independence but in reality, Kosovo Albanians will not get it.

“He doesn't mention independence but Ahtisaari is describing the criteria which characterise an independent country,’ the unnamed one said.

As a result of a Security Council deadlock, no independence but only promises, Kosovo Albanians would unilaterally declare independence and thus instigate a crisis with Serbia.

At that point, the Resolution 1244 would be suspended because it would be replaced with another. The language of the resolution that replaces the 1244 will dictate what happens after Kosovo Albanians unilaterally declare independence.
http://www.serbianna.com/columns/mb/052.shtml


                                   Serbian News Network - SNN

                                        news@antic.org

                                    http://www.antic.org/

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WT EDITORIAL "HERE COMES KOSOVO"

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WT EDITORIAL "HERE COMES KOSOVO"

FYi: This is my comment on the  subject editorial I sent to the WP.  I am sure they will  not print it, but I am confident that some of their honchos will read it,....I hope with some thought....   

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TO:  Editor, Editorial Page
     The Washington Post

SUBJECT:  EDITORIAL "HERE COMES KOSOVO"  (11/10/06)


     It is generally known and accepted that most Americans do not know, understand or like history, which most other cultures accept and study as an invaluable source of knowledge and experience. "Mater studiorum," the old Romans used to call it.

     Less informed Americans, on the other hand, look at history as an unnecessary burden that can only have a negative influence on the present state of affairs. That is best reflected in the saying, "You are history," which is usually directed at someone who has little to say or is possibly  too closely associated with the past.

     The Washington Post editorial, "Here Comes Kosovo" (11/10/06) is a perfect example of willful ignorance with respect to the Serbian province of Kosovo, the very cradle of the Serbian nation. Nowhere does the editorial note that Kosovo, which means in Serbian, the field of black birds, has been a part of Serbia, ever since the Serbs moved to it in the sixth century, four centuries before any Albanians  were heard of in the Balkans,

     Moreover, the editorial says that "By incorporating Kosovo into a new constitution, Serbia's leaders staked out yet another of the reckless nationalist stands that have caused their country so much  damage in the past 115 years." Wrong again! It is the malevolent ignorance of historic facts, so grossly displayed by The Washington Post and other similarly inspired American publications that has caused so much damage to a small but brave nation and a loyal ally in two world wars. The Serbs do not want what belongs to others, but they will not give away what is rightfully  theirs.

     I am fully confident that the US and its citizens will react in the same way if someone suddenly decides that Southern California and/or New Mexico should secede just because there are more Spanish speaking Mexicans living there.

     The "2 million enraged Albanians" in Kosovo, need to control their "meltdown" or just go where they came from, the neighboring Republic of Albania. Most Albanians came to Kosovo during World War II. with the help of the Albanian  volunteer SS Division Skenderbeg, and during Marshall Tito's rule of Yugoslavia that maintained an open border with Albania as a show close wartime relationship between Yugoslavia's communist leader Tito and Albania's communist leader Enver Hoxha. Ever since then the incoming Albanians have systematically  ethnically cleansed Kosovo of untold numbers of Kosovo Serbs.

     The Washington Post editorial writers should study history. That would assure, at least, more meaningful and more accurate editorials

                         Michael Mennard, Ph.D.
                             20804 Noble Terrace #312
                               Potomac Falls, VA 20165
                              tel. 703/450-0789
                            e-mail:  mmennard@aol.com   

 

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Here Comes Kosovo

A decision to make the Serb province independent is near. Will Serbia and Russia obstruct it?

Friday, November 10, 2006; Page A30

THE SERBIAN parliament formally adopted a new national constitution on Wednesday, following its narrow approval by voters in a referendum last month. The document was a necessary replacement of the previous charter, which was adopted during the rule of nationalist warlord Slobodan Milosevic. But it may have won acceptance only because it included a preamble that would have warmed Mr. Milosevic's heart: a declaration that the province of Kosovo, which Serbia in effect lost seven years ago, is an "integral" and "inalienable" part of the country.

In fact, the United Nations, which has governed Kosovo since NATO freed it from Mr. Milosevic's brutal ethnic cleansing campaign, is due to decide the province's future by year-end -- though a decision may be delayed until after a Serbian election scheduled for late January. Serb leaders know what a U.N. mediator will recommend and what all Western governments will support: independence for the territory, perhaps with transitional conditions. Kosovo is populated overwhelmingly by ethnic Albanians; after the ethnic war Mr. Milosevic initiated, there is no chance the province can be returned to Serbian sovereignty. By incorporating a claim to Kosovo into a new constitution, Serbia's leaders staked out yet another of the reckless nationalist stands that have caused their country so much damage in the past 15 years.

They also set the stage for some difficult and potentially dangerous diplomacy between the Bush administration and Russia over the next two months -- negotiations that could settle or destabilize the Balkans and the equally volatile Caucasus region on Russia's southern border. Russia, Serbia's long-standing ally, is the largest potential obstacle to consensus in the U.N. Security Council on a Kosovo solution. Though he knows that independence for Kosovo is inevitable, Russian President Vladimir Putin is hinting that he may support Serbia's obstructionism. He may hope to extract favors from President Bush in exchange for his eventual cooperation -- such as U.S. acquiescence to Russia's entry into the World Trade Organization.

Or Mr. Putin may try to use Kosovo to trigger a showdown with his Caucasus neighbor, Georgia, which has infuriated him by embracing liberal democracy and seeking integration into Western institutions such as NATO. Mr. Putin has said that Kosovo's independence could be a precedent for Moscow-sponsored breakaway regions in Eurasia, including two rebel provinces of Georgia. If Western governments recognize Kosovo's independence, Mr. Putin could respond by recognizing Abkhazia and South Ossetia. This could easily trigger a war that would draw in Russian troops; meanwhile, Moscow's position could encourage Serbs in Kosovo and Bosnia to set up splinter states.

Moscow is no doubt hoping that as the Bush administration contemplates this scenario, as well as its continuing need for Russian help in stopping Iran's nuclear program, it will be bluffed into postponing any decision on Kosovo or will abandon its support of Georgia's democracy and NATO aspirations. Either would be a serious mistake. Putting off Kosovo's independence would only enrage the province's 2 million Albanians and trigger the Balkan meltdown that the West hopes to avoid. It would also encourage Mr. Putin's growing tendency to use threats -- whether of energy-supply interruptions or violence -- to get his way with the West.

washingtonpost.com - Editorials and Opinions10/11/2006 

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/09/AR2006110901821.html?nav=rss_opinion

                                 

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The Battle for Kosovo

The Battle for Kosovo

http://www.antiwar.com/malic/?articleid=9980

 

AntiWar.com

November 9, 2006

 

The Battle for Kosovo

by Nebojsa Malic

[Adapted from remarks given before the Njegos Endowment for Serbian Studies, Columbia University, New York, Nov. 3.] Not Decided Yet If one were to be informed strictly by the mainstream media in the English-speaking world, it would be very hard to harbor any doubts about the future status of Kosovo. The occupied Serbian province – though, of course, never referred to as such, but always as a region with a 90 percent Albanian majority – is expected to declare independence within months, if not weeks, with the full support of Washington, London, and Brussels. Could it be, however, that these tireless tirades about the "inevitability" of Kosovo's separation are an effort to counter the fact that it is by no means inevitable, perhaps not even as likely as it would have been several years ago? Albanian arguments for secession are well known: majority of the population, a claim to self-determination, allegations of Serb repression, atrocities, "ethnic cleansing," etc. Most of this is fiction, the rest quite irrelevant. There is only one real argument, that of force. NATO's 1999 intervention and the subsequent occupation of Kosovo have created a "reality on the ground." But since the civilized world still hesitates to endorse naked aggression, the case for "Kosova" is dressed in humanitarian clothing and the rhetoric of "liberation." Logic favors the Serb arguments, though. If the borders of the Yugoslav republics were declared sacrosanct in an effort to deny the Serbs west of the Drina their right of self-determination in the 1990s, then Serbia's borders ought to be sacrosanct, too, no matter how loudly the KLA complains or how violent it gets. ICG founder Morton Abramowitz dismisses this as "Serbs seeking perfect reasoning," but there's nothing perfect about it. It is simple logic, unlike the completely irrational "logic" of the Empire, which proclaims one rule today and a completely different one tomorrow to suit its own caprices. As Doug Bandow once remarked, the only rule in the Balkans seems to be "the Serbs always lose." For what it's worth, then, the law is firmly on Belgrade's side as well; no other country in the world has been forced to give up a part of its territory to a separatist minority, especially not through illegal occupation as a result of illegal aggression. It took the post-Milosevic leadership in Belgrade five years to understand this basic concept, but they appear to have lined up behind it to the best of their ability. This is why the Contact Group – an abomination resurrected from the ashes of Europe's dark past – has organized the "negotiations" on Kosovo's status as a way to pressure Serbia to voluntarily surrender its occupied territory. In the words of one commentator, it is an offer to declare rape consensual. Power and Control What happened in 1998 and 1999 was not a result of Albanian lobbying. It came about as a result of joint policy by imperialists in America and Europe who saw Serbia as an obstacle to their control of "Southeastern Europe." Albanians were used as a weapon against Serbia. This is why Kosovo did not become independent in 1999, and has not become independent yet. The 1999 war was more than just a distraction from Clinton's sexcapades; other people were involved as well. Many principals of NATO's endeavor are still around, or have been promoted. Take for example Javier Solana, then secretary-general of NATO, now the de facto foreign minister of the EU. More to the point, the worldview imposed by NATO in 1999 – the asserted "right" of those with military power to attack anyone, anywhere, on a fabricated pretext, in direct violation of international law, conventions, and treaties – is dominant today. The destruction of Yugoslavia was partly engineered – certainly encouraged – by imperialist politicians in Europe and America, as a way to claim more power, escape the confines of international law, and flex their newfound imperial muscle. In 1990, a German who dared envision the Bundeswehr occupying a portion of Serbia following the Luftwaffe bombing of Belgrade would have been arrested on charges of glorifying the Nazi past. Yet both of those things came to pass and were praised as "progress." Today, the German military is girding for more foreign intervention, without a word of protest. In 1991, Americans wanted a "peace dividend" from four decades of gearing up for war with the Soviet Union. What they got was a "benevolent global hegemony" that seeks to insert American money, troops, and bombs into every corner of the globe that a handful of policymakers in Washington believes crucial to ongoing American world supremacy. If rumors about Ahtisaari's proposal are true, the Empire is trying to establish a Bosnia-style arrangement in Kosovo, which would give Albanians independence on paper but make them a dependency of the EU in fact. As said here before, this sort of "solution" is the worst of all worlds; the Albanians would continue to blame everyone else for the barbaric state of their society and economy (for which they have only themselves to blame), taking that anger out on the few remaining Serbs – who will be cut off from Serbia and trapped in "diversity reservations" much as they are now – and the transient imperial bureaucrats, who will cower in their compounds much as they do now and issue statements about how democracy and human rights in "multi-ethnic" Kosovo are doing just fine, thank you very much. This isn't about Serbs or Albanians; it's about power and control. Soul of a Nation Kosovo is much more than 15 percent of modern Serbia's territory, or a depository of mineral wealth, as some materialistic analysts dub it. It is the birthplace of Serb ethnic identity. Every nation has its own "creation myth." Americans celebrate their own every 4th of July: the Declaration of Independence, George Washington and the Continental Army, the Boston Tea Party… For Serbs, it is a hot summer day in 1389 when their quarrelsome nobles rallied to offer battle to the invading Turks. Perhaps the actions of Prince Lazar and his nobles were not so pure as the oral tradition made them out to be – but they nonetheless inspired such a tradition, and ensured that a spirit of liberty and honor persevered for the next 400 years under the cruel Ottoman yoke. This tradition infuriates the modern "liberals" and "democrats," who – true to their Communist roots – fear and despise religion, deny objective morality, and wallow in relativist drivel. It is not a coincidence that the loudest and most obnoxious Serb-haters in Serbia itself are formerly privileged members of the Old Regime and their young protégés. The Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary, Imperial or Nazi Germany, the Comintern, or the American Hegemony: every force that saw Serbia as a threat throughout its modern history has sought to deprive the Serbs of Kosovo in some way, recognizing its value to the Serb identity – sometimes more than the Serbs themselves. A Matter of Values On Oct. 29, Serbian voters narrowly approved a new constitution, which asserts in the preamble that Kosovo is an integral part of Serbian territory. The constitution is far from ideal; it is too long, too cumbersome, too vague, and suffers from political correctness and welfare-statist nonsense. And it alone will not preserve Kosovo, nor make Serbia a better country. The American Constitution was written over two centuries ago, and is still one of the best in the world – yet the U.S government has bent it out of shape for decades. Had any of the Founding Fathers imagined the modern federal bureaucracy and the taxation it requires to stay afloat, they would have surely chosen to remain English. If it does not embody the values and beliefs of the population that created it, a constitution is nothing more than a scrap of paper. It is the values and beliefs – or lack thereof – that matter. If Serbs truly value Kosovo, they have to assert not just sovereignty over the territory, but also a desire to live there. Otherwise, what is the point of keeping it in the first place? The biggest advantage the Albanians have in claiming Kosovo is that they want it. They also want other parts of Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Greece, but they can't even dream about any of that without Kosovo. Liberty is a big part of Serb tradition. And property rights are inseparable from liberty. According to land registers, vast portions of the province are the outright property of the Orthodox Church (the name Metohija means "church land," after all). Yet how can Serbia claim Kosovo on that basis, while refusing to restore the property rights of the Church at home, or those of people whose possessions were seized by the Communists in 1945? Not Theirs to Give Struggling to rediscover their identity, culture, and tradition after decades of Communism, the Serbs need to decide whether to rebuild it on the already existing foundation of Kosovo, or choose something else altogether. One alternative being offered is "Euro-Atlantic integrations," democracy, and human rights – a worldview appealing greatly to the residues of Communist thinking. A Serb poet commented last year: "If Kosovo is not ours, why are they asking us to give it up? If it is theirs, why are they taking it by force? And if they can take it by force, why they are so circumspect about it?" The Empire is pushing hard for the ruling circles in Belgrade to give up Kosovo, declare the rape of 1999 consensual, and abandon claims to law and principle in favor of temporary expedience. It is not a trade; the Empire is not offering anything. To take Kosovo, the Empire needs Serbia's consent. Much as some people in Belgrade would be happy to oblige, that consent is not theirs to give. The battle for Kosovo is not over yet.

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Kosovo: Bulgaria, Macedonia and Montenegro have betrayed Serbia

Kosovo: Bulgaria, Macedonia and Montenegro have betrayed Serbia

Read it in Russian

In the last months, the head of the interim government of Kosovo Agim Ceku have visited a number of countries to enlist their support for Kosovo's independence. He visited the US and the UK, Bulgaria and FYR Macedonia. Ceku's visits have not gone unnoticed: the world community is very much interested in what status Kosovo will get and in what stance the UN SC and Contact Group members and Balkan states have on the matter. Special attention was given to Ceku's Nov 3 visit to Montenegro, who quite recently voted to secede from Serbia.

In Montenegro Ceku met with the prime minister, the speaker of the parliament, the FM, and all of them treated him as the head of the government of a state. Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic said that the key topic of his talk with Ceku was not the status of Kosovo but the future of the region and good neighbor relations between Montenegro and Kosovo. Ignoring the fact that Kosovo is an integral part of Serbia, Djukanovic stressed that, despite its status, Kosovo is Montenegro's neighbor and so, the sides should be interested in being good neighbors.

Djukanovic and Ceku exchanged their views of how to eliminate structural restrictions to the liberalization of the energy and other markets in the Balkans and how to attract big investors in the region. They also stressed the need to open new border crossings for bringing closer the business interests of Montenegro and Kosovo and discussed ways to strengthen border control and to jointly fight organized crime. Djukanovic said that Montenegrin and Kosovan government delegations would meet to discuss the return of Kosovan refugees in Montenegro.

Concerning the status of Kosovo, Djukanovic said that Montenegro is interested in the urgent resolution of this problem – under the agreement between Belgrade and Pristina and with the consent of the world community – and is ready to support any decision to be passed by the world community. Ceku used his visit to state once again that the provision of Kosovo with independence is the only permanent decision. He once more expressed conviction that this decision will be made by the end of this year.

During his visit to Montenegro, Ceku also met with the leaders of the Albanian parties in Montenegro and with the heads of the Albanian community of Ulcinj, a municipality where Albanians constitute over 70% of the population. Ceku said that the Albanian community in Montenegro has always been constructive: it has never posed a threat to the country's interests but, on the contrary, has actively protected them. Ceku commended the Albanian community for their active role in the current processes in Montenegro and expressed hope that "the Montenegrin Government will respond positively by guaranteeing the exercise of the rights of Albanians in Montenegro."

It is not clear what rights Ceku meant, but it is known well that the Montenegrin Albanians want autonomy and hope that Kosovo's independence will help them in the matter. Some people believe that the Montenegrin authorities invited Ceku to Montenegro with a view to improve their relations with the local Albanian minority after the Sept 2006 arrest of Albanian extremists from the Movement for the Rights of Albanians in Montenegro. On Nov 6, Montenegrin Public Prosecutor Vesna Medenica said that this group, together with the fighters from the so-called Kosovo Liberation Army, were plotting terrorist acts in the territory of Montenegro.

The visit of Ceku has received a very negative response from the opposition parties of Montenegro, who said that it was "a scandal that will cause grave political consequences" and "an attempt to stab in the back the Serbian leaders and all Serbs in the Balkans." The Socialist People's Party of Montenegro said that the invitation of Ceku, "the well-known representative of the Kosovan extremists," was an act of open support for those forces who want to separate Kosovo and Metohija from Serbia. "The visit of Ceku, who is suspected of having committed military crimes against Serbs, Montenegrins and other non-Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija, looked especially provocative as it took place right after the adoption of the Constitution of Serbia and exactly at the moment when the world community is trying to solve the problem of Kosovo and Metohija in line with the UN Charter and UN SC Resolution 1244."

The Democratic Serbian Party said that "now that Serbia is taking active diplomatic steps to keep Kosovo from secession and the problem of the status of this southern Serbian region is entering the final stage, the invitation of Ceku to visit Montenegro was a non-diplomatic act" and can be interpreted as an interference in the internal affairs of another state. The Socialist People's Party of Montenegro said that "by inviting Ceku, Djukanovic and his regime have openly taken the side of the Albanian extremists in Kosovo and Metohija," while the People's Party of Montenegro said that "by so doing they have shown support for the Ceku separatist regime" and that "Montenegro's independence gained with the decisive support of Albanians was just the first step towards the possible secession of Kosovo and Metohija from Serbia." The party urged all opposition parties to initiate a special parliamentary session for considering "the Montenegrin authorities' open support for the Albanian separatists in Kosovo."

They in Serbia have strongly criticized the invitation of Ceku to Montenegro. Serbian President Boris Tadic said that it was "an unacceptable and unnecessary gesture" by Djukanovic now that the sides are negotiating the future status of Kosovo. They in the Serbian Government said that Kosovo is an inalienable part of Serbia rather than "a neighbor state for Montenegro" as the Montenegrin officials said. Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica warned the Montenegrin Government that they "should respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia in line with the UN Charter and the international law. Otherwise, they will be responsible for possible serious consequences in Serbian-Montenegrin relations."

The G-17+ party said that the position of the Montenegrin authorities does not contribute to the development of good neighbor relations between Serbia and Montenegro and must be condemned, while the secretary general of the Serbian Radical Party Aleksandar Vucic said that it was "the most shameful act in the history of Montenegro" and "the Montenegrin authorities just returned the favor done to them during the referendum [on Montenegro's independence]." The Socialist Party of Serbia demanded that the Serbian authorities show tough reaction to this "anti-Serbian gesture" of the Montenegrin leadership. The Blitz daily (Belgrade) said that "Djukanovic may go into history as the person who restored Montenegro's independence but he is also the person who spoiled Montenegro's relations with Serbia — the first and most natural ally."

Djukanovic and Montenegrin Foreign Minister Vlahovic denied the charges and said that the talks with Ceku have not spoiled Montenegro's relations with Serbia, who remains the country's key partner, and were not aimed at influencing the talks for Kosovo's future status.

In their turn, the Kosovan authorities have blamed Serbia for interfering in the policies of its neighbors. The spokeswoman of the Kosovan Government Ujlpijana Ljama said that Serbia should accept the new reality in the Balkans. However, some forces in Kosovo think otherwise. The Serbian Vece believes that the decision of the Montenegrin authorities to officially receive Ceku has deeply hurt the Serbs and the Montenegrins in Kosovo. However, this step was not unexpected as Djukanovic is deeply in debt to the Albanian community for his stay in power all these years.

After his visit to Montenegro, Ceku continued his tour: he visited Albania, on Nov 6 he went to Slovakia, where local officials told him that the decision on Kosovo's status requires absolute consensus and that the Kosovan authorities should refrain from one-sided steps. And now Ceku is planning to go to Moscow and is waiting for the Russians' response to his wish to visit Russia for explaining the stance of the Kosovan leadership…

Permanent news address: www.regnum.ru/english/736189.html
 

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Kosovo, Montenegrin Separatists In Criminal Collusion

Kosovo, Montenegrin Separatists In Criminal Collusion





http://www.regnum.ru/english/736189.html


Regnum (Russia)
November 11, 2006


Kosovo: Bulgaria, Macedonia and Montenegro have
betrayed Serbia



-Some people believe that the Montenegrin authorities
invited Ceku to Montenegro with a view to improve
their relations with the local Albanian minority after
the Sept 2006 arrest of Albanian extremists from the
Movement for the Rights of Albanians in Montenegro. On
Nov 6, Montenegrin Public Prosecutor Vesna Medenica
said that this group, together with the fighters from
the so-called Kosovo Liberation Army, were plotting
terrorist acts in the territory of Montenegro.
-"The visit of Ceku, who is suspected of having
committed military crimes against Serbs, Montenegrins
and other non-Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija, looked
especially provocative as it took place right after
the adoption of the Constitution of Serbia and exactly
at the moment when the world community is trying to
solve the problem of Kosovo and Metohija in line with
the UN Charter and UN SC Resolution 1244."
-"Montenegro's independence gained with the decisive
support of Albanians was just the first step towards
the possible secession of Kosovo and Metohija from
Serbia."



In the last few months, the head of the interim
government of Kosovo Agim Ceku has visited a number of
countries to enlist their support for Kosovo's
independence.

He visited the US and the UK, Bulgaria and FYR
Macedonia.

Ceku's visits have not gone unnoticed: the world
community is very much interested in what status
Kosovo will get and in what stance the UN Security
Council and Contact Group members and Balkan states
have on the matter.

Special attention was given to Ceku's Nov 3 visit to
Montenegro, which quite recently voted to secede from
Serbia.

In Montenegro Ceku met with the prime minister, the
speaker of the parliament, the FM, and all of them
treated him as the head of the government of a state.

Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic said that
the key topic of his talk with Ceku was not the status
of Kosovo but the future of the region and good
neighborly relations between Montenegro and Kosovo.

Ignoring the fact that Kosovo is an integral part of
Serbia, Djukanovic stressed that, despite its status,
Kosovo is Montenegro's neighbor and so the sides
should be interested in being good neighbors.

Djukanovic and Ceku exchanged their views of how to
eliminate structural restrictions to the
liberalization of the energy and other markets in the
Balkans and how to attract big investors in the
region.

They also stressed the need to open new border
crossings for bringing closer the business interests
of Montenegro and Kosovo and discussed ways to
strengthen border control and to jointly fight
organized crime. Djukanovic said that the Montenegrin
and Kosovan government delegations would meet to
discuss the return of Kosovan refugees in Montenegro.

Concerning the status of Kosovo, Djukanovic said that
Montenegro is interested in the urgent resolution of
this problem – under the agreement between Belgrade
and Pristina and with the consent of the world
community – and is ready to support any decision to be
passed by the world community.

Ceku used his visit to state once again that the
provision of Kosovo with independence is the only
permanent decision. He once more expressed his
conviction that this decision will be made by the end
of this year.

During his visit to Montenegro, Ceku also met with the
leaders of the Albanian parties in Montenegro and with
the heads of the Albanian community of Ulcinj, a
municipality where Albanians constitute over 70% of
the population.

Ceku said that the Albanian community in Montenegro
has always been constructive: it has never posed a
threat to the country's interests but, on the
contrary, has actively protected them.

Ceku commended the Albanian community for their active
role in the current processes in Montenegro and
expressed hope that "the Montenegrin Government will
respond positively by guaranteeing the exercise of the
rights of Albanians in Montenegro."

It is not clear what rights Ceku meant, but it is
known well that the Montenegrin Albanians want
autonomy and hope that Kosovo's independence will help
them in the matter.

Some people believe that the Montenegrin authorities
invited Ceku to Montenegro with a view to improve
their relations with the local Albanian minority after
the Sept 2006 arrest of Albanian extremists from the
Movement for the Rights of Albanians in Montenegro. On
Nov 6, Montenegrin Public Prosecutor Vesna Medenica
said that this group, together with the fighters from
the so-called Kosovo Liberation Army, were plotting
terrorist acts in the territory of Montenegro.

The visit of Ceku has received a very negative
response from the opposition parties of Montenegro,
who said that it was "a scandal that will cause grave
political consequences" and "an attempt to stab in the
back the Serbian leaders and all Serbs in the
Balkans."

The Socialist People's Party of Montenegro said that
the invitation of Ceku, "the well-known representative
of the Kosovan extremists," was an act of open support
for those forces who want to separate Kosovo and
Metohija from Serbia.

"The visit of Ceku, who is suspected of having
committed military crimes against Serbs, Montenegrins
and other non-Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija, looked
especially provocative as it took place right after
the adoption of the Constitution of Serbia and exactly
at the moment when the world community is trying to
solve the problem of Kosovo and Metohija in line with
the UN Charter and UN SC Resolution 1244."

The Democratic Serbian Party said that "now that
Serbia is taking active diplomatic steps to keep
Kosovo from secession and the problem of the status of
this southern Serbian region is entering the final
stage, the invitation of Ceku to visit Montenegro was
a non-diplomatic act" and can be interpreted as an
interference in the internal affairs of another state.


The Socialist People's Party of Montenegro said that
"by inviting Ceku, Djukanovic and his regime have
openly taken the side of the Albanian extremists in
Kosovo and Metohija," while the People's Party of
Montenegro said that "by so doing they have shown
support for the Ceku separatist regime" and that
"Montenegro's independence gained with the decisive
support of Albanians was just the first step towards
the possible secession of Kosovo and Metohija from
Serbia."

The party urged all opposition parties to initiate a
special parliamentary session for considering "the
Montenegrin authorities' open support for the Albanian
separatists in Kosovo."

Those in Serbia have strongly criticized the
invitation of Ceku to Montenegro.

Serbian President Boris Tadic said that it was "an
unacceptable and unnecessary gesture" by Djukanovic
now that the sides are negotiating the future status
of Kosovo.

Those in the Serbian Government said that Kosovo is an
inalienable part of Serbia rather than "a neighboring
state for Montenegro" as the Montenegrin officials
said.

Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica warned the
Montenegrin Government that they "should respect the
sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia in
line with the UN Charter and international law.
Otherwise, they will be responsible for possible
serious consequences in Serbian-Montenegrin
relations."

The G-17+ party said that the position of the
Montenegrin authorities does not contribute to the
development of good neighborly relations between
Serbia and Montenegro and must be condemned, while the
secretary general of the Serbian Radical Party
Aleksandar Vucic said that it was "the most shameful
act in the history of Montenegro" and "the Montenegrin
authorities just returned the favor done to them
during the referendum [on Montenegro's independence]."


The Socialist Party of Serbia demanded that the
Serbian authorities show tough reaction to this
"anti-Serbian gesture" of the Montenegrin leadership.
The Blic daily (Belgrade) said that "Djukanovic may go
into history as the person who restored Montenegro's
independence but he is also the person who spoiled
Montenegro's relations with Serbia — the first and
most natural ally."

Djukanovic and Montenegrin Foreign Minister Vlahovic
denied the charges and said that the talks with Ceku
have not spoiled Montenegro's relations with Serbia,
who remains the country's key partner, and were not
aimed at influencing the talks for Kosovo's future
status.

In their turn, the Kosovan authorities have blamed
Serbia for interfering in the policies of its
neighbors. The spokeswoman of the Kosovan Government
Ujlpijana Ljama said that Serbia should accept the new
reality in the Balkans.

However, some forces in Kosovo think otherwise. The
Serbian Vece believes that the decision of the
Montenegrin authorities to officially receive Ceku has
deeply hurt the Serbs and the Montenegrins in Kosovo.
However, this step was not unexpected as Djukanovic is
deeply in debt to the Albanian community for his stay
in power all these years.

After his visit to Montenegro, Ceku continued his
tour: he visited Albania, on Nov 6 he went to
Slovakia, where local officials told him that the
decision on Kosovo's status requires absolute
consensus and that the Kosovan authorities should
refrain from one-sided steps. And now Ceku is planning
to go to Moscow and is waiting for the Russians'
response to his wish to visit Russia for explaining
the stance of the Kosovan leadership.

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Kosovo (Serbia): The UN in Kosovo - a Legacy of Impunity.

Kosovo (Serbia): The UN in Kosovo - a Legacy of Impunity.

Kosovo (Serbia): The UN in Kosovo - a Legacy of Impunity.

Amnesty International.

http://web.amnesty.org/library/pdf/EUR700152006ENGLISH/$File/EUR7001506.pdf

 

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The Globe and Mail: Keep an eye on that "damned silly thing" in Kosovo

The Globe and Mail: Keep an eye on that "damned silly thing" in Kosovo

 

THE GLOBE AND MAIL 
31 oct. 2006

 KEEP AN EYE ON THAT ‘DAMNED SILLY THING’ IN KOSOVO

 

 Serbian voters have approved a new constitution that, among other things, reaffirms sovereignty over Kosovo which, since the bombing of Serbia in 1999, has been administrated by the United Nations with the help of NATO troops. The weekend referendum result will further complicate efforts of Western policy- makers to grant independence to Kosovo since, to do so without Serbia’s consent, would violate the U N Charter on territorial integrity and inviolability of borders. Nevertheless, there have been indications that the UN special envoy, Marrti Ahtisaari, will soon recommend that Kosovo be separated from Serbia and become an independent country.

 

This would be a mistake.

 

For the past seven years Kosovo has become one of the most dangerous places on Earth. It is the center of heroin, weapons and human trafficking into Western Europe. Murder and abduction of non –Albanians are a daily occurrence. Civil society is non-existent and living standards are equivalent to those of Haiti. There is evidence that Islamic extremists with Al Qaeda connections are a growing presence. In short, Kosovo has all the characteristics of a failed state. 

 

 Under the watchful eyes of the UN and NATO, more than 200,000 Serbs, Jews, Romans and other non-Albanians have been expelled from Kosovo. Those who remain are in constant danger. And some of those encouraged by the UN to return have been murdered The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Agim Ceku, a former leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army, has been accused of war crimes by the Serbs. He is the man who led Croatian forces in 1993 that over ran Serbian villages protected by Canadian peacekeepers. When his fighters were driven out, the Canadians found all of the civilians and animals in the villages had been slaughtered.

 

 One of the crimes committed by the Albanian majority in Kosovo has been the razing of over 150 Christian churches and monasteries. Many of these churches dated back to the 13th and 14th centuries. Their destruction has been a deliberate effort to remove all semblance of Christian heritage in Kosovo. Shamefully, there has been no international outrage, no serious attempt to apprehend the perpetrators and no expression of alarm or protest on the part of Christian churches in the West.

 

 The U N resolution that ended the bombing campaign against Serbia guaranteed that Kosovo would have a functioning civil society, democratic institutions, security for all citizens and respect for the rule of law. It called for the disarming of the Kosovo Liberation Army and other armed groups. It provided for the return to Kosovo of limited numbers of Serbian security forces to guard the Christian Holy places. And it reasserted Serbia’s sovereignty over Kosovo.

 Sadly, it seems the UN and NATO had no intention of honouring these commitments. These are hard facts and they stand as a testimony of failure. The performance of these two international institutions has been marked by duplicity, double standards and cowardice.

 

Independence for Kosovo would establish a dangerous precedent. President Vladimir Putin of Russia has already warned that a decision to grant Kosovo independence could be applicable to post-soviet territory .He has particular interest in regions of the former Soviet Union that have aspirations for independence. The most volatile ones are the Georgian provinces of Abkhazia and South Ossetia; these two regions broke away from Georgia in 1992 and want independent status. Recognition of Kosovo independence would give them their precedent. And could result in bloodshed with serious implications for world security.

 

Bismarck, once said that the Balkans were not worth the bones of a single Pomeranian grenadier. Yet, he also predicted that, if there were to be another war in Europe, it would be because of some “damned silly thing” in the Balkans. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo in 1914, sparking off the First World War, proved him right.

 

 Ominously, there is again a strong possibility that another “damned silly thing” is taking place in the Balkans: the seeming determination of Western policy makers to grant the Serbian province of Kosovo its independence. In foreign policy, as in other human endeavours, you can’t get good results if you do dumb things.

                    
James Bissett (former Canadian Ambassador to Yugoslavia)

 

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Interview with Jim Jatras: In search for Kosovo solution

Interview with Jim Jatras: In search for Kosovo solution

 

November 1st, 2006

Boba Borojevic interview with Jim Jatras

 IN SEARCH FOR KOSOVO SOLUTION

Message by Bishop Artemije to democratic world:

Do not “tolerate violations of religious freedoms and the extermination of Christianity” in Kosovo by Albanians.

Do not consider “the creation of an independent Kosovo managed by criminals and jihad supporters.”

Bishop Artemije of Raska and Prizren has appealed to the Canadian authorities to use their influence with UN members and NATO to secure ''a re-examination of the wrong policy of the international community in connection with the recognition of the independence of Kosovo and Metohija.'' ''I wonder how it is possible that the international community and the democratic world tolerate violations of religious freedoms and the extermination of Christianity, while they are considering the creating of an independent Kosovo managed by criminals and jihad supporters,'' Bishop Artemije told a press conference held at the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa. During his visit to Ottawa on October 26, His Grace bishop Artemije met with the Parliamentary Secretary of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Peter Van Loan. H.E. James Bissett former Canadian Ambassador to and Jim Jatras, director of the American Council for Kosovo accompanied the Bishop. In the effort to gather as much support for his mission in keeping Kosovo as an integral part of Bishop Artemije and Jim Jatras had similar high-level talks in Washington and Moscow in September and October this year.

 What is the significance of these visits?

Each of the countries you have mentioned is very important to the effort we have been mounting on behalf of the Serbian community in Kosovo, under the spiritual guidance of Bishop Artemije. The American government (my government) is largely the source of the problem. It appears that the Russian government is largely the solution to the problem, and we think that Canadian government can be a very useful catalyst in opening the eyes of the international community to the seriousness of the error, which some people would like to commit in Kosovo. The Canadian government has a very high international reputation regarding the rule of law and observance of international standards. It was with that appeal we came to the Parliament to enlist the support of the Canadian public and government in voicing their opinion against the illegal and unjustified detachment of Kosovo from .

 As a Director of the American Council for Kosovo, adviser to Bishop Artemije and the Serbs from Kosovo, what is your strategy in fighting against enormous pressure by many foreign factors that insist on granting independence to Albanian Muslims in Kosovo?

Essentially, through several ways: One is to broaden the circle of public opinion here in the to focus the concerns of politically and socially active sectors on Kosovo.  This means we are reaching out to groups that are concerned about a number of issues like human rights, religious freedom, global terrorism, and so forth, and directing their attention toward Kosovo, because until now most of these interests are not focused on Kosovo.  Instead, Kosovo is being dealt with by a small group of bureaucrats who made up their minds a long time ago as to what the solution for Kosovo ought to be – independence -- and are still perusing that option. We are trying to make as hard for them as possible. At the same time, the second element -- and that was the reason for our trip to Moscow -- was to remind people there of the extent to which those favoring the illegal detachment of Kosovo from also tend to be the most anti-Russia elements of our government. If is in a position to stand up on strong, legal authority and say, “No, we will not permit the illegal detachment of Kosovo from ,” that places the agenda of these Washington bureaucrats in a very difficult position, because they have no other way to get to their goal without a new Security Council resolution.  Of course the third important element is that Serbian government has been very strong in saying they will not agree to the detachment, and I think that the overwhelming approval of those who voted on verifying the Serbian Constitution reinforced that very strongly.

You have just mentioned your and Bishop Artemije’s visit to Moscow. How much can you count on Moscow support and how serious is Moscow?

There has been an increased assertiveness from that is very different from the kind of policy we saw during the Yeltsin era and even in the early years of the Putin presidency, where we had the color revolutions and NATO expansion and, essentially, just over and over again diktat from Washington, which the Russians were, forced to accommodate. I do not think they feel like being so accommodating any more. ’s cooperation is very much needed for more important areas of American diplomacy having to do with , and so forth. The idea that we can just simply dictate to and they’ll agree to something that is against their interests -- I think that this is something they are tired of over there. They are not going to allow themselves to be pushed around on this one. Now it is less the question of whether Moscow is going to stand up in support of , as much as their being prepared to stand up in defense of their own interests.

We have heard on CNN two days ago, David Gergen—editor-at-large for US News and World Report repeating what Clinton and others have said before, that in order to build new bridges of trust so that Muslim lands do not remain a breeding ground for new waves of terrorists, we should point out to these Muslims how much America has sacrificed to protect Muslims in Bosnia and Kosovo. Will this kind of appeasement of Muslims by the West work?

There is no doubt that that kind of thought among many people in Washington is a large part what is wrong with the American policy on Kosovo. The 9/11 Commission, for example, made exactly the same recommendation in its report: that we (the ) need to convey our good will towards the Islamic world through that kind of example. The only trouble with that idea is that it shows a complete and total incomprehension of the Islamic mind on the part of people who say these kinds of things. Looking at any jihad site on Internet will show you that they do not see any good will at all on the basis of this kind of intervention on behalf of Muslims in Kosovo and . On the contrary, they see and Kosovo as just examples of victimization of Muslims by non-Muslims, and it doesn’t matter by whom -- by Americans, by Israelis, by Russians, by Serbs, by Indians. That is all what they see from their point of view. The idea that is going to buy any good will in the Islamic world by that kind of action is absurd. They just do not understand what they are talking about.   

Kosovo is part of and will remain so. This is what we have heard from Bishop Artemije and you during your visit to Ottawa. How could we in and elsewhere help?

One very important thing – and this is something that was clear during our visit to Ottawa – is to keep in mind that Bishop Artemije is the shepherd of a flock that will be eradicated if Kosovo becomes an independent state. Bishop Artemije speaks out with an overwhelming moral voice in support for his Christian Serbian community in Kosovo, for the Christian presence in Kosovo against jihad terrorism and organized crime in Kosovo. Everyone who hears this program in or elsewhere can do two things. First, they should contact their elected representatives and tell them it would be wrong for their government (if they are listening in , the Canadian government, -- in the the American government) to support this illegal detachment of Kosovo from , which would result in a major gain for terrorism and organized crime.  Second, the other very important thing is to do anything and everything that can be done to support Bishop Artemije. Please visit our site www.savekosovo.org . In light of the delay in the decision on imposing a “final status” -- which we now see -- there is an element of growing panic on the Albanian side that things are slipping away from them. We need to build on that momentum. Contact your government, say NO to Kosovo independence -- and support Bishop Artemije.

Boba Borojevic

 

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Kosovo sours relations between Montenegro and Serbia

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Kosovo sours relations between Montenegro and Serbia

Kosovo sours relations between Montenegro and Serbia

November 07, 2006 9:30 AM

PODGORICA, Montenegro-Montenegro's government leader on Tuesday rejected Serbia's criticism about his recent meeting with the separatist leader of Kosovo, the breakaway province whose future status is being discussed in U.N.-mediated talks.

Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic said he saw no problem in meeting last week with Agim Ceku, the ethnic Albanian leader of Kosovo, which has been an international protectorate since the 1998-99 war there between Serb troops and the separatist rebels.

"I absolutely reject any objections from Serbia concerning Ceku's visit ... we did not discuss Kosovo's future status," said Djukanovic, following accusations by Serbian officials that receiving Ceku was a "stab in the back" to Serbia's efforts to prevent Kosovo's secession.

Serbia's leadership has said that accepting Ceku as a visiting statesman meant Montenegro's readiness to recognize Kosovo as a state.

Talks over Kosovo's future are under way under the auspices of the U.N., Western powers and Russia. The province has been run by the U.N. and NATO since 1999 when the alliance's bombing forced Serbs to halt their crackdown on the separatists and pull out.

The crackdown was led by former Serb leader, Slobodan Milosevic, who was toppled in 2000 by pro-democracy politicians. The new leadership contends that, despite Milosevic's devastating brutality in Kosovo, Serbs cannot give up completely on the southern province, considered Serbia's historic heartland.

"It's an inertia of old, failed policies," Djukanovic said about the comments from Belgrade. "Whatever Kosovo becomes in the future, it borders Montenegro" and needs good relations with neighbors.

Montenegro itself declared independence from Serbia earlier this year. Belgrade did not contest that move because Montenegro was a partner republic from the old Yugoslav federation, but insists that Kosovo is not entitled to same.

Ceku declared after his Friday meeting with Djukanovic that Kosovo would follow in Montenegro's steps.

Djukanovic himself is expected to step down as Montenegro's prime minister on Wednesday.

His Democratic Party of Socialists triumphed in recent elections, but Djukanovic, for years the most powerful figure in Montenegro, said he would not seek a third term and has hand-picked a trusted aide, Justice Minister Zeljko Sturanovic, as his successor.

 

http://www.serbianna.com/news/2006/02734.shtml

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Serbia tells Kosovo mediator to quit

Serbia tells Kosovo mediator to quit

Serbia tells Kosovo mediator to quit

Web posted at: 11/7/2006 4:9:31
Source ::: AFP

BELGRADE • Belgrade yesterday told the United Nations envoy to Kosovo talks to resign, accusing him of bias against Serbia in negotiations on the future status of the disputed province.

“It would be best if (Martti) Ahtisaari resigned on his own because he has failed to organise serious talks and achieve a compromise,” the independent FoNet news agency quoted government spokesman Srdjan Djuric as saying.

Djuric accused Ahtisaari, a former Finnish president, of trying to control the talks and impose a solution that he had come up with before they began in February.

“Ahtisaari was certainly not given a mandate to secretly write with Albanians any paper on Kosovo, so it has been a failure in advance,” Djuric said of the negotiations.

Kosovo is formally still a part of Serbia but has been administered by the UN for the past seven years. Its ethnic Albanian majority wants independence but Serbia is not prepared to allow this.

“It is high time that Ahtisaari leaves this job to a new international mediator, who would stick to the UN Charter and international law from the beginning,” Djuric said.

Simultaneously, the Kosovo Albanian negotiating team said there was no reason to continue direct talks with Belgrade because they had failed so far.

“The Unity Team is convinced that the talks with Belgrade cannot bring any outcome. Thus the team is of the opinion that it is absolutely profitless... to even think of continuing the negotiations,” said spokesman Skender Hyseni.

Hyseni told reporters the team was “ready to continue contacts and partnership with the international community untill the (decision on final) status is completed”.

Ahtisaari said in October that eight months of negotiations between Belgrade and the leaders of Kosovo’s ethnic-Albanian majority had led nowhere and suggested a deal be imposed.

He is expected on Friday to present his recommendations to the Contact Group of six powerful nations overseeing peace in the Balkans.

A Kosovo newspaper reported last week that Ahtisaari had proposed offering “limited sovereignty” to the ethnic Albanians, who comprise around 90 percent of the province’s two million population.

Kosovo has been managed by the UN since 1999, when a 78-day Nato bombing campaign halted a crackdown by Serbian forces against Kosovo’s separatist Albanian rebels.

Kosovo has been in limbo ever since. Its future status was set to be resolved by the year’s end. But a decision could be delayed because of an expected Serbian general election in December.

Speaking during a visit the Slovakian capital Bratislava on Monday, Kosovo’s ethnic-Albanian prime minister, Agim Ceku, urged the international community not to delay its decision on the province’s status.

http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=World_News&subsection=Rest+of+the+World&month=November2006&file=World_News200611074931.xml

 

Missing persons in Kosovo

Missing persons in Kosovo

http://www.apisgroup.org/article.html?id=3437

 

APIS Group

 

Kosovo & Metohija

 

 

Are the cases of missing persons in Kosovo science fiction or consciously closed files?
‘Missing’
The real question is: why?

Danijela Slavnic

Unexpectedly for many Kosovo crisis observers, proliferation of terrorism and violence resulted with huge number of cases of missing and kidnapped civilians, mostly non-Albanians (especially Serbs): in the summer of 1998, spring 1999 and during 2000. Actually, last reported kidnappings occurred in 2004. Although such acts of terror were well known to local population and local authorities, eccentric doubts could be summarized with only one question: If victims were held in hidden prisons and if after some time they were executed, where are the bodies?

Searches, investigations, intelligence and identifications took more then 6 years for many international and local authorities who worked on missing person’s cases, but still there are many unanswered questions concerning the fate of missing. There are still discrepancies between the figures: number of reported missing person’s cases doesn’t match with number of recovered and identified NN bodies in Kosovo. This is the factual condition regardless on the missing person’s nationalities, but utmost divergence is with so called non-Albanian cases. The real question is: why?

Recently published story concerning the fate of two Serbian missing soldiers in Kosovo, who were secretly and illegally held in US Army prison in Germany, brought the missing person’s issue to the scope of public again. Sadly, this problem was almost forgotten.

Speaking about treatment and approach to this issue by the local and international authorities, we may see that missing person’s issue was politically hindered. It is not so surprising if this concerns some foreign policies and institutions, but it is odd when this comes to local authorities, especially for some in Serbia proper.

At the very beginning, families of missing person’s and other people offered lot of information that indicated existence of civil, foreign military and local illegal detentions region wide: in Republic Albania, FRY Macedonia, Federation B&H but in Europe too. Such information were treated as unreliable and were never seriously checked – which was intentional informational handling whose aim was to prevent from any professional investigations. Somebody’s plan was to leave aside known and unknown prisons in Kosovo (and region-wide) from police inquiries.

Constant obstacles and underestimations stroke any serious attempt to look after some missing people at designated places. Simply, real searches and operations were impossible. Even in several exceptions, there were no enough courage and will of certain individuals who rather looked into their careers, profit and local politicians then the professional and human values of their duty. It seemed that human lives don’t worth much in the Kosovo’s gloomy ghetto.

In 2000 some people who were reported missing in 1999, managed to escape illegal prison in Tropoja (small town nearby Serbian and Albanian border). The "case" was managed in deep silence by KFOR. The same happened with some missing person’s who were kidnapped in 2000 and managed to escape illegal detention center that was located in northern-east Kosovo in 2001. Again, the case was the mystery. In addition, we could recall many cases from 1998 and at least 10 KLA’s illegal detentions that re-operated after international forces arrival to Kosovo, such as in Jablanica, Musutiste, Drenovac, Pakastica, Junik, Milosevo, Kacanik, Stimlje and many other places throughout Kosovo. Lack of real operational cooperation and activities between Serbian and international security forces resulted in minor results concerning recovery of dead, but not alive victims of kidnappings – although there were a number of possibilities to find somebody alive. However, this never happened. If any person would manage to survive illegal detention, that was because of his/her escape or release by kidnappers – it never happened that international police, KFOR, ICRC, local police or local authorities succeeded to find and release kidnapped and missing people. Bearing this in mind, we can only think about how is this possible? Are the all "professionals" indeed incapable or they are somehow prevented from doing their job?

Families of missing are well introduced with this situation and they have reasonable doubts – to trust no one. More specific situation gain more suffer and efforts for the families of missing soldiers, volunteers and policeman’s, who are confronted with more bureaucracy, rules, roughness of systems and opinionated international and local players. Comparing to other cases, local military and police systems were not provided with prompt equipment, budget and human resources to deal with these cases at the right way. Especially military representatives were played down – by own political establishment and international authorities on the other side. Each attempt to use official intelligence channels, Interpol, European high-levels of ICRC and designated contacts in other countries simply have failed. Sometimes there was no will to initiate such scope of work, but sometimes such attempts were stopped. In several cases operations to raid suspected facilities were intentionally prolonged – once in took almost 30 days, which was too late even for the traces. Under regular circumstances, raids would be done immediately.

Finally, according to some recent experience we shouldn’t be in shock if in the future there will be more cases of missing person’s sudden appearance. Regretfully, we might hope for only small number of "lucky" individuals who somehow managed to survive years of torture and secret imprisonment – or there will be no more survivors to witness horrible and inhumane scenes. But the most horrifying and bizarre is the fact that all of that would never happened if the authorities of all sides involved did their job responsibly, professionally, humanly, fairly, incalculable and fearlessly.

Remarks:

The author is pre-graduate from the Faculty of Security in Belgrade

See also:

- Albanian terrorists (english version) http://www.guskova.ru/misc/balcan/AT/

- KLA and NATO against Yugoslavia http://www.apisgroup.org/pr.html?id=46

- Albanian Terrorism and Organized Crime in Kosovo and Metohija - Albanski terorizam i organizovani kriminal na Kosovu i Metohiji http://www.apisgroup.org/pr.html?id=64
- Jugoslovenska kriza i ratovi http://www.apisgroup.org/pr.html?id=69

27. oktobar 2006. godine

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Briefly: Decision on Kosovo could be delayed

Briefly: Decision on Kosovo could be delayed



 

Briefly: Decision on Kosovo could be delayed

The New York Times 

INTERNATIONAL

Ethnic Albanians' hopes of Kosovo's being granted independence by the end of the year were placed in doubt over the weekend as Secretary General Kofi Annan of the United Nations said talks on the future of the province could be delayed.

Annan told a Croatian newspaper that fears that a UN proposal for Kosovo's future status might influence elections in Serbia, which is struggling to retain its links with the province, meant that the world body might "not stick to the deadlines as we had originally planned."

His comments are the most serious suggestion so far that a timetable advanced by five Western governments and adopted by the UN could be dropped. On Sunday, Annan's office confirmed that negotiations could be extended into next year after Serbia holds parliamentary elections, but maintained that the UN's chief negotiator on Kosovo still aimed to conclude negotiations by the end of the year.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/11/05/news/briefs.php

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