Thus spoke Clark: NATO simply could not break that spirit

Thus spoke Clark: NATO simply could not break that spirit

Clark who died at his New York home, at the age of 94, was also known as a sharp critic of US foreign policy and an opponent of US military interventions. In July 1999. he made an indictment against the US and NATO for aggression against the FRY.

Clark's testimony, published on the occasion of 20 years of aggression against Yugoslavia in the book "78 days of the apocalypse - the truth accuses", was transmitted in its entirety.

"During my two trips to Yugoslavia (at the beginning and at the end of the NATO aggression), I saw hundreds of different direct hits on civilians.

Two decades have passed since the NATO aggression on Yugoslavia and the bombing that caused enormous material damage, many people were killed then, many were wounded, and many are still dying and will die as a result of depleted uranium used.

That was a crime for which no one has borne the consequences yet. We have been talking about it for years and we should not stop talking about it. I was personally convinced that it was all done illegally and that many innocent people were killed.

I traveled to Yugoslavia twice, at the time of the bombing, when I saw with my own eyes and heard the naked truth, which was presented differently in the world's leading media. That is why I would like to take this opportunity to remind you of what I have repeated many times, as well as the indictment against those responsible for the crimes committed.

First of all, I would like to remind you all of what Dr. Martin Luther King once said, using his words as a prologue to this testimony: "The biggest catalyst of the global violence is my own country."

It is amazing that we do not feel these words as a moral burden, even though those works are the most visible truth of our time. We don’t even think twice about the fact Brian Becker recently indicated, when he announced that the Pentagon will spend 300 billion dollars on weapons. That is, in fact, only a small part of what we will give for that purpose since not all data are presented completely transparently.

It is obvious that this figure exceeds the combined military budgets of all other countries within the United Nations Security Council. To make this truth less visible, we are told of the new ‘great evils’ of the world, reiterating how much the Chinese arm their military forces. They will actually spend only a tenth of that number, some $ 34 billion.

At the same time, we do not pay attention to the fact that our weapons are dominantly weapons of mass destruction. We have the most perfect and deadly systems, capable of creating total ecocide. It could literally take just two launches from our Trident 2 nuclear submarines, to cover the hemisphere, and target 408 population centers in just one launch. Should we launch twice, the number goes up to 816 centers and the warheads of these weapons are ten times more powerful than those that once devastated Nagasaki.

Let's just stop and think for a moment; look at the example of engagement in the case of FR Yugoslavia, and the way NATO acts; do not forget - we are its backbone. Until the ceasefire, NATO troops did not step on Kosovo or Yugoslavia but bombed the area from a distance. They boasted of precision and success, and then it turned out quite the opposite. They bombed helpless people.

They killed thousands directly, and tens of thousands indirectly and as a result of their actions, various lethal means they used, not to mention radiation, dangerous chemical poisoning, environmental pollution, and unforeseeable environmental consequences.

During my two trips to Serbia (at the beginning and at the end of the NATO aggression), I saw hundreds of different direct attacks on civilians. These attacks were aimed at no other targets but civilian ones, all of them with the intention of committing the most direct sufferings of these innocent people. And, unequivocally, those were not mistakes. Almost all of their bombing campaigns were like that.

We mustn’t forget when the war began, NATO bragged about its successes on daily basis, reporting to the Western and international public (deceived from the very beginning), how many Serbian armored weapons it had destroyed. Later, it will be established that all estimates were exaggerated, even ten times, and in many cases absolutely false. The only things they unmistakably hit were civilian facilities and public infrastructure.

In fact, the state and its people were destroyed. The FRY army FRY was incomprehensible, due to its skillful maneuvers and tactics applied. It was shown and confirmed that they could not break the spirit and resistance of the people of Yugoslavia, but they made their lives bitter, difficult, and stagnant. They made it miserable and painful for many future generations. They themselves knew and could see that, as I did, while I was watching fifty thousand people protesting and defying the NATO bombing on the Republic Square in Belgrade, or on its bridges.

That nation was not intimidated and shaken, but indignant and determined to endure all the hardships imposed on them. Their attitude was nothing unknown from before, from the previous history; you can bomb them, but you can't break their spirit. You can make their lives difficult and miserable, but you cannot take their future away from them.

All 19 counts of the indictment against those responsible in the case of the bombing of FR Yugoslavia were supposed to be scrutinized. First of all, 19 ways of killing and destroying life. Each way deadly in its own way, directly or efficiently, some were horrible, some were slow and painful, due to radiation and incurable diseases, some due to chemical or other toxins and polluted environment, which will affect many future generations.

NATO's responsibility is indisputable; during the 78 days of aggression, NATO used high-tech methods of killing, without a visible perpetrator. This does not mean that there are no criminals: inspirers, commanders, and perpetrators. We, as a civilized and advanced world, must face this. If we are not ready for that, if we cannot stop it in the future, what is the hope for this world??

I would like to emphasize another aspect of the NATO campaign against the FRY, and it concerns the false accusations and imposing false guilt on the opponent, in order to gain support for the war campaign in front of its own public. Let us remember how, day after day, images of the American bombing of Pristina came together, as a supposedly precise and dosed action by "criminal Serbian forces". And in reality, it was completely meaningless, unnecessary, and unjustified destruction of the heart of Pristina, without any military infrastructure.

After NATO occupied Kosovo and Metohija, when the NATO soldiers entered Pristina, the horrors and consequences of their bombing were seen. And then, without a blink of an eye, it was said: "Look at what Serbs did to Pristina!". That is how they spoke about the bombing of the University of Pristina. I was there and saw how, on the fifth, sixth day of the bombing, several important buildings of higher education were blown up, and those were not military targets. Could it be anything other than a war crime, committed by war machines paid for by American citizens?

I also saw how the Chinese embassy in Belgrade was destroyed. And all meaningless excuses about the alleged confusion of those who marked that facility as a military target. Touching was the sublime image of the people of Belgrade and Yugoslavia leaving piles of flowers next to the Chinese embassy, expressing condolences for the suffering of innocent diplomats.

I also remember the NATO action near the hospital in Nis, and its huge complex with a yard that looked like a scene from street fights during the Second World War. All buildings were leveled by cluster bombs. We also saw five unexploded bombs. What kind of a target could the hospital yard make, to hit it by cluster bombs made to level everyone within a hundred meters from the place where they explode. Hence, it is not surprising that those who are ready to use them in such places, against civilians, the sick, and the infirm, call these deadly devices ‘mom bombs.’ When we see all this, can we say it publicly, we are the ones doing it! We did it! Or, someone did it on our behalf.

The hardest thing I had to say in Yugoslavia was at a time when I spoke at the University of Belgrade. I felt that it was cruel, but I had to say: "You are now suffering a bombing that seems completely unbearable, but it will be even worse once the bombing gets over." Only then comes the confrontation with the essential causes and consequences that resulted from the bombing, and which will leave a deep mark in the history of the people. We all have to face that. It is not enough to reveal the truth, it is also important to act on it.

We must carefully redefine what needs to be done, and look at the essential processes, in terms of the future role of NATO. NATO cannot and will not replace the United States in the role of the largest bully on this planet, but it will redeem our capacities for becoming even more violent and powerful. That is why soldiers from other countries will be "on duty" and keep peace on the ground, which, according to their standards, will be imposed by the USA. In that role, and with a NATO uniform, they will have to be ready to get involved in the resulting conflicts.

In this area, with the help of NATO, a lot of things could get "Balkanized", in general, political fragmentation, and then used to create and encourage controlled wars, redraw borders, and fragment territories further, down to the smallest parts. And that is why, considering the essential reasons for NATO's intervention against the FRY, I was ready to file an indictment against those responsible for the crimes committed."