Milošević's "private solution" for Kosovo

After reading this article you realize how much Kosovar Albanians deserve to go independent. How much longer will western countries fall for Serbian game.

This just shows how ruthless elected Serb leaders were, and they have not changed much today. Can’t anyone in Serbia see why asking for Kosovo back is completely senseless? "Drenica Model"? How can your conscience allow you to sleep at night knowing what your people are capable of? I, as a human being feel disgusted. Instead of apologizing you are pursuing the same policy. Serbia is misplaced in Europe in my opinion.

I am so glad NATO intervened, otherwise the Albanians would have been exterminated by a MADMAN Miloshevic and his CRONIES.
All these murderers in Hague deserve to be hung. They are worst kind of animals if not like Miloshevic.

Its OK, they will be singing songs again and staying up late the day Kosova becomes INDEPENDENT.
Go KOSOVA --

Bombing of Serbia was premeditated and Kosovo Albanian extremists were only NATO's tool.

Prosecution may try to prove otherwise, but it is an excercise in futility:

1. NATO's training of KLA terrorists is contrary to international norms and NATO's mandate

2. Annex B shows that NATO pressed for military solution.

3. Madelaine Albright admitted that the bar was deliberatelly set too high in Rambouillet

4. U.S. Air Attache Alan J. Parrington is on record stating the following:

As the U.S. Air Attaché in London at the time, I saw a different war, one not so flattering or altruistic. I saw a war of underlying motives, missed diplomatic opportunities, misguided military strategies and questionable outcomes. Worst of all, the war never need happened: Milosevic conceded major U.S. demands two weeks before the war began.

On the evening of March 11, 1999, I was confronted by the Yugoslavian Defence Attaché to the Court of St. James at a British diplomatic reception and told, "Milosevic has decided to accept international, even NATO, troops in Kosovo, but he must first have (a) letter from Clinton explaining the benefits Yugoslavia will receive (in exchange)." I stood there silent, somewhat dumbfounded, as the deployment of foreign troops had been the sticking point in negotiations. The Serb colonel repeated his statement verbatim, questioning if I had understood the import of his message.

"Yes," I assured him, "I understand perfectly, but what benefits are you talking about?"

"I myself do not know," he answered, "But Holbrooke knows!"

Richard Holbrooke, author of the Dayton Accord on Bosnia, had been shuttling back and forth to Belgrade trying to find a peaceful solution to the Kosovo crisis. He had left Belgrade the day before to consult with Washington and was due back in Yugoslavia that weekend. He apparently carried with him a detailed brief of the Milosevic offer.

The timing, place and presence of other diplomats cut short my discussion with the Serb, but by coincidence I had dinner with him at the home of a fellow attaché a few days later. I asked if he had learned any more about the benefits he had spoken of during our last encounter. "I can only speak for myself," he answered, "but there are only three things Yugoslavia must have: Yugoslavia must keep sovereignty over Kosovo, the terrorists (i.e. the Kosovo Liberation Army) must be disarmed, and the referendum (on independence for Kosovo) must be removed." It was apparently too much for the Clinton Administration to accept as Holbrooke's shuttle diplomacy failed and the bombing began March 24.

The war that was supposed to last three days ran into weeks, then months, and had all the appearances of lasting well into the future when, ironically, Russia stepped in and brokered a peace. The war ended June 10 with the United Nations accepting responsibility for Kosovo. When I read the agreement, I was not surprised to see the three Yugoslavian demands had been met or that each side had spun the agreement into a victory for their side. Such is the nature of 20th-century politics. But I began to wonder why it had the taken so much blood to come back to the same starting point as before the war began. There were lots of explanations I reasoned, but none that fit the scenario comfortably, save one.

I came to the conclusion - hypothesis really - that the war had not been about humanitarian issues at all. Like most wars it had been about politics. In this case, the objective all along had been to get rid of Milosevic, Europe's last reigning communist, and whose virulent nationalism had set the region ablaze, sending millions of refugees fleeing to the West where they were not wanted or welcomed.

It was difficult to gauge when Milosevic became the target of the administration's Balkan policy, perhaps as early as 1995 following the debacle in Bosnia. State appointments and initiatives from that time seem to support that theory. In any case, it all hinged on cornering the Serb leader in a war he could not win and for whom capitulation or defeat would spell disaster. Milosevic's Waterloo was thought to be Kosovo, his Achilles heel to be bombing. This is where the strategy went awry.

Adriano, it seems that you can not discern between "prosecutor TRIED to prove" and "it has been proved beyond the reasonable doubt".

Where is the Serb camp now that they should learn something from their past?
A shameful past, no wonder everybody wants to avoid it. But Kosovo is gone people.

This article is a disgrace. B92 should delete it from its servers.

When the ICTY releases the transcript of the hearing that this article pertains to I urge everybody here to compare it to the complete nonsense that has reported here.

This report is frought with major inaccuracies. For example, it talks about Milosevic telling Klaus Naumann that he would "apply a Drenica model" in Kosovo and kill all the Albanians.

Nauman never testified that Milosevic said that. He accused Sainovic of saying it. (see Milosevic trial transcript: June 13, 2002 pg. 6991).

Then we have Seselj's alleged statement that the Albanians would be expelled if NATO attacked. Again, this is inaccurate and malicious. What Seselj said was that the KLA and Albanians who immigrated to Kosovo illegally would be driven over the Prokletije mountains. There is a major difference between deporting illegal immigrants and terrorists, and deporting an entire ethnic group.

SENSE wrote this report and when you go to their website and look who sponsors that so-called news agency. You will find the self-same NATO governments that attacked Yugoslavia. Is it any wonder that SENSE toes the NATO line and accuses Yugoslavia of obstructing the talks at Rambouillet and accuses its officials of threatening to kill or expell the Albanians?

All I have to say is; listen from the hourses mouth and think twice before you post stupid coments.

None of this should come as a surprise. Milosevic never cared about Kosovo, and he cared even less for the Kosovo Serbs. His one and only goal was to seize power and hold onto it for as long as he could. This has nothing to do with the collective Serbian mentality. It has more to do with the unholy alliance made between hardline communist conservatives in Belgrade and nationalists at SANU in 1986.

We seem to forget that in the early 1980s, Serbia was one of the most reform minded of all Yugoslav republics, second only to Slovenia. With increasing foreign debt, rising unemployment, and a decline in the standards of living, reformists were pushing for greater political and economic freedoms, even to the point of advocating multiparty elections. The conservative hardliners saw their interests would be further threatened if this would happen, and while they could not win the economic debate, they shifted focus towards the ethno-nationalist, claiming Yugoslavia was deliberately "anti-Serb" and that further reforms would only spur sectarian strife, as was seen in Kosovo - all at the expense of Serbs.

Because the 1986 Memorandum called for a recentralization of politics and economics, effectively revoking all the reforms made since 1965, the Serbian conservatives found common ground with members of SANU and increasingly fused hardline communism with defending Serbian interests, all for the sake of personally regaining power and authority. Milosevic could use the ongoing instability in Kosovo (and Croatia) as an excuse to power. Of course he wanted war. That would have legitimized his very reason for authority. In the same way Iraq was of no concern to Saddam so long as he remained in power, so too was Serbia for Milosevic.

Why does B92 always leave important facts out?

Maybe show some albums of current events where serbs still shout shesheli slogans and hold pictures of war-criminals. I feel sick to my stomach. You claim to be democratic? You started the war, you, belgrade, by massacring 46 members of the Jashari family in Drenica.

As much as I dislike Albanians they're the majority and we're not. There will be instability if there's no independence and what good would it be to keep Kosovo? I mean what are we really keeping? Its not like any Serbs would go there or even went there during any past decades unless it was the ski resort in Brezovica. But if our politicans don't fight for it we look like quiters and that goes against our rich history of bravery. We should try securing a life for K.Serbs and return refugees. Kosovo was already detached from us during all the past decades only on maps was it truly Serbian.

I agree with Ryan Nielsen, this article is not an example of good journalism. It confuses (I don't know if voluntarily or not, but this is not the question) the NATO high officer's opinions and declarations with the facts.

Learn from the past and try to make the future better. Instead of NATO stopping the forced expulsion of Albanians from Kosovo it allowed forced expulsion of Serbs. Does that make everything ok? Ahmet, i guess since the albanians were looked upon as the victims they allowed back but the Serbs not. So sir you say Kosova as you say for everyone no sir only who you want back. that is the statement Ahmet. Serbia is facing up to the past, question is will the albanians?

Ptoleme,

I found Seselj's alleged article on an Albanian website. http://www.alb-net.com/cleansing.htm

I know Seselj has said a lot of crazy things, but to be honest, I doubt the authenticity of the article because I don't think Seselj would have used the word "Kosova" in his writing. He is also identified as the "deputy prime minister", which isn't a post he held in 1995. In fact, in 1995, Seselj didn't hold any political office because he was in jail for advocating the armed-overthrow of Slobodan Milosevic's government.

This media service is a absolute disgrace to the people of Serbia,no wonder its the only Serbian link you will find on many albanian websites,look at the comments every time 80% are from albanians says enough for me,never again and i will do my best to let every Serb know what a disgrace this service is.
Thanks

Ryan Nielsen, wasn't Seselj the same guy who wrote "The Serb Blueprint for Cleansing Kosovo" in 1995?
Read it if you haven't already. You'll come to the conclusion that people like him are capable of making such statements as B92 has quoted.

Sense" what difference does it make now ??

The question all Serbs should be asking themselves is "What on earth did we Serbs do, or Slobo's govt., in the name of all Serbs, do to evoke Nato's response of 78 days and nights of seeing Belgrade and other Serbian cities burn??

Once the Serbian people answer this question to themselves honestly, then, they might realistically move on by ridding their nation of that disease that has damaged your people for quite some time now.

Ryan Nielsen,

With all do respect, I think you need some more research, I don’t now if you are related to one of the most successful personalities in American society, His name is A.C Nielsen hi is an American Accomplishment( He is the very firs person that innovated the very firs Research Company in early 20th century, and was only 26 years old, and today that company is global company).

You said that ultranationalist Seselj said, “That KLA and Albanians who immigrated to Kosova illegally would be driven over Prokletje Mountains….and that is true publicly is verbatim.

But you have to understand that Albania and Kosova is one is no such Illegal Albanian immigrated to kosova …Kosova is concurred many times during the past century’s, by Serbs starting with Car Dushan, Stephan Nemanja , 1912 by so called Serbian Kingdom and 1945 by so called artificial Yugoslavia.

For your information, I was born in Kosova (artificial Yugoslavia) and so my father and my grandfather, my great-grandfather and my ancestors and I hade so called Yugoslavian passport and ID when the Serbian paramilitary or Tiger that is how they called them self’s. Come to my house hi ask my clearly, live this place and never come back, and he took my passport and my ID, in case I come back than I will be illegal… By the way, I am one among one million people, that was ethnical cleans from Kosova.

I think this will help you. If not try to follow the footsteps of A. C. Nielsen do some more research before you comment about something that you don’t now or hade experience.

(Milos, 16. August 2007 21:50)

Look like quitters? The thing about Kosova or any conflict is that it is rarely about the reason given.

With war you have rules such as "accuse the enemy of your worst crime(s)" and about religion which in reality is all about power. What serbia, like russia, wants power. If yugoslavia existed today, it would have been a big role in EU affairs and elsewhere but it's not. The anti-albanians and anti-independence campaigns are all about power. Serbia ruling yugoslavia had such power, now it is becoming a nokia-state, lol.

People say that Kosovars will never work with each other. That is not true, if you are under struggle whether Kosovar-Albanian or Kosovar-Serbian and the only way to survive is to work together, we know what you'd pick.

Time heals all, and independence sure does help sleep much better at night.

I have been reading the comments made on this site for a while and I really find it very interesting and I just wonder how the legacy is passed on to the new Serb Generation as to have some type of explanation to every fact and idea that fits to Kosovo Albanians. It's just amazing do some of the serbs that write in this site actually believe on what they say? All what happend in Kosovo for decades was somehow "planned" and that all was well for alb's but it's just nobody else in this planet knows it (except Serbs).
Bravo to the new (OLD) minds of the Serbs. I just hope that this time the K-Serbs will learn from their past mistakes and will participate in this last chance for them.

After reading this article you realize how much Kosovar Albanians deserve to go independent. How much longer will western countries fall for Serbian game.

This article is a disgrace. B92 should delete it from its servers.

When the ICTY releases the transcript of the hearing that this article pertains to I urge everybody here to compare it to the complete nonsense that has reported here.

This report is frought with major inaccuracies. For example, it talks about Milosevic telling Klaus Naumann that he would "apply a Drenica model" in Kosovo and kill all the Albanians.

Nauman never testified that Milosevic said that. He accused Sainovic of saying it. (see Milosevic trial transcript: June 13, 2002 pg. 6991).

Then we have Seselj's alleged statement that the Albanians would be expelled if NATO attacked. Again, this is inaccurate and malicious. What Seselj said was that the KLA and Albanians who immigrated to Kosovo illegally would be driven over the Prokletije mountains. There is a major difference between deporting illegal immigrants and terrorists, and deporting an entire ethnic group.

SENSE wrote this report and when you go to their website and look who sponsors that so-called news agency. You will find the self-same NATO governments that attacked Yugoslavia. Is it any wonder that SENSE toes the NATO line and accuses Yugoslavia of obstructing the talks at Rambouillet and accuses its officials of threatening to kill or expell the Albanians?

I am so glad NATO intervened, otherwise the Albanians would have been exterminated by a MADMAN Miloshevic and his CRONIES.
All these murderers in Hague deserve to be hung. They are worst kind of animals if not like Miloshevic.

Its OK, they will be singing songs again and staying up late the day Kosova becomes INDEPENDENT.
Go KOSOVA --

This just shows how ruthless elected Serb leaders were, and they have not changed much today. Can’t anyone in Serbia see why asking for Kosovo back is completely senseless? "Drenica Model"? How can your conscience allow you to sleep at night knowing what your people are capable of? I, as a human being feel disgusted. Instead of apologizing you are pursuing the same policy. Serbia is misplaced in Europe in my opinion.

All I have to say is; listen from the hourses mouth and think twice before you post stupid coments.

Where is the Serb camp now that they should learn something from their past?
A shameful past, no wonder everybody wants to avoid it. But Kosovo is gone people.

None of this should come as a surprise. Milosevic never cared about Kosovo, and he cared even less for the Kosovo Serbs. His one and only goal was to seize power and hold onto it for as long as he could. This has nothing to do with the collective Serbian mentality. It has more to do with the unholy alliance made between hardline communist conservatives in Belgrade and nationalists at SANU in 1986.

We seem to forget that in the early 1980s, Serbia was one of the most reform minded of all Yugoslav republics, second only to Slovenia. With increasing foreign debt, rising unemployment, and a decline in the standards of living, reformists were pushing for greater political and economic freedoms, even to the point of advocating multiparty elections. The conservative hardliners saw their interests would be further threatened if this would happen, and while they could not win the economic debate, they shifted focus towards the ethno-nationalist, claiming Yugoslavia was deliberately "anti-Serb" and that further reforms would only spur sectarian strife, as was seen in Kosovo - all at the expense of Serbs.

Because the 1986 Memorandum called for a recentralization of politics and economics, effectively revoking all the reforms made since 1965, the Serbian conservatives found common ground with members of SANU and increasingly fused hardline communism with defending Serbian interests, all for the sake of personally regaining power and authority. Milosevic could use the ongoing instability in Kosovo (and Croatia) as an excuse to power. Of course he wanted war. That would have legitimized his very reason for authority. In the same way Iraq was of no concern to Saddam so long as he remained in power, so too was Serbia for Milosevic.

Bombing of Serbia was premeditated and Kosovo Albanian extremists were only NATO's tool.

Prosecution may try to prove otherwise, but it is an excercise in futility:

1. NATO's training of KLA terrorists is contrary to international norms and NATO's mandate

2. Annex B shows that NATO pressed for military solution.

3. Madelaine Albright admitted that the bar was deliberatelly set too high in Rambouillet

4. U.S. Air Attache Alan J. Parrington is on record stating the following:

As the U.S. Air Attaché in London at the time, I saw a different war, one not so flattering or altruistic. I saw a war of underlying motives, missed diplomatic opportunities, misguided military strategies and questionable outcomes. Worst of all, the war never need happened: Milosevic conceded major U.S. demands two weeks before the war began.

On the evening of March 11, 1999, I was confronted by the Yugoslavian Defence Attaché to the Court of St. James at a British diplomatic reception and told, "Milosevic has decided to accept international, even NATO, troops in Kosovo, but he must first have (a) letter from Clinton explaining the benefits Yugoslavia will receive (in exchange)." I stood there silent, somewhat dumbfounded, as the deployment of foreign troops had been the sticking point in negotiations. The Serb colonel repeated his statement verbatim, questioning if I had understood the import of his message.

"Yes," I assured him, "I understand perfectly, but what benefits are you talking about?"

"I myself do not know," he answered, "But Holbrooke knows!"

Richard Holbrooke, author of the Dayton Accord on Bosnia, had been shuttling back and forth to Belgrade trying to find a peaceful solution to the Kosovo crisis. He had left Belgrade the day before to consult with Washington and was due back in Yugoslavia that weekend. He apparently carried with him a detailed brief of the Milosevic offer.

The timing, place and presence of other diplomats cut short my discussion with the Serb, but by coincidence I had dinner with him at the home of a fellow attaché a few days later. I asked if he had learned any more about the benefits he had spoken of during our last encounter. "I can only speak for myself," he answered, "but there are only three things Yugoslavia must have: Yugoslavia must keep sovereignty over Kosovo, the terrorists (i.e. the Kosovo Liberation Army) must be disarmed, and the referendum (on independence for Kosovo) must be removed." It was apparently too much for the Clinton Administration to accept as Holbrooke's shuttle diplomacy failed and the bombing began March 24.

The war that was supposed to last three days ran into weeks, then months, and had all the appearances of lasting well into the future when, ironically, Russia stepped in and brokered a peace. The war ended June 10 with the United Nations accepting responsibility for Kosovo. When I read the agreement, I was not surprised to see the three Yugoslavian demands had been met or that each side had spun the agreement into a victory for their side. Such is the nature of 20th-century politics. But I began to wonder why it had the taken so much blood to come back to the same starting point as before the war began. There were lots of explanations I reasoned, but none that fit the scenario comfortably, save one.

I came to the conclusion - hypothesis really - that the war had not been about humanitarian issues at all. Like most wars it had been about politics. In this case, the objective all along had been to get rid of Milosevic, Europe's last reigning communist, and whose virulent nationalism had set the region ablaze, sending millions of refugees fleeing to the West where they were not wanted or welcomed.

It was difficult to gauge when Milosevic became the target of the administration's Balkan policy, perhaps as early as 1995 following the debacle in Bosnia. State appointments and initiatives from that time seem to support that theory. In any case, it all hinged on cornering the Serb leader in a war he could not win and for whom capitulation or defeat would spell disaster. Milosevic's Waterloo was thought to be Kosovo, his Achilles heel to be bombing. This is where the strategy went awry.

Adriano, it seems that you can not discern between "prosecutor TRIED to prove" and "it has been proved beyond the reasonable doubt".

Why does B92 always leave important facts out?

Maybe show some albums of current events where serbs still shout shesheli slogans and hold pictures of war-criminals. I feel sick to my stomach. You claim to be democratic? You started the war, you, belgrade, by massacring 46 members of the Jashari family in Drenica.

As much as I dislike Albanians they're the majority and we're not. There will be instability if there's no independence and what good would it be to keep Kosovo? I mean what are we really keeping? Its not like any Serbs would go there or even went there during any past decades unless it was the ski resort in Brezovica. But if our politicans don't fight for it we look like quiters and that goes against our rich history of bravery. We should try securing a life for K.Serbs and return refugees. Kosovo was already detached from us during all the past decades only on maps was it truly Serbian.

This media service is a absolute disgrace to the people of Serbia,no wonder its the only Serbian link you will find on many albanian websites,look at the comments every time 80% are from albanians says enough for me,never again and i will do my best to let every Serb know what a disgrace this service is.
Thanks

(Milos, 16. August 2007 21:50)

Look like quitters? The thing about Kosova or any conflict is that it is rarely about the reason given.

With war you have rules such as "accuse the enemy of your worst crime(s)" and about religion which in reality is all about power. What serbia, like russia, wants power. If yugoslavia existed today, it would have been a big role in EU affairs and elsewhere but it's not. The anti-albanians and anti-independence campaigns are all about power. Serbia ruling yugoslavia had such power, now it is becoming a nokia-state, lol.

People say that Kosovars will never work with each other. That is not true, if you are under struggle whether Kosovar-Albanian or Kosovar-Serbian and the only way to survive is to work together, we know what you'd pick.

Time heals all, and independence sure does help sleep much better at night.

Ryan Nielsen, wasn't Seselj the same guy who wrote "The Serb Blueprint for Cleansing Kosovo" in 1995?
Read it if you haven't already. You'll come to the conclusion that people like him are capable of making such statements as B92 has quoted.

Sense" what difference does it make now ??

The question all Serbs should be asking themselves is "What on earth did we Serbs do, or Slobo's govt., in the name of all Serbs, do to evoke Nato's response of 78 days and nights of seeing Belgrade and other Serbian cities burn??

Once the Serbian people answer this question to themselves honestly, then, they might realistically move on by ridding their nation of that disease that has damaged your people for quite some time now.

I have been reading the comments made on this site for a while and I really find it very interesting and I just wonder how the legacy is passed on to the new Serb Generation as to have some type of explanation to every fact and idea that fits to Kosovo Albanians. It's just amazing do some of the serbs that write in this site actually believe on what they say? All what happend in Kosovo for decades was somehow "planned" and that all was well for alb's but it's just nobody else in this planet knows it (except Serbs).
Bravo to the new (OLD) minds of the Serbs. I just hope that this time the K-Serbs will learn from their past mistakes and will participate in this last chance for them.

I agree with Ryan Nielsen, this article is not an example of good journalism. It confuses (I don't know if voluntarily or not, but this is not the question) the NATO high officer's opinions and declarations with the facts.

Learn from the past and try to make the future better. Instead of NATO stopping the forced expulsion of Albanians from Kosovo it allowed forced expulsion of Serbs. Does that make everything ok? Ahmet, i guess since the albanians were looked upon as the victims they allowed back but the Serbs not. So sir you say Kosova as you say for everyone no sir only who you want back. that is the statement Ahmet. Serbia is facing up to the past, question is will the albanians?

Ryan Nielsen,

With all do respect, I think you need some more research, I don’t now if you are related to one of the most successful personalities in American society, His name is A.C Nielsen hi is an American Accomplishment( He is the very firs person that innovated the very firs Research Company in early 20th century, and was only 26 years old, and today that company is global company).

You said that ultranationalist Seselj said, “That KLA and Albanians who immigrated to Kosova illegally would be driven over Prokletje Mountains….and that is true publicly is verbatim.

But you have to understand that Albania and Kosova is one is no such Illegal Albanian immigrated to kosova …Kosova is concurred many times during the past century’s, by Serbs starting with Car Dushan, Stephan Nemanja , 1912 by so called Serbian Kingdom and 1945 by so called artificial Yugoslavia.

For your information, I was born in Kosova (artificial Yugoslavia) and so my father and my grandfather, my great-grandfather and my ancestors and I hade so called Yugoslavian passport and ID when the Serbian paramilitary or Tiger that is how they called them self’s. Come to my house hi ask my clearly, live this place and never come back, and he took my passport and my ID, in case I come back than I will be illegal… By the way, I am one among one million people, that was ethnical cleans from Kosova.

I think this will help you. If not try to follow the footsteps of A. C. Nielsen do some more research before you comment about something that you don’t now or hade experience.

Ptoleme,

I found Seselj's alleged article on an Albanian website. http://www.alb-net.com/cleansing.htm

I know Seselj has said a lot of crazy things, but to be honest, I doubt the authenticity of the article because I don't think Seselj would have used the word "Kosova" in his writing. He is also identified as the "deputy prime minister", which isn't a post he held in 1995. In fact, in 1995, Seselj didn't hold any political office because he was in jail for advocating the armed-overthrow of Slobodan Milosevic's government.