Posted on 02/07/2008 10:40:29 AM PST by Bokababe
WASHINGTON -- The Kosovo debate has been resurrected within the White House, says a former U.S. ambassador to the UN.
“You still have a number of people in the administration that do not support the policy of automatic recognition of Kosovo independence. I think that that debate has now resurfaced within the administration itself, and, I hope, in the Foreign Ministries of European countries,” John Bolton told Voice of America.
Bolton said that it was to difficult to predict the outcome of that debate, as conflicting views were being expressed, but it was no longer just the domain of the State Department that for the last 15 years or so has been following the issue on auto-pilot, more or less. “I can’t predict the outcome of the debate, but I do know that it has resurfaced.”
The former ambassador pointed out that under the UN Charter, the Security Council was not authorized to break a country up without its agreement.
He said that the international community should isolate the negotiating teams in a room and tell them that they cannot leave until the problem is solved, which would require concessions on both sides, and would help them reach a mutually acceptable solution.
Bolton said that the U.S., at this point in time, in the event of a declaration, would recognize independence, as would the majority of European countries, even though this would “reflect very negatively on the young democracy in Serbia,” and would have “a negative impact on U.S.-Russian relations.”
“From a U.S. point of view, I think that there are a lot more important issues in bilateral relations with the U.S. than Kosovo, and Kosovo independence would lead to unnecessary instability in the Balkan region,” said the former ambassador.
Translation: Don't underestimate the stupidity of the State Department and the Euro diplomats.
But it's very good to hear they are at least thinking about it.
Sorry folks, it gave me a “proxy error” message the first time, so I didn’t think that it posted and I hit the button again.
You are completely full of sh!t. See link below for details (and note all those familiar names at the bottom of the letter).
Sincerely,
Alberta's Child
Bolton still (wrongly) defends the intervention in 1999 to get rid of Milosevic (which the Serbs would have done quicker without the bombing), but that never guaranteed the Albanians "a new country" of their own.
In fact, if we ever want to intervene in a country again for "humanitarian reasons", giving Kosovo independence is the worst possible precedent. Because, it sets a standard that shows that intervention is a clear act of war to steal another country's territory.
I have quite a bit of respect for John Bolton. I know he's not perfect, but seems far less foolish than most diplomats.
Good news.
Several things have changed since the last time around.
This isn’t the same Serbia as it was immediately following the end of communism.
We aren’t the same, 911 has changed the way we view the world.
And since winning quasi-independence the Albanians have attacked Macedonia and tried to peel off another chunk, and muslims in general are no longer viewed as the hapless victims of a world that fails to understand them. The world is starting to understand them a little better.
So the whole notion of seeing another muslim state in Europe just isn’t as romantic as it may have seemed in the nineties.
That doesn’t mean it won’t happen, it just raises the cost of the bribe moneys to friendly politicians and diplomats who will make it happen, the Saudis will have to offer slightly larger investment opportunities than they might have, but its still a win-win if you are looking to fund your retirement portfolio.
Always look for ex-pols and State guys heading up “institutes” and think tanks you’ve never heard of. Or ex-presidents with richly funded libraries and “foundations” beyond all proportion.
Milosevitch was, in earlier days, the guy who started much of the trouble. He was an overly ambitious bully. I’m not talking about his resistance to the Kosovo terrorists, which was entirely called for, but some of his actions and statements earlier. He stirred up more trouble than he could handle with his provocative pronouncements.
But how clinton dealt with it is another matter. Even if Milosevitch was a troublemaker, the Serbs were on our side and the Muslims are our enemies.
So, maybe Bolton was wrong to sign that letter, and maybe he’s still wrong not to admit his mistake.
But he’s right to say that it is now wrong, unjust, and plain stupid to tell the Kosovans that we will recognize them if they declare independence.
That’s where we are now. I would like to see a few conservatives with the guts to say that clinton fought the war on the wrong side and the whole war was a bloody mistake. But if they won’t do that, at least we should start working to undo the damage.
1. The recipient of that letter was a disgraced, mentally imbalanced president who was in the process of facing a Federal grand jury in a matter that would ultimately end up with his impeachment by the House of Representatives.
2. The Clinton administration -- which was filled with hacks like Sandy Berger, Madeleine Albright, William Cohen, etc. -- had no credibility to engage in anything more complex than basic foreign diplomacy. The notion that this group of @ssholes had the moral authority to oversee any kind of military action anywhere in the world was preposterous -- and anyone who considers himself even remotely "conservative" had no business putting his name on an open letter of that sort (this is why I have long said that so-called "neo-conservatives" aren't really conservatives at all).
3. Kosovo was an Islamic rat-hole in 1998, and the U.S. had no business conducting a military campaign on behalf of an Islamic rat-hole in Europe back then any more than it would on September 12, 2001.
The Clintons, however, would disagree.
After all, Kosovo got impeachment, the Cox Report and Juanita Broaddrick off the front page.
From their viewpoint, Kosovo was a smashing success.
Too bad nobody will listen to you Mr. Bolton.
On one topic, however, Milosevic was totally accurate in his assessment.
“And when they (muslims) behead your own people [...] then you will know what this was all about.” -Slobodan Milosevic
That's unusually defeatist coming from you, Squid!
I do think that they are "listening", but hoping to death that Bolton will just shut up and go away. I doubt that he will.
Oh, for the most part I sympathize with Milosevitch. It was just in the earlier years, when he made the mistake of thinking he was the new Tito and overreached himself.
Milosevitch was no worse than a bully, however. And I think he was learning his lesson, but unfortunately Blair, Schroeder, and clinton really misread the whole situation. (Clinton gets the blame, but Tony Blair gave that great NWO speech at the NATO festival and egged him on, and Schroeder happily sent in the Lufwaffe to bomb Belgrade.)
Milosevitch just got in over his head and blustered. But, as you say, the Muslims want to finish the business left undone at Vienna, bring down civilization, and behead all the Christian Europeans.
Sorry, I’m just a little frustrated. There are indeed a lot of good people out there. I just don’t want radical Islamic elements rewarded for their Jihad.
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