Foreign military in Macedonia, Macedonians in Afghanistan and Iraq
Truppe straniere in Macedonia, macedoni in Afghanistan ed Iraq


1. European Rapid Reaction Force to deploy in Macedonia
(La Forza Europea di Reazione Rapida sara' stanziata in Macedonia)
WSWS, 1 February 2003

2. FYROM/Germany/USA:

16/12/2003: Macedonia: Mitreva asks Germany to provide further
support to Macedonia
16/12/2003: Macedonia: Germany approves new donation to Macedonia
24/1/2003: Macedonia: Skopje, Tirana and Zagreb agree on
partnership with US

3. MACEDONIANS IN AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ:

31/12/2003: SUCCESSFUL ARM REPRESENTATION WITHIN ISAF IN KABUL

"The first Macedonian peacekeepers, Captain Zoran Janev
and Lieutenant Marjan Nakov, received highest marks
for their participation in the Turkish contingent of
the peacekeeping forces in Afghanistan (ISAF) from
August to December 2002..."
("I primi peacekeepers macedoni, il capitano Zoran Janev
ed il luogotenente Marjan Nakov, hanno avuto i maggiori riconoscimenti
per la loro partecipazione nelle forze di peacekeeping in Afghanistan
(ISAF), dall'agosto al dicembre 2002, nell'ambito del contingente
turco [SIC]")

15/12/2003: MACEDONIAN HELICOPTERS TRAIN FOR POSSIBLE WAR IN IRAQ

23/1/2003: MACEDONIA TO SEND MILITARY UNIT TO AFGHANISTAN


=== 1 ===

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2003/feb2003/mace-f01_prn.shtml

World Socialist Web Site www.wsws.org
WSWS : News & Analysis : Europe : The Balkans

European Rapid Reaction Force to deploy in
Macedonia

By Paul Stewart
1 February 2003

Back to screen version | Send this link by email | Email the author

The European Union (EU) is preparing in March to replace NATO's
Amber Fox mission in Macedonia. Javier Solano, EU foreign policy
chief, has said this first military deployment of the EU Rapid
Reaction
Force (EURRF) will put EU-NATO relations "on a different footing."
As his remarks suggest, EU officials aim to use the mission in
Macedonia to prove that Europe can and must develop a military
capability independent of the United States.

The NATO mission in Macedonia was launched in spring 2001 after
Albanian separatists from the National Liberation Army (NLA)
crossed from Kosovo and began an armed insurgency against the
Macedonian government. The NLA had close ties with US forces and
was rescued from Macedonian troops by a US military convoy.
Subsequently the NATO mission has been scaled down from 3,000 to
800 mainly EU troops, assisting observers.

The EURRF will be deployed wearing sky blue EU berets, with EU
insignia stitched onto their national uniforms. After an agreement
signed with NATO last December, headquarters for the operation will
be in NATO facilities at Mons in Southern Belgium, and commanded
by Germany's Admiral Rainer Feist, Deputy NATO Supreme Allied
Commander for Europe.

This first military mission will follow hard on the heels of the
deployment of an EU police force in Bosnia-Herzegovina at the
beginning of January. Five hundred officers, led by a Danish police
commissioner, will train a civilian police force in the protectorate
over
the next three years.

At the inaugural ceremony for the force in Sarajevo, Solano said, "it
was not without emotion that we will see for the first time our
European colours adorn the national uniforms of our police officers in
a
mission on the ground ... a strong symbol of the collective will of
Europeans to act jointly in this key task of consolidating stability
and
security in our continent."

During last December's EU conference in Copenhagen, the president's
summation included a surprise demand that NATO hand over the
entire Bosnia-Herzegovina mission to EU command. In response, a
NATO official declared, "The first we heard of it was in the (EU)
presidency conclusions. The EU has not consulted NATO, SFOR or the
Bosnians. It was a less than optimal way of announcing it." Since the
announcement, Paddy Ashdown, the international representative in
Bosnia, has been summoned to a meeting with Solano to discuss the
proposal.

The EU has missed two previous deadlines for taking control of the
mission in Macedonia. In the first instance they were unable to
assemble a military force due to political divisions between and
within
European governments. Secondly, access to NATO facilities, seen as
crucial to the planning of the mission by a majority of those
involved,
was blocked by Turkey's veto. Turkey demanded that the EU force
should not be used in any dispute between Greece and Turkey over
Cyprus. Also Turkey wanted agreement that they would be considered
for membership of the EU in the next wave of expansion.

During the recent round of EU expansion negotiations, Turkey secured
agreement that the EURRF would not be deployed in any future crisis
over Cyprus. However the EU, led by Germany and France, refused
membership to Turkey, declaring only that its application would be
"reviewed" in 2004. One French diplomat commented in reference to
Turkey's close alliance with the US that if Turkey was admitted it
would be tantamount to granting America membership of the
European Union.

The EU's knock-back angered both the Turkish government and the
Bush administration. US Secretary of State Colin Powell sent a
strongly worded letter attacking the EU's decision.

In a clear attempt to disrupt the formation of the EURRF, last
September US NATO commanders unveiled their proposals for a
NATO Rapid Response Force. This force would be manned by 20,000
mainly European troops consisting of land, sea and air units.
According
to reports from the Euobserver, US officials asserted that the NATO
force would take on missions "unsuited to the European army".

Without consulting with the EU, NATO officials revealed detailed
proposals for the proposed force at December's summit of the alliance
in Prague. As yet, however, no cooperation agreements exist between
the two forces. NATO officials have insisted that its force be given
priority access to NATO facilities, thereby limiting the remit of the
EURRF.

Since 1999 senior French generals have argued, without consideration
for diplomatic protocol, that the EURRF should develop free from
NATO interference. In March 2002, when the EU first publicly
discussed the details of taking over command in Macedonia, French
President Jacque Chirac said, "Europe ought to go into action under
its
own steam, without having to be systematically subject to NATO."

France argued that instead of using NATO facilities, the EU should use
its own non-NATO headquarters. Other European governments at this
point rejected the French proposal out of concern that one European
power may use this to strengthen its position in the command
structures of the new force.

The Bush administration's attempts to disrupt the formation of the
EURRF are giving French arguments greater credibility. As the EU
force is becoming a reality it is forcing political parties and
parliaments
in Europe's capitals to take a political stand, for or against the
development of the EURRF.

Last March an exchange of letters between the British Foreign Office
and the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) revealed serious political
differences within the British establishment. Foreign Secretary Jack
Straw demanded that British troops be despatched to join the EU
mission in Macedonia and expressed the fear that the British could be
excluded in the future. But the MoD opposed Straw's proposal,
insisting that the EU force is incapable of conducting such a mission.
Its officials insisted that the EU force was incapable of such a
mission
and if an already unstable political situation in Macedonia got out of
control it would threaten the stability of the whole Balkan region.
For
the time being the MOD position has won the day.

Senior European military analysts regard this year as "critical" in
the
formation of a European response to the challenge of US military
predominance. On January 1, 2003 Greece took over the rotating EU
presidency and has said its tenure would be judged on the success of
the
Macedonia mission. It also announced that, with French and German
support, the presidency would work toward the creation of a "common
market for defence products" and the formation of an EU arms agency.

It has also been proposed that the new EU constitution, currently
being
drafted, should contain a "solidarity clause" based on Article 5 of
NATO's Charter, specifying that an attack on a member state will be
regarded as an attack on all the EU-effectively establishing a
military
alliance.

All eyes will be on the success or failure of the EU command in
Macedonia. According to a series of Reuters articles the US is
engaging
in measures to delay and disrupt the handover deadline. Germany's
Sueddeutsche Zeitung has reported that the Bush administration had
written to a number of European governments, and to Solano, insisting
the EU can take over the mission in June only after a detailed
discussion on the relationship between the two fledgling forces.

The Macedonia mission is a risky politically motivated adventure by
the
European bourgeoisie. It can be said, with a degree of certainty, that
one casualty of the EURRF's deployment will be the myth of a more
"reasonable and understanding" European foreign policy.

Copyright 1998-2002
World Socialist Web Site
All rights reserved

=== 2 ===


http://www.makfax.com.mk/news1-a.asp?br=26714

Makfax (FYROM)
December 16, 2002

Macedonia: Mitreva asks Germany to provide further
support to Macedonia

Macedonia expects further support from Germany to
accelerate country?s integration to the European Union
structures, said the Macedonian Minister of Foreign
Affairs, Ilinka Mitreva, in an interview with Radio
Deutsche Welle Macedonian-language program.

Macedonian Foreign Minister is in Berlin talks with
the German Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister
Joschka Fischer, the Minister of Defense Peter Struck
and the President of Bundestag Wolfgang Tirze.

?The talks will focus on bilateral co-operation, NATO
enlargement and modalities to boost the regional
co-operation,? sad Mitreva, adding that the main focus
will be put on economic co-operation.

Mitreva underlined the necessity to strengthen the
long-term co-operation and friendship between
Macedonia and Germany, adding that Germany is the
first country of the EU member-states that she visited
after taking up the post. Germany granted today 150
terrain vehicles to the Army of the Republic of
Macedonia. This is a second consecutive donation to
Macedonian Army.

---

http://www.makfax.com.mk/news1-a.asp?br=26711

Makfax
December 16, 2002

Macedonia: Germany approves new donation to Macedonia


Germany will donate 150 terrain vehicles to the
Macedonian Army, Makfax news agency said.

The donation ceremony will take place today at
Skopje?s Barracks Goce Delcev. Macedonian Minister of
Defense Vlado Buckovski will attend the ceremony. Two
years ago, Germany donated 130 armored personnel
carriers. This grant had boosted the mobility of the
Macedonian Army units.

---

http://www.makfax.com.mk/news1-a.asp?br=29536

Makfax (Macedonia)
January 24, 2003

Macedonia: Skopje, Tirana and Zagreb agree on
partnership with US

The State Secretaries of the Foreign Ministries of
Macedonia, Albania and Croatia adjusted today the text
of the Charter on Partnership with the United States.
The partnmership between the United States and the
three countries will contribute to accession of these
three countries in NATO, said Makfax news agency.

"The document wil be wrapped up at the next meeting
between the representatives of the three countries,
scheduled for February in Tirana. This meeting will
focus on wide-ranging program for co-operation, as
well as the necessary activities due to be undertaken
until the next summit of NATO, scheduled for 2004,"
said the State Secretary of the Macedonian Foreign
Ministry Risto Nikovski.

The Foreign Ministers of Macedonia, Albania and
Croatia will meet in March in Croatain city of
Dubrovnik to adopt the Partnership Charter. The
signing ceremony will take place in Washington.

The Director of the Democracise in Transition Project,
Bruce Jackson, attened the meeting of the State
Secretaries of the Foreign Ministries of Macedonia,
Albania and Croatia. He said the signing of the
Charter will take place in Washington in March.


=== 3 ===


http://www.mia.com.mk/ang/glavnavest/
lastvest.asp?vest=\Refresh1\523-3012.htm

Macedonian Information Agency
December 31, 2002

SUCCESSFUL ARM REPRESENTATION WITHIN ISAF IN KABUL


The first Macedonian peacekeepers, Captain Zoran Janev
and Lieutenant Marjan Nakov, received highest marks
for their participation in the Turkish contingent of
the peacekeeping forces in Afghanistan (ISAF) from
August to December 2002.

Janev and Nakov said they managed to represent the
Macedonian Army (ARM) in the best possible manner
before the ISAF member-countries.

Janev and Nakov will share their precious experience
from Kabul with other ARM soldiers, who will be
engaged in peacekeeping missions. They wish to be part
of other similar missions, considering that such
engagements bring Macedonia closer to NATO.

Captan Marjan Ugrev and Lieutenant Vasil Pacemski have
been included in the Turkish contingent of ISAF since
December 20. In late February next year, ARM will
incase the number of its soldiers within ISAF, by
including its infantry department in the German
contingent.

---

http://www.rferl.org/newsline/2003/01/4-SEE/see-150103.asp

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
January 15, 2003

MACEDONIAN HELICOPTERS TRAIN FOR POSSIBLE WAR IN IRAQ

Macedonian helicopter crews have begun training for
the possible participation of two Mi8 helicopters in a
conflict in Iraq, dpa reported from Skopje on 14
January, citing the daily "Dnevnik." The report added
that Macedonia feels it has an obligation to support
its allies because it is a member of NATO's
Partnership for Peace. PM

---

http://www.ptd.net/webnews/wed/ct/Qmacedonia-afghanistan.RH6A_DJN.html

Macedonia to send military unit to Afghanistan


SKOPJE, Jan 23 (AFP) - The Macedonian parliament voted
on Thursday to send a unit of 10 soldiers to join an
international security force in Afghanistan.

Macedonian soldiers will be part of German contingent
of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)
for a six-month period beginning from February, the
parliamentary press office said in a statement.

Two Macedonian liaison officiers, who served within
Turkish contingent of ISAF, returned in December after
a six-month mission.

Germany and The Netherlands are due to take over the
ISAF leadership from Turkey on February 10 for a
period of six months.

The 4,800-strong force has patrolled Kabul and its
environs since its creation under an Afghan
power-sharing agreement reached in Bonn in 2001.


===


[source of most articles: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; R. Rozoff)

http://www.antiwar.com/malic/m-col.html

ANTIWAR, Thursday, January 30, 2003

Balkan Express
by Nebojsa Malic
Antiwar.com

Balkanizing the World

What Empire Wants

If there were any hopes in the past few
weeks, what with the rising tide of
antiwar sentiment, that the Empire might
turn back from the brink of
invading Iraq, the Emperor's annual speech
should have dispelled them.
Within a few short weeks, before the
weather window closes, there will be war.

Baghdad via Belgrade

Before attacking Yugoslavia in the spring
of 1999, the Empire bothered to
create a pretext. First its diplomatic
observers - actually intelligence
agents - helped a terrorist group stage a
"massacre," then its top diplomat
proposed a "peace plan" that was in fact a
naked land grab in the language
of unconditional surrender. When the
Belgrade government understandably
refused, U.S. and its satellites unleashed
Hell. But because it lacked any
justification for the attack, the Imperial
Alliance made wild allegations of
"genocide" and "humanitarian disaster."
The ongoing farce in the Hague
Inquisition is an embarrassing reminder of
the lengths to which they have
gone to transform these lies into Official
Truth.

Now the same pattern is used on the eve of
war against Iraq, only some
portions are no longer necessary. The
pretext, for example, which was to be
fabricated by the weapons inspectors, has
failed to materialize. Wild
allegations are flying again, though, and
there has even been a threat of
charging Iraqis with "war crimes," such as
resisting Imperial invasion.

Hopes of the UN somehow stopping the war
are also baseless. Any moral
authority they might have had was
purposefully demolished in Bosnia, and
died when the first bombs hit Belgrade and
NATO got away with the
international-law equivalent of
premeditated murder. After what happened
in the ruins of Yugoslavia, with the entire
world watching, the Empire now
feels it can get away with anything,
anywhere, anytime. Its leaders have
said as much.

Up to Their Old Tricks

While the general public in
Imperial-dominated countries may have already
forgotten 1999, both those running the
Empire and their intended victims
have not. When the implausible proposal of
exile for the Iraqi leader was
floated ten days ago, Saddam Hussein must
have thought of Slobodan
Milosevic. His constant appeasement of
U.S. demands, from Dayton to
Kumanovo, only brought more demands and
new sanctions, which did not stop
even after he was taken to the Hague
Inquisition in chains. Clearly, in
Milosevic's case, trusting the Empire
proved his undoing. Unlike the Serbian
people, Hussein seems to have realized
that. What good that will do him, if
any, remains to be seen.

The 'Serbian Model'

If extracting parallels from the Yugoslav
experience seems a bit
far-fetched, how about this Monday's
Christian Science Monitor, which in a
series of articles openly discusses
upcoming "regime change" in Baghdad in
light of previous such actions,
specifically devoting a major portion to
Yugoslavia?

Apparently, Iraq should end up with a
similar result as the 2000 "October
Revolution" in Belgrade, if through
different, more violent means. Reading
the interviews with pro-Imperial
sycophants and foot-soldiers of the October
coup, it becomes obvious the Empire saw
nothing wrong with corrupting a
country's political process and literally
buying a government it desired.
After all, they've funded the terrorist
KLA, then claimed it fought for
"American values"?

So it is we learn of a "a three-year
[sic!] campaign by the US and other
Western governments to dislodge the
Yugoslav leader by strangling his
country's economy with sanctions and
rocking it with bombs," an admission of
international crime if there ever was any.
Iraq suffered three times as long, though.

Also noted is the role of
"non-governmental" organizations, such as
George Soros's Open Society and various "human
rights" groups, which were basically
fronts for direct action against their
host country.

The Monitor also mentions in passing the
following facts, which have been
known for years yet assiduously ignored by
the mainstream media. Upon
reading them, it is not hard to see why:

* "opposition parties ran all the
country's major towns and cities after
municipal elections in December 1996."

* "Milosevic never resorted to
dictatorial repression of his political
opponents at home."

* "former members of the fractious 18
party "Democratic Opposition of
Serbia" (DOS) [say] US diplomats knocked
their heads together until they
formed a cohesive and united coalition."

* "western money funded the
development of Otpor."

Otpor ("Resistance") was ostensibly a
student movement advocating the
overthrow of government - but only the
Milosevic government. It was
organized and paid by the Empire to do a
job. The Monitor quotes one Otpor leader:

"Eighty-five percent of our funding came
from the United States," through
bodies such as the National Endowment for
Democracy, the International
Republican Institute and the National
Democratic Institute, as well as USAID.

The article ends with Zarko Korac, now
information minister in Zoran
Djindjic's quisling government, claiming
that what brought Milosevic down
was a "death by a thousand cuts."

Well, there's a cheerful picture:
"democracy" as a product of political and
military action based on ancient Chinese
torture. Truth can come from the
mouths of morons! But overall, it is a
chilling admission of how the Empire
is determined to have its way, and -
perhaps more disturbingly - how so many
are prepared to help it.

Caracas Copycats

But before the people of Iraq can dance
with joy at the prospect of a Zoran
Djindjic of their very own, it needs to be
made clear that the rest of the
world can look forward to such wonders as
well. Just last week, Washington's
patsies in Caracas have tried to copy the
Serbian Model, asking foreign
assistance to force early elections and
topple President Hugo Chavez.

Chavez is by no means a paragon of virtue,
and his socialist economic
theories leave a lot to be desired, but
while this describes most world
leaders, he differs by refusing to be
America's busboy. And because
Venezuela supplies over 10% of U.S. oil
imports, his defiance is more than
irksome to the Court of St. Abraham.

Battle Hymn of the Empire

This founder of Imperial Presidency sheds
much light on the belligerence of
today's Washington. Modern-day worshippers
of a president who shredded the
very real Constitution to save the very
abstract "Union" have gone much
further than the man who endorsed total
war against his own people. Lincoln
only claimed total dominion over the
United States of America; they claim
dominion over the entire world. Somehow,
at some point, America was anointed
with World Leadership, they say, and any
and all who resist it are "in
rebellion" against legitimate authority.
Thus, there is no need for
justification of further invasions, as
they represent legitimate suppression
of rebellions by the legitimate overlords
of the World.

Towards a New Liberty

Whosoever accepts this theory should know
that its end result will be like
the ruins of Yugoslavia: a foul, wretched
place, filled with tyranny, chaos
and despair. If this is the choice they
are prepared to live with, so be it.
They have been fairly forewarned. The
rest, one suspects, would rather be free.

Well, it's high time we be about it.


[Note: Antiwar is a conservative internet site based in the USA. CNJ]

Grupa APIS - 28. januar 2003.

Americko-iracki sukob

Jedino pravo protivnika - pravo na kapitulaciju

Milan V. Petkovic


Jos je Sun Cu Vu, oko 250.godine PNE, predvideo da protivniku treba
dopustiti da kapitulira, a Dzingis kan je tu privilegiju nudio kao
prvu mogucnost svakom svom buducem protivniku.
Moderni Mongoli tu privilegiju nude u zamenu za nemilosrdno
unistavanje u ime zastite humanih prava i osiguranja bezbednosti
vlastitih vitalnih interesa.

Rat koji SAD, pomognute Velikom Britanijom i grupom lojalnih
saveznika, vode protiv Iraka vec trinaest godina, u pocetku je kao
razlog imao kaznjavanje Iraka zbog okupacije Kuvajta (1990.godine).
Tada je, u to vreme drzavni sekretar SAD, Dzems Bejker, izjavio: "Nase
snage ce vratiti Irak u predindustrijsko doba."

Od 1991.godine, SAD pocinju svoj peti po redu rat. Najpre je to bio
rat protiv Iraka - 1991. Zatim je doslo do rata protiv Republike
Krajine i Republike Srpske 1994/95, pa protiv Jugoslavije 1999,
Avganistana 2000/01, mada Amerikanci tvrde da ne vode ratove nego
operacije (koje mogu da budu vojne i kompleksne). Ako zapocnu ovaj rat
protiv Iraka (2003.godine), to je u proseku jedan rat na svake dve i
po godine. Ali danasnji ciljevi buduceg rata protiv Iraka nisu vise
samo kaznjavanje za okupaciju strane zemlje, vec su dodatno
precizirani - da se zemlja koja raspolaze drugim po velicini rezervama
u tecnim energentima u svetu stavi pod punu kontrolu SAD, potrebno je
da se, bez obzira na cenu i zrtve, njen aktuelni rezim promeni.

Pripreme za realizaciju tog cilja odvijaju se veoma sracunato i
paralelno na obavestajnom, vojnom, politicko-diplomatskom,
psiholosko-propagandnom i ekonomskom planu. Ne treba zaboraviti
cinjenicu da su SAD danas najveci svetski vojno-naucno-tehnoloski
kompleks, drzava sa vojnim troskovima koji visoko premasuju vojne
troskove svih ostalih najvecih vojnih sila sveta zajedno. One
raspolazu najvecim svetskim arsenalom bakteriolosko-hemijskog oruzja a
da se ne govori o nuklearnom naoruzanju. Sve tri pomenute vrste
spadaju u kategoriju oruzja za masovno unistavanje. To je upravo ona
kategorija oruzja za koju SAD tvrde da njima raspolaze Irak te tako
ugrozava bezbednost samog americkog kontinenta. To je odmah istaknuto
kao najozbiljniji povod za zapocinjanje novog rata i trazi se da Irak
pruzi dokaze da ne raspolaze tim ratnim sredstvima ( ! ! !).
Prema recima uglednog americkog vojnog strucnjaka Vilijema Arkina,
koji je u "Los Andjeles Tajmsu" od 25.januara 2003.godine, objavio
svoju analizu situacije oko Iraka, SAD su spremne da upotrebe cak i
nuklearno oruzje protiv Iraka "za unistavanje podzemnih komandnih
polozaja, kao i protiv irackih snaga koje bi pokusale da upotrebe
oruzje za masovno unistenje" bez obzira na to sto optuzbe da Irak
poseduje to oruzje nisu dokazane.

Posto je osnovni cilj u tom ratu promena rezima u Iraku i instaliranje
politicke garniture koja ce sprovoditi planove SAD, za post-sadamovski
Irak su trenutno definisana dva modela posleratne stabilizacije i
razvoja pod americkim patronatom : (a) nemacki model - iza koga stoje
administracija SAD (Stejt department) i CIA ; (b) japanski model - iza
koga stoje tzv. jastrebovi, odnosno konzervativci iz Pentagona i
Kongresa (ovaj model podrazumeva cak i upotrebu nuklearnog oruzja kao
sredstva za "pacifikaciju" Iraka). Spor izmedju pristalica jednog i
drugog modela predstavlja vise-manje doktrinarnu raspravu jer su i
jedni i drugi saglasni da silu svakako treba upotrebiti posto je to
nuzno jer Irak nece da se preda.
Osnovna poruka rasprave je da niko ne sme da se brani od SAD ukoliko
ta odbrana podrazumeva moguce americke gubitke u ljudstvu. Ona u
sustini predstavlja nametanje sopstvene volje drugima primenom
sredstava visoke tehnoloske superiornosti i drzavnim terorizmom a
ukida pravo na odbranu. Jedino pravo koje se dozvoljava protivniku je
da kapitulira pre pomisli na pruzanje otpora. Ako to nece, bice
razoren i doveden u "predindustrijsku eru".

Hoce li vojne operacije SAD protiv Iraka poceti najkasnije za sezdeset
dana (racunajuci od 1.januara 2003.godine), kao sto to smatra direktor
Instituta Stratfor, ili ce se ceo postupak razvuci do jeseni tekuce
godine, kako to pretpostavljaju analiticari nekih drugih institucija,
pozivajuci se na lokalne klimatske uslove i opste uslove vodjenja rata
u pustinji, ili ce pocetak rata biti pomeren da bio se izbegao gnev
muslimanskog sveta ako rat zapocne dok traje hadz (od 15.februara do
4.marta), ostaje da se vidi. Ono sto je vec sada izvesno jeste
cinjenica da su pripreme za predstojecu ratnu operaciju toliko odmakle
da bi eventualno odustajanje od rata bilo prakticno nemoguce a ako bi
do njega doslo, politicke implikacije za sada vladajuu garnituru u SAD
bile bi katastrofalne. Po svemu sudeci, kako to smatra svetski poznati
pisac, nekadasnji obavestajac i vojni analiticki ekspert Dzon Le Kare,
SAD su, zbog jedne pogresne procene, upale u jedan od svojih perioda
ludosti, kakvi su bili makartizam, propali pokusaj invazije Kube u
Zalivu svinja ili rat u Vijetnamu. Posledice, medjutim, mogu da budu
mnogo dublje i mnogo dugorocnije i po SAD nepovoljnije (treba se samo
prisetiti kako su se te epizode americke novije istorije zavrsile). S
druge strane, na Zapadu mediji dosta spekulisu sa konstatacijom "da je
Sadam Husein lud". Kejt Kil iz Kraljevskog instituta za medjunarodne
odnose u Londonu, medjutim, smatra da je "Sadam Husein grub i
neotesan, da je ambiciozan, snazno motivisan i bez skrupula i da
poseduje kriminalnu psihologiju, ali da nije lud".

U stvari, nagomilavanje americkih trupa u Zalivu je kao olovni teg
koji sputava nove poteze Bele kuce. Ne ustukne li Sadam Husein pred
americkim pretnjama, Dzordz Bus ce morati da reaguje onako kako je
zapretio, a tada? Bice to verovatno rat sastavljen od cudnih
kombinacija zastarelih shvatanja, ideja i koncepcija sa modernim
("kosmickim") tehnologijama i ogromnim masama visoko motivisanih
boraca.

Zbog apsolutne neizvesnosti ishoda takvog jednog rata, cene nafte na
svetskom trzistu su dostigle do sada nezamislive visine. I cena zlata
raste. Trenutno je 360,25 dolara po unci. Vrednost dolara pada a
evropske valute raste. Ali nije jasno ko ce na kraju profitirati. Ko u
takvim uslovima ima prava na kapitulaciju i ko ima prava da diktira
uslove ?? Mocvara Hoveiza koja je bila kraj mnogim iranskim snovima o
prodoru u Irak tokom desetogodisnjeg izracko-iranskog rata, moze igrom
slucaja da postane kraj i americkom snu o dominaciji svetom.


26. januar 2003. godine

House Bill in Support of Kosovo Independance introduced

(Source: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/832530/posts )

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One Hundred Eighth Congress

Congress of the United States

House of Representatives

Washington, DC 20515

January 27, 2003

Support the Independence of Kosova

Dear Colleague:

Today we introduced a resolution (H. Res. 28, which is at the end
of this email) expressing the sense of the House of Representatives
that the United States should declare its support for the
independence of Kosova.

Under the Yugoslav constitution of 1974, Kosova was equivalent
in most ways to Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and
Macedonia . In its position as an ``autonomous province,'' Kosova,
in practice, exercised the same powers as a republic. It had its own
parliament, high courts, central bank, police service, and defense
force. Through its definition in 1968 as a part of the Yugoslav
Federal System, it gained equal representation at the federal level
with Serbia and the other juridical units of the former Yugoslavia.

When Slovenia and Croatia demanded independence, Western
governments made similar arguments against recognizing those
countries. However, eventually the same Western governments did
recognize not only the independence of Slovenia and Croatia, but
Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia as well, having discovered
that independence for those nations involved not so much a change
of borders as a change in the status of existing borders. The lines
on the map remained the same, but their status was upgraded from
republican to national. It is fitting that the Kosovars be allowed to
follow the same path towards independence.

Since the cessation of the 1999 conflict with Serbia, during which
the Serbian military and paramilitary forces killed more than ten
thousand Kosovar Albanians and expelled close to a million,
Kosova remains under a United Nations mandate. The Kosovars,
the United Nations, NATO, and the European Union are now
making efforts to rebuild Kosova, revitalize its economy, establish
democratic institutions of self-government, and heal the scars of
war.

It is time for the United States to abide by its recognition that a
right to self-determination exists as a fundamental right of all
people through declaring its support for the independence of
Kosova. To cosponsor H.Res.28, please contact Keith O'Neil at
225-6735 (Lantos) or Greg Galvin (Hyde) at 225-5021.

Sincerely,

TOM LANTOS HENRY HYDE Member of Congress Member of
Congress

H. RES. 28

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the
United States should declare its support for the independence of
Kosova.

Whereas the United States and the international community
recognize that a right to self-determination exists as a
fundamental right of all people;

Whereas Kosova was constitutionally defined as a sovereign
territory in the First National Liberation Conference for Kosova
on January 2, 1944, and this status was confirmed in the
Constitution of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
adopted in 1946, and the amended Yugoslav constitution adopted
in 1974 preserved the autonomous status of Kosova as a de facto
republic;

Whereas prior to the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia,
Kosova was a separate political and legal entity with separate and
distinct financial institutions, police force, municipal and national
government, school system, judicial and legal system, hospitals and
other independent organizations;

Whereas Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic rose to power in
1987 on a platform of ultra nationalism and anti-Albanian racism,
advocating violence and hatred against all non-Slavs and
specifically targeting the Albanians of Kosova;

Whereas Slobodan Milosevic subsequently stripped Kosova of its
self-rule, without the consent of the people of Kosova; Whereas
the elected Assembly of Kosova, faced with these intolerable acts,
adopted a Declaration of Independence on July 2, 1990, proclaimed
the Republic of Kosova, and adopted a constitution on September
7, 1990, based on the international legal principles of
self-determination, equality, and sovereignty;

Whereas in recognition of the de facto dissolution of the Yugoslav
federation, the European community established principles for the
recognition of the independence and sovereignty of the republics of
the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Kosova
fully satisfied those principles as a de facto republic within the
federation;

Whereas a popular referendum was held in Kosova from
September 26-30, 1991, in which 87 percent of all eligible voters
cast ballots and 99.87 percent voted in favor of declaring Kosova
independent of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia;

Whereas, from the occupation of Kosova in 1989 until the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) military action against the
Milosevic regime in 1999, the Albanians of Kosova were subjected
to the most brutal treatment in the heart of Europe since the Nazi
era, forcing approximately 400,000 Albanians to flee to Western
Europe and the United States;

Whereas in the spring of 1999 almost 1,000,000 Kosovar Albanians
were driven out of Kosova and at least 10,000 were murdered by
the Serbian paramilitary and military;

Whereas Slobodan Milosevic was indicted by the International
War Crimes Tribunal and extradited to The Hague in June 2001 to
stand trial for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide
in Kosova, Bosnia, and Croatia;

Whereas the United Nations established Kosova as a protectorate
under Resolution 1244, ending the decade long Serbian occupation
of Kosova and Milosevic's genocidal war in Kosova;

Whereas Kosovar Albanians, together with representatives of the
Serb, Turkish, Roma, Bosniak, and Ashkali minorities in Kosova,
have held free and fair municipal and general elections in 2000 and
2001 and successfully established a parliament in 2002, which in
turn elected a president and prime minister;

Whereas 50 percent of the population in Kosova is under the age of
25 and the unemployment rate is currently between 60 and 70
percent, increasing the likelihood of young people entering criminal
networks, the source of which lies outside of Kosova, or working
abroad in order to survive unless massive job creation is facilitated
by guaranteeing the security of foreign investments through an
orderly transition to the independence of Kosova;

Whereas the Kosova parliament is committed to developing a
western-style democracy in which all citizens, regardless of
ethnicity, are granted full human and civil rights and are
committed to the return of all noncriminal Serbs who fled Kosova
during and after the war; and

Whereas there is every reason to believe that independence from
Serbia is the only viable option for Kosova, after autonomy has
failed time and time again: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that
the United States should -

(1) publicly support the independence of Kosova and the
establishment of Kosova as a sovereign and democratic state in
which human rights are respected, including the rights of ethnic
and religious minorities, as the only way to lasting peace and
stability in the Balkans;

(2) recognize the danger that delay in the resolution of Kosova's
final status poses for the political and economic viability of Kosova
and the future of Southeast Europe;

(3) work in conjunction with the United Nations, the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization, and other multilateral organizations
to facilitate an orderly transition to the independence of Kosova;
and

(4) provide its share of assistance, trade, and other programs to
support the government of an independent Kosova and to
encourage the further development of democracy and a free market
economic system.

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Keith O'Neil 202-225-6735 (Lantos)

Greg Galvin 202-225-5021 (Hyde)