From: cdsmireland @...
Subject: Public Conference in London - KOSOVO: A PREVENTABLE DISASTER
Date: January 13, 2008 8:08:09 PM GMT+01:00
Please pass this on to as many people as you think may be interested :
The Lord Byron Foundation for Balkan Studies
will hold a public briefing and press conference
Thursday, January 17, 2008, 3-5 PM at Central Hall
Westminster, London, SW1H 9NH (opposite Westminster
Abbey, Westminster is nearest underground)
KOSOVO: A PREVENTABLE DISASTER
A major security issue facing the Balkans, Russia, the
West, and elsewhere, is the future of the Serbian
province of Kosovo. Great Britain, as an ally of the
United States and a key member of the EU, is facing a
dilemma: to follow Washington in recognizing Kosovo s
likely UDI, or to uphold the rule of law, the United
Nations Charter, and the Westphalian principles that
still retain their validity. The wrong decision on
Kosovo may undermine the stability of the Balkans for
decades to come; it may impact Britain s ability to
fight Islamic terrorism, and affect her credibility as
a respected upholder of international legality. As
Iraq has shown, predictable mistakes turn into costly
disasters. The speakers will provide a diagnosis of
the problem of Kosovo, and recommend workable and
legal solutions.
PANELISTS
Ambassador James Bissett - Chairman of The Lord Byron
Foundation, former head of Canada s Immigration
Service and former Canadian Ambassador to Yugoslavia.
John Laughland - journalist, academic and author,
writes on international affairs and political
philosophy, trustee of British Helsinki Human Rights
Group and director of the European Foundation.
Dr. Serge Trifkovic - Executive Director of the
Foundation, author of The Sword of the Prophet and
foreign affairs editor of Chronicles: A Magazine of
American Culture.
The Lord Byron Foundation for Balkan Studies was
founded by the late Sir Alfred Sherman in 1994 as a
non-partisan research institute devoted to studying
south-eastern Europe in all its aspects. The
Foundation s research, publications and conferences
are designed to correct the current trend of public
commentary which tends not to understand events but to
construct a propagandistic version of Balkan
rivalries.
Organiser: Yugo Kovach, 01258 880 029 or
Ykovach @...