How hard can it be to arrest a man re-cognised wherever he goes, in a country roughly the size of Scotland? Vojislav Kostunica, the Serbian Prime Minister, has asked the international community to believe that if the man in question does not want to be found, the answer is, effectively, "impossible".
This answer is not acceptable. It is entirely appropriate that Belgrade's failure to surrender Ratko Mladic to the UN war crimes tribunal as promised led yesterday to the suspension of talks with the EU on possible Serbian membership. Mr Kostunica claimed that his Government had done its utmost to seize Mr Mladic, the alleged architect of the 1995 massacre of some 8,000 Muslims in Srebrenica.
But the EU was right to call his bluff, both in principle and from the point of view of what should have been possible: The Prime Minister's own deputy promptly resigned, accusing Serbia's security services of seeking Mr Mladic "everywhere except where he was hiding". Wherever that is, the former general and his diehard loyalists now have the satisfaction of knowing they have jeopardised what international standing Serbia has earned since surrendering Slobodan Milosevic to The Hague, weakened Mr Kostunica's minority coalition and postponed indefinitely the start of Serbian EU accession talks -which polls indicate 60 per cent of Serbs want.
The challenge facing Mr Kostunica should not be underestimated. He is dependent on the support of Socialists still loyal to the memory of Mr Milo-sevic. He is also constantly threatened by the spectre of resurgent nationalism. Surrendering Mr Mladic is not the only test of Belgrade's good intentions, but, like the imminent prospect of independence for Montenegro and, possibly, Kosovo, it is guaranteed to inflame that nationalist tendency.
This is why the decision taken yesterday by Olli Rehn, the EU Enlargement Commissioner, was never going to be simple. It was nonetheless correct. Unlike Croatia in comparable circumstances last year, Serbia has produced little hard evidence of genuine effort to track down or isolate those of its indicted war crime suspects who remain at large. Yet it seems clear that the security services know where they are. Meanwhile, insisting on Mr Mladic's surrender is by far the EU's most powerful lever in its dealings with Belgrade. To surrender that lever would be to surrender what credibility the enlargement process retains in the wearier capitals of "Old Europe".
What should Mr Rehn do next? Rather than shatter progressive Serbians' hopes of eventual EU membership, he should keep that hope explicitly alive, subject to full co-operation in the hunt for Mr Mladic and a mature acceptance by Belgrade of Montenegrin independence should the referendum due this month demand it. Above all, he must persuade the foot-draggers in Paris and Berlin that enlargement remains the EU's noblest cause. Steady progress towards membership for Croatia, Montenegro, Kosovo and then Serbia itself is the best long-term prescription for Balkan prosperity and, yes, peace.
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I'm surprised NATO didn't just go for another bombing campaign in Serbia, there are probably some holes in the ground from the last bombing they could keep digging with some 3 million dollar a piece bombs....
Can someone explain to me why SCG is responsible for the capture of Mladic? Shouldn't it be BiH or RS the ones to capture him? Also, when CS gets independence, what happens then, will CS still be responsible for his capture or will it only be Serbia that's responsible?
12:34,
Guess what? He's hanging out in Belgrade with the army probably responsible for protecting him. Until a while ago, he didn't even try to hide. A part of the government (or maybe all of it) doesn't want him arrested for "patriotic" reasons and also because the government might fail if SPS decides to reject its support for the government. I hope this helped.
I don't think that Mladic is in serbia and I can honestly say that there is a demonization of the serb state from the west. I'm an Albanian from the United States and I don't care if anyone here or anywhere else in the world who is Albanian hates me for saying this.Its true and when we all,serbs and Albanians,learn to live and let live then we can get past all this bs.
Serbia paid Mladic's pension long after the war, and even long after he had been cordially invited to the ICTY, and I think Draskovic also fessed up a copule of times to Mladic finding refuge in Serbia = Serbia is responsible
All of this Mladic stuff is stupid and ridiculous. You know once Serbia hands over Mladic the western countries are going to demand Koradzic. And then it will go on and one. So Serbia will never be in EU until everyone involved in the Bosnian war is dead.
unfortunately this important site is gathering a bunch of kids who offend each other. Can't you people grow up? Make your point without swearing at each other? It proves your level of maturity.
I don't think that it is in Serbia's interest to be left outside the EU. It might not gain a lot, but they certainly might lose more if they stay out.
As an Albanian patriot, I have been racking my brain wondering if I support serbia entering the EU as well as the other countries/nations of the Western-Balkans.
Anyway, I have come to the conclusion that it would be good for Albania (meaning all the lands we Albanians inhabit in the Balkans) if serbia is allowed to join. It would mean that serbia and serbs in general would HAVE to become European (Western-European) and of course abide by Wester-European Laws (Democratic Laws) and culture, etc and what's most exciting about serbia joining the EU after Albania, Kosova, Macedonia, Croatia & Bosnia do is that the other peoples/countries (members) of the EU would be able to travel in/out/through any part of serbia. This would only be good for my nation. As there is a lot of Albanian territory still unfortunately annexed by todays un-democratic faschist & Chauvanist serbia.
Ilirian
for Ilirian:
I read your comment with interest; what confused me is ´a lot of Albanian territory still unfortunately annexed´ part.
Borders between Balkan countries were set up after WWI, if I still remember.
Therefore, what we would like to see for our own nation should not make in any case any damage to the others.
And the last but not least........Serbia´s own interest is to join the EU - but not at any cost.
Gen. Mladic has nothing to do with membership negotiations.
If we do not want Serbia in the EU, what the heck, let´s keep them out.
to Cvijus011:
since 1945 on, SFRJ has pomped billions into Kosovo and Metohija.
What went wrong?
It honestly makes me sad when I see young people like most of you here, engaging in this continuous mutual slander. But what makes me even sadder is to see how ignorant both sides are when it comes to most of the issues "discussed!"
Hence millions poured into Kosovo. First of all, as Kosovo was an equal member of the Yugoslav Federation, it had access to the funds dedicated for development. Just like Bosnia, Montenegro and Macedonia. Slovenia, Croatia and Vojvodina contributed were the biggest contributors as they were the most developed members. Aid like that is very common; you have seen it after the WWII with Marshall Plan and later in the European Union. You simply assist your trading partners (read: markets) to the future benefit of both. It is a win-win situation. Just look at the amount of croatian and slovenian merchandise in the shelves of any kosovar store and you would understand what I am talking about. For those of you who claim that those billions (yes, it is billions rather then millions) were stolen or embezzled, I have only one advice: open your eyes! All you need to do is compare what Kosovo was in 1945 and let's say in 1980. The funds could have probably been spent better, so there was some mismanagement but there was no conspiracy and no embezzlement like you are trying to portrait. Open your eyes, you might be surprised at what you learn, and probably stop with the harsh language towards each other.
anon I think this is a Times opinion piece.
Other anon it depends where Mladic is. If he is in Serbia then Serbia is repsonbile. If not then another country is responsible...
Llyrian with all respect when you talk about European values and support a Greater Albania (or the establishment of an ethnic Albanian state) it doesnt really go hand in hand.
It rather sounds like you are projecting your own nationalist opinions onto the Serbian populace. Opinions which dont exist.
I am glad that you have decided to support Serbia's entry into the EU but to be honest with you if I thought Serbia was the way you described it I would be against Serbia joining.
Chris I'd like to see evidence to support your view that Kosovo financed Belgrade, Zagreb and Sarajevo. Seriously that would be funny if this whole situation was not so tragic. Whats more I wish it was true. I wish it because I believe the human rights situation in Kosovo would be much better if there was an improved economic potential. But I dont see it.
And you just dont get it yet do you? I dont have animosity towards you. Why the need to believe that Serbs and Albanians must be at each others throats? Does your comment desribe your own feelings towards Serbs?
I have mentioned FARDUK before. That is the fund established in SFRJ to subsidise the most undeveloped Yugoslav republics and regions.
Search for the information and read up.
for Chris Blaku:
If was was you, I would just ask parents how it really was for Shiptari (not Albanians)in SFRJ.
Also, Kosovo and Metohija (shortly Kosmet) was an autonomous province, not a republic.
Anyhow, Serbia´s own fault was that it tolerated terrorism, killings of solders and police officers for such a long time.
I am not sure where else it would go unpunished.
By the way, are you Serbian citizen at all?
Because if you are not, you might get yourself deported once serbian state takes back it´s own teritorry.
nyoutlawyer that's exactly what the shitptars wnat you to do, don't give them this satisfactiona man stay here and jebi ih u zdrav mozak bre.
Samo Sloga Srbina Spasava
Quite the opposite - we want racists like you to write here and show the real face of Serbs. The way you use the word muslim reminds me of Al-Qeida using the word zionist. On the other hand your departure may be welcomed since this is a place for tolerant people with a vision for future and positive knowledge to discuss issues. Guys like you should get an education first.
JustMe, you bring very good points.
BgAnon, you forget that Yugoslavia for the first half of its life was a centralized economy based on heavy industry. As such, Kosova with its mines contributed much much more then it got in return. Your argument is similar to the one the British would make in India, yes we're colonizing them, but we're also making them modern. If the benefits are mutual, then let free trade do its thing and there won't be any need for a police regime.
I would love to see the data you keep alluding to. Have those been published in the West? Are there papers on them? I'm arguing that the infrastructure of Kosova was built on borrowed and grant money from the West to silence Albanians that with somewhat more freedom started displaying it publicly. It actually started after '74 but mostly between '80 and '86. If you get the chance to visit Kosova and you notice a significant buidling/project, please ask when it was build.
Godd picture of my friend on the website you ShqptrO
Also...I want to inform those serb bullshit artists out there that
for every $4.00 Kosova made/earned $3.000 went siphened out of it's economy and sent to Belgrade throughout the years of occupation...and That Is A Fact that many many know in the former Yugoslavia as well as in the west!!!
Ilirian
to Ilirian:
you just really convinced me that you do not have a slightest idea what are you talking about!
anonymous India was a colony of Britain. Kosovo was a province of Yugoslavia (notwithstanding arguments about Kosovo's status today or whether it was a province of Serbia or Yugoslavia).
You are trying to portray this as some kind of master servant relationship where poor Kosovo was exploited. I could easily use sloppy generalisations that might have some truth in them too.
Look at how Slovenia and Croatia used Serbian agriculture ie how Slovenian companies would sell fruit juice made from fruit in Serbia to other republics and make much more money basically for packaging a product.
Big deal. Every republic could complain of being a victim of Yugoslavia in some way. But every republic and province also benefitted from Yugoslavia.
FARDUK was created to iron out these differences in development and national income.
I dont think that we should let free trade do its thing. If we had there would have been no FARDUK at all. The situation would in Kosovo would have been even worse - as it was before FARDUK was created.
I believe in intervention in order to create some kind of equality. Leaving it to the free market usually creates an even larger gap between rich and poor. That means an even larger gap between richer and poor republics or regions.
The money that came from the West is a fact I agree. But the money from FARDUK was taken from the federal budget. Using your logic one can equally say that the West payed for state pensions in Yugoslavia for one year, or that the West paid for 3 years of the defence budget. In other words its a matter of interpretation where the money went, unless there is evidence that Western money went into specific projects.
Again it rather sounds to me as if you want to make out that it was the West that funded Kosovo. Again that evil Yugoslavia which colonised Kosovo kept Kosovo downtroden and only the enlightened west with their capitalist values tried to help.
Thats a fantasy picture. Nobody forced Yugoslavia to make FARDUK. It was based on that Communistic philosophy of trying to maintain some kind of balance between the richer and poorer. Not exactly a priority in the capitalist west.
If you really are interested in the statistics then I can give you the name of a rather good book published in the English language which analyses Yugoslavia since WW2 in the economic and political sense. But its a scientific style book. There is very little room for ethnic explanations and little time given for victim argumentation.
Yes Chris there are only 5 percent Serbs living in Kosovo. The other 5 percent were ethnically cleansed. Thats a statistic you should be ashamed of, not one to use to prove how little right an ethnic minority should have necause they are not numerous enough.
Serbian hasnt strived hard to 'regain' the province of Kosovo. Until talks are over when Kosovo will likely be awarded independence - the word is therefore 'retain'.
And why was that throughout history? You know better than I do probably. There is a feeling that Serbian national identity began in Kosovo. Now Im not a nationalist so those arguments dont impress me that much but I do think it would be very sad that Kosovo becomes a foreign country. I felt the same way for other Republics of former Yugoslavia. It wasnt a feeling of ownership that I wanted, it was a feeling of strength in unity. Yugoslavia was a coutnry, all of these reduced countries are miserable in comparison. Soon it will only take about 3 people to declare indepedence on their private land to declare a new state. Pitiful.
I, too have read Noel Malcoms book and recognise some of those arguments you are using. Its by the by that I think Malcom was a little biased because I concede he has done some good research as well. As I stated before Im not sure that Kosovo Albanians and Kosovo Serbs had the same birthrate as you state. But I agree that the issue is abused.
Good grief you know people from Kosovo are very similar its shocking. I have a friend from Kosovo (Serbian) who also claims that Kosovo is rich and points to Trepca. He also points to the winemaking potential.
I dont have the heart to tell him (after all he has been cleansed) that Trepca mines dont produce prermium but second grade minerals.
Yes I've read all the economic reports. He, too talks about how great and clean it is in Kosovo.
I, of course cant mention to him depleted uranium or Roma settlements.
I wont tell him that it might take a decade for vinyards to get export licenses to Europe. I dare not say to him that he has next to no chance of being allowed to return home.
But you Chris and other Albanians who very much have the upper hand in Kosovo, still want to pretend that once the 'burden' of Serbian rule is shaken off it will be milk and honey.
You know what, that day is coming and when the fist pumping is done the stark truth will become apparant. Kosovo will be one of the poorest states in Europe.
Truly. Sooner or later you will have to admit that to yourself. And no amount of blaming Serbs or others for the past of SFRJ or the present can deflect that fact.
Like I said I wish it wasnt true but I have read the reports on what Kosovo has to offer and its economic prosects.
I think Albanians should be sent to labor camps and when they have no use as workers they should be executed. Their fat should become soap, and their skin should be used to bind crappy books.
Really history lessons leave me cold. Im simply not interested. The reason is that those who quote history / mythology invariably colour it to suit the view they are trying to promote.
You are answering the Serbian Jerusalem argument which is great 'fun' in a way because then somebody who subscribes to the Serbian Jerusalem argument will answer you with his own statistics and facts which will sound equally impressive / unimpressive. You will contradict each other, neither of you will be able to prove anything. In the end nobody will get anywhere. Fantastic because such arguments are guaranteed to allow participants leave the 'debate' without altering their view.
Things are much more interesting for me when agreement and some common facts can be established between 'supposed' bitter enemies. Facts are much more easily established from contemporary history, even if they remain disputed.
So, to ethnic cleansing. Yes according to definitions of ethnic cleasning both Kosovo Albanian and Kosovo Serbian populations were and are cleansed from Kosovo. One should always check the definition first and then decide and I have.
In my opinion it really is churlish and mean spirited to argue the point by saying that somebody voluntarily wanted to leave their home. I mean who really wants to do that unless they feel threatened by somebody?
The big difference between the Kosovo Albanians and Kosovo Serbs who were ethnically cleansed is that Kosovo Albanians were cleansed temporarily and Kosovo Serbs permanenetly. That is a huge difference because for those that remain cleansed the war still isnt over. For those that are safely back in their homes it is.
This situation is simply in my view indefensible. If I were an Albanian I would feel the same way about this. I would ask, how is it that when we were ethnically cleansed we called on the world to help and then NATO intervened. And how is it that many of those same people who were cleansed are now silent or worse still support the ethnic cleansing of non Albanians in Kosovo? That makes them no better than us.
Ironic really because that last comment probably sums it all up.
"The big difference between the Kosovo Albanians and Kosovo Serbs who were ethnically cleansed is that Kosovo Albanians were cleansed temporarily and Kosovo Serbs permanenetly."
Yes this is the case however the explanation is rather somewhat different from what you have. See the Albanians were clensed and killed by their serb neighbors. The paramiltaries and soldiers who came from Serbia had no idea who was who in Kosova towns. The list of names was provided by K-serbs. So the cleansing of K-serbs is attributed to their fear of what they did personally. Also it is not true that kosova's government is silent to serbs return as you see from almost weekly returns. Those who do not return most likely had to do somthing with their neighbours disaperance - hence the fear.
I am not a Serbia but they are much more honorable and proud that Shiptaris are. Albo dogs suck dick and sleep in the trashl, their women whore themselves out, for pennies. The Serbs do not whore their women or bend over to politically power daily like you dogs
anon with respect its not very difficult to tell the difference between Kosovo Albanians and Kosovo Serbs.
Im not talking so much physically. Im talking about ethnic villages and towns. Most places in Kosovo would have concentrations of one particular ethnic group. So there were no need for lists.
And if (as Im sure you would say) Kosovo Albanians run for their lives before the Serbs came, again there is no need for lists. For the criminals who stole from peoples homes, well they were happy to steal from Kosovo Serb or Albanian houses. What did they care? Criminals only care about personal profit (although some dress it up with some kind of supposed 'patriotism').
As for your statement about those that havent returned 'most likely' have something to fear. I'd ask you what happened to innocent until proven guilty? Its wrong for you to make assumptions about people before you know anything about the particular case. You could at the very least have a neutral opinion about the subject.
No wonder non Albanians are afraid to return.
And what exactly did the gypsies or Roma do wrong? Why was the entire Roma marhala destroyed by Kosovo Albanian fighters in Southern Mitrovica?
Stop making excuses and do what you expect or want to see Serbs do. ie Take responsibility.
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