Byzantine Blog

Serbia is right to resist and make life difficult for the EU, but only if she is doing so as part of a bargaining strategy intended to give her greater compensation elsewhere. This is, after all, not a question of what "should" happen (we can argue about this forever and perhaps we will). The question is rather that a certain pattern is emerging and Serbia should make the best of a dangerous and highly unpleasant situation and try to "ride with the tide", if only in her own pragmatic self interest.

I suspect the following may well take place in the next couple of years, although no present government wants to admit this: 1) Kosovo will be recognised as independent - probably after the Serbian elections; 2) The Northern Mitrovica region will stay with Serbia; 3) This will further radicalise Kosovo and encourage eventual union with Albania; 4) Macedonia will then prove unviable and split into ethnic regions, to be eventually partitioned by Albania, Bulgaria and perhaps also Greece; 5) Serbia will find compensation by uniting with Republika Srpska; 6) the EU will accept membership of the new Serbia anyhow and will also conveniently drop its demands for the arrest of Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic. Meanwhile Russia will console herself by recognising and eventually absorbing Abkhazia.

I realise many readers may find these predictions abhorent, but that is not going to prevent them from being realised anyway. The best situation would be that all parties accept the inevitable as soon as possible and with a minimum of confict and a maximum of pragmatism.

Phil, I dont't find it merely abhorrent, but also wrong in that it misses the most important step No. 7: Serbia gets Kosovo and Metohija back under its full authority in any and every way imaginable (including war), after a year, two, ten or twenty. Because the almost-independence autonomy that was on the table yesterday, most certainly will no longer be on the menu after the land would get forcefully severed.

This may be a key to difference between East and West, but the way you define 'pragmatism' is the actual abhorrent issue. In this case, 'pragmatism' means that Serbia gets cut up for nothing, i.e. because it suits current interests of US (NATO) and, by default, of UK, and then it needs to accept it as "a reality", simply because it is small and immeasurably weaker. The only thing it can do, according to this form of 'pragmatism' is to try to get the most it can in return for the amputation, e.g. trade and haggle.

That is precisely what the Serbs will not do.

The so-called 'reality' - artificially created and inflamed problem, served with the unjust, artificially imposed 'solution' - is a "reality" only to the architects of the smoke-and-mirrors trick. They better be prepared to defend their "reality" for decades and centuries to come, because Serbs aren't buying it.

The EU is not a nation nor a member of the UN. When it comes to international law, the EU is NO authority.

If the EU is to take over the KFOR mission (to by-pass Russia within the UN Security Council) and it is not approved by the UN it should be treated nothing short than an act of war! Who the hell does the EU think they are? They have no juristiction or soverignty over Serbia. They cannot dictate who gets what and so forth.

The Kosovo issue is a direct challenge to the notion of international law. If Kosovo is allowed independence in defiance of international law then we will see a breakdown of all international treaties and laws the world over!

UN Resolution 1244 is the international law, not the EU nor NATO.

My utmost support goes to the statements made by Svetlana and OXI (which I suspect is Greek for 'NO'). The West's asking Serbs' consent for severing Kosovo and Metohija from its motherland is akin to asking a true believer to sell his soul to the devil in exchange for three days of illusionary bliss. There is no compensation that could make up for one's soul and there is no human being on this earth that has the right to enforce tearing away the most precious part of Serbia's existence. The powers that embarked upon this insane task have granted themselves the holiest status of Omnipotence and Omniscience thereby declaring themselves infallible and above any law.

Those same powers are in for some surprising news, and its all bad for their egos, they are deluded to the point of insanity. Their power is nowhere near omnipotent and their ability to understand is even farther away from omniscient and unless they manage to wake up in time to avoid the consequences of the Ultimate Judge whose Perfection they are trying to usurp, they will learn the hard way of how insignificant they really are. In the meantime the mighty NATO with the USA at the helm better not expect the Serbs to bow to their threats, it ain't gona happen.

Well said, Bozidar - svaka ti je zlatna, brate! And I fully agree with oxi too.

As far as I know, most Serbs get each strand of their hair raised up whenever they are told they should accept a steaming pile of BS on a silver platter, in the name of "pragmatism" and "rationality". Those seem to be some of favorite terms used as codewords for injustice, thievery, and highway robbery. Dressing it up in "let's be reasonable" rubbish doesn't help in the least. Unless the purpose is to insult one's intelligence, on top of everything else.

Eidelberg sounds like some sort of US State Dept "toadie".

The CIA was once run by a Greek/Albanian and Archon, named George Tenet.... believe me IF the CIA could get in close to the Church then the US State Dept. can infiltrate the Serbian government.

Tadic is a US-toadie/warthog and that guy "PHIL" who posted here, sounds real suspicious.

I believe that I know who is the enemy and it is the US... just to paraphrase that grand little cartoon critter, "POGO" from long ago.

May God richly bless Serbia and keep her safe from the evil of the USA!!
May God continue to pour blessings and honor on Russia, the friend of the Church AND Serbia

May the good Lord bless you too, dear Rosebud!

Thanks guys for the support! I have been fighting on the good side since 1999. NATO is not a credible alliance by not only violating their own treaty but violating international law the UN Charter which the NATO treaty is placed under.

I thanked the Greek government for not participating and sealing off its airspace to NATO killer pilots but I still am bitter to why they did not veto the attack in the first place? I am sure U.S. arm twisting was to blame.

Though it was Greek objections after 78 days and a threat to halt hostilities that brought the U.S. to the table to sign UN Resolution 1244 because the ill effects of the bombings were digging deep wounds into the Greek economy, environment and the rising tide of protests.

I have called for Greece to drop out of NATO since and join the Russians. Move the Black Sea Fleet to Greek bases and Greek and Russian pilots could train together in intercepting Turkish fighters and other NATO fighters in the Aegean.

In fact: Eight Turkish military jets violated Greek airspace by flying over Rhodes yesterday as Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis continues to consider a trip to the neighboring country. The Defense Ministry said the Turkish F-16 jets were intercepted by Greek fighter planes between 3.26 p.m. and 3.34 p.m., resulting in two mock dogfights.

Greece/Russia could keep Turkey at bay while the Serbs take care of Albania and the Albanians as well as the Bosnians.

The reality is that few are talking about is if the Serbs ask for Russian military assistance and Russia gets involved, every scenario I have played out involves the use of nuclear weapons. I cannot see any other solution if Russia and NATO confront one another!

And think about what Russia has been doing since the middle of last year. They have conducted 70 strategic nuclear bomber patrols with Tu-95M and Tu-160 prompting 120 NATO fighter intercept aircraft after them. Russia has been on a torid pace of testing ballestic nuclear missiles. Just about every other week they have launched a missile from the sea or land as well as cruise missiles from the bombers. This is a most nerving pace that even during peace time would look odd. Maybe Russia knows something we don't and are simply preparing. In fact that is exactly what nations would do if a looming war is about to happen. That is test the reliability of the ballistic missile fleet for prepardness. After all Russia has precious few left so why are they testing so many?

Russia has moved ships back to the Mediterranean Sea to challenge the U.S. 6th Fleet and keep a watchful eye on Israel with a possible attack upon Iran soon.

Kosovo could blow up to a major world war and this needs to be known so a solution can be reached or we risk nuclear war. The solutions the west imposes are not realistic and should be labeled as acts of war for land grabbing. Either we find a solution with respect to international law or we risk world war.

Oxi you are right in a way, but WW3 is already happening, but its only a tiny flame until some one adds fuel to it. If any one remembers WW2 and how it was started, you can pretty much see how WW3 will start. 9/11 USA attacks Iraq, no evidence what’s so ever that Iraq has WMD, they were supposed to find Osama but instead they capture Saddam which had noting to do with 9/11, after the capture the NATO secures all of the oil rigs, the media cools down and starts implementing the propaganda machine just like they did for Serbia. Osama fades slowly but not completely. After a year or so people are starting to get suspicious regarding the 9/11, where are the bodies of the passengers? Only piece of evidence found was a past port in perfect condition at the site. People heard bombes, and so on. Now to get the peoples attention the Elite are focusing on Iran and have their propaganda machine at them, even though it has been found that Iran stopped making nuclear weapons years ago, but bush and his mentally retarded buddies aren’t happy with this, they want to bombed Iran due to oil and control. Russia has become a problem for the American; Russia is helping Iran build the Power Plant which poses no threat to anyone. By the end of 2008 Iran will be at war with US and that tiny fire will become an inferno. It is sad that lives die in war but is the American empire in not brought down, people can only dream of piece. As for Serbia I would urge them to arm then selves to the teeth prepare shelters and have hospitals allocated to safe places where they won’t become a target. There is a great documentary on Google it is done by John Pilger, it is called The War on Democracy, it is very informative on the American Empire and how they fund and create riots and anti government groups in other countries. Here is the link http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-3739500579629840148&q=John+Pilger&total=281&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0