Kosovo Grenade
Tue, 02/26/2008 - 03:56 — Adrian Gräber
Illustration: Bloodless (Original idea: Hromov)
I find it disturbing how ignorant Americans are of world politics. Kosovo independence is the bomb and for a reason. Creating an independent Kosovo on the territory of Serbia, an internationally recognized sovereign state, is contrary to international law and very likely to bring a whole deal of unrest in other parts of the world. They set an example for IRA, the Basques, Northern Cyprus, Iraq's Kurds and many other separatists who also want to declare independence and thus set the relative stability ablaze. Of course you're too far away to care, but as a European I am very concerned. If indeed we'll get a rise of separatist movements and thus instability and war here in Europe, I will blame “woo-hoo” people like you, who without any consideration reinforce actions that are illegal under international law.
Comments
Haven't you learned
Haven't you learned already?
America doesn't give a shit about Europe unless one of you are
a) Killing a Bunch of Jews,
b) Shitting on France,
c) Propagating Communism,
d) or Fucking around in OUR hemisphere.
Really, after that, we (I) couldn't care less. Have fun with the Explosion of Separatism which you naively think is just around the corner.
You forgot: Making an oil
You forgot: Making an oil deal but not in petro dollars.
Okay...
I support just about all the seccessions listed on your hand grenade, I'm afraid. I believe your perspective of creating a nation "on" sovereign territory is different from the perspective of the people who actually live in and occupy the territory. If the people decide they want to break away, why shouldn't they be allowed to? In the modern era, Europeans especially need to set an example for the world that this sort of separation can be accomplished without bloodshed.
Oh, and please ignore the trolls... Thanks for your post.
Well said!!
Than why is it that AMERICAN is not allowing Republika Srpska to separate from Bosnia? The majority Serbs who are well over 90% majority in RS are forced to live in Muslim Bosnia against their will. So what you said is great in theoy but America does not practice rational theory. They will even help terrorists if it is in their interest..... fort dix ring a bell?
This is always an interesting question
Your cartoon makes an interesting point but there is no easy answer. Should people be allowed self determination? Well...maybe. Self determination is an important principle which has led to the formations of many nations large and small (i.e. the United States, India, Switzerland, Czech Republic and Slovakia, the various republics that broke away from Russian dominance). This idea cannot (no matter how destructive) be totally forsaken.
Self determination can also lead to the problem of possibly endless fragmentation of once powerful states into smaller and smaller entities with little or no power. (if self determination has to be preserved at all costs...what is to keep a city from breaking away from a state....or a single landowner from a nation) Kosovan independence is not something to be considered lightly but to criticize the US out of hand for supporting it based on the fact that it might cause tensions elsewhere seems to be focusing on the symptoms of the violence that various separatist movements cause rather than the reasons why they exist in the first place.
I'm not totally sure where I stand on this but I think there can be no truely correct stance on Kosovo. Surely troops cannot be allowed to police the region indefinitely. Nor does it appear that Kosovo can exist in or alongside Serbia without support. I hope the correct decision was made here, but it would seem that history tells all of us that the fight in this region is far from over. Peace be unto you all.
France and Kosovo
"As far as France is concerned, we intend to recognize Kosovo’s independence" - President Sarkozy
I disagree with our French government. If tomorrow Corsicans claim unilaterally their independence, it will be a big mess.
A stupid decision by the USA and Britain, our downfall
Agree with your article and a very good analogy. How long now before Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico get their independence? How long before Aztlan in the SW becomes a reality, on the region that the US conquered in a bloody war against Mexico in 1848? How long before the native American lands throughout the country become fully independent? (They already are sovereign.) Vermont? An African-American homeland here? The Muslims in Michigan and the Upper Midwest? And in the UK-- there's N. Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, what else?
This is an extremely explosive precedent that is already coming around to bite us in the a**.
The vast majority of the world's countries, including the biggest ones (India, Brazil, China, Russia et al.), even our close allies like Canada and Israel, and European nations like Greece and Spain, will never recognize Kosovo. It has no UN seat. Which means the only way for Kosovo to have de facto independence, is for the US military to go in and enforce it.
So while we're bankrupting ourselves in Iraq and Afghanistan, and heading into a very nasty recession, we're now picking a fight with Russia and igniting a new Cold War. Yeah, that's reaaal smart.
The Clintons and Bushes are both idiots for getting us into this. Neither side in the Balkans is in the right, and we should be seeking compromise here, not fanning the flames. Just give Kosovo a lot of autonomy, but as it's the historic Serb homeland, just keep it formally within Serbia. It'll still govern itself without this needless provocation to piss off Russia and 4/5 of the world's countries that won't recognize it.
This is not a fight that the US and Britain can afford.
I fear your missing the point
Kosovo has been a hot bed for centuries. What most people have to realize is that America is not to blame for the past or current situation that has risen in the Balkan States. Firstly, if Serbia had kept its ethnic hatred in check, no one would ever have had any issues in the old Yugoslavia. Second, it was not the U.S. that came in to calm things.. it was the United Nations, who has had the responsibility for Kosovo since 1999. They, not the U.S. have pushed things in Kosovo, overlooked the Organized Crime and many other ethnic issues, with input from the U.S. neither asked, nor wanted by the U.N. It has been more Europe's problem. Who is it that is pushing to take over in Kosovo now? The U.S... no! The E.U... ah... now you got it.
Why is it that any problem that comes up in the world is a U.S. fault? People, either begin to educate yourselves on world politics, or keep your opinion to yourself. Everyone hates America... except those who live here, and the millions who want to be here..
If you don't like us... STAY HOME... we don't particularly like people who don't like us anyway, who seem to always be high brow aggressive prigs anyway. I am tired of America bashing.. the world problems are not all the U.S. fault... only parts.. which we own up to.
Look to yourselves for the problems created.. Look to Europe and the U.N. (WORLD ORGANIZATION) as the culprits if you don't like what is happening in Kosovo.. look to the Serbs as the heralds of their own problems... and look to yourselves as the problems solvers.. so .. shut up already and quit bitching, do something...
Ok don't you guys get it?!
Ok don't you guys get it?! The cold war never stopped. We only convinced Russia that it was over when in fact we strategically implemented a policy that will keep us at Russia's doorstep for years. From Kosovo to Kurdistan ... we built bases - all around Russia - maybe to have one final battle with it ... unfortunately it will be the last one for us as well ...
Ps when i say us i mean US!
I'm really sorry for some
I'm really sorry for some comments but the fact is that Kosova Independence has stabilized the region and didn't caused any precedents in the world.
This picture is just a part of the Serbian propoganda on this issue.
Regards