Funny how time changes things:
Slobodan Milošević, visionary?
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| 'We are not angels- but we are also not the devils you make us out to be' |
It sounded pretty retro at the time to fear conquering Muslim mobs coming to storm Serbia/all of Europe someday -and his war crimes were fairly well documented-
but have you seen the Serbian border lately?
Just because he did bad things doesn't mean his basic premise is invalid: the crimes were driven by fear of Muslims that Clinton and the British dismissed as crazy at the time- yet now many of us now share those same fears
(and there's nothing crazy about it).
(and there's nothing crazy about it).
Yes, Milosevic (and his Bosnian Serb allies) killed innocent people and seemed the aggressor- but history might someday suggest that he was attempting a pre-emptive strike -ala Israel 1967- since Serbia also exists a frontier facing Muslim enemies who in his mind were employing a slow-motion conquest/KLA insurgency (as opposed to the Arabs preparing to crush the Jewish state in one swift blow).
Yes, the primary goal was establishing a Greater Serbia -at Bosnian and Croat expense- but perhaps they desired -again like the Israelis- to attain the minimum buffer-zone necessary to defend the country- Kosovo was basically their West Bank.
Yes, the primary goal was establishing a Greater Serbia -at Bosnian and Croat expense- but perhaps they desired -again like the Israelis- to attain the minimum buffer-zone necessary to defend the country- Kosovo was basically their West Bank.
Since the complex Yugoslav wars came to an end at the turn-of-the-century, former Olympic host Sarajevo, Bosnia -then mixed- has undergone a thorough cleansing -no more Serbs and Croats- and now '100% Muslim'.
Islam-friendly Germany's Der Spiegel reported in 2003 that the 'monstrous' King Fahd mosque in Sarajevo -the largest in Europe, on which the desert kingdom spent a total of $20 million- is a terrorist threat. Might it now occur to Ma Merkel that these same Saudis are offering to construct 200 new mosques in Germany for the 'migrants' that they're currently bringing in by the shitload?
Islam-friendly Germany's Der Spiegel reported in 2003 that the 'monstrous' King Fahd mosque in Sarajevo -the largest in Europe, on which the desert kingdom spent a total of $20 million- is a terrorist threat. Might it now occur to Ma Merkel that these same Saudis are offering to construct 200 new mosques in Germany for the 'migrants' that they're currently bringing in by the shitload?
The Yugoslav strong-man also spoke of a 'jihadist hotbed' evolving right in the Balkans- this too has become an unsettling reality.
I doubt the Russians were on any kind of philosophical plane regarding issues in Yugoslavia in the 90s, since they always back the Serbs as their ethnic and religious brethren. Alas, the Kremlin lacked leverage with NATO diplomatically or any other way, as back then the Russians were a feeble force, to be ignored (at least by the Clinton Administration)... so Bubba did as he pleased in the April-June 1999.
But by the end of that year, Kremlin leadership was handed-over to former KGB operative Vladimir Putin, likely under pressure from the Russian military and/or intelligence services.
One could argue that typical Clinton hubris -this was his war- brought us the unfortunate Putin era.
Perhaps Hillary's 'reset' nonsense would never have been needed -not that it ever accomplished anything- if Bill Clinton had listened to them in the first place on Yugoslavia... the Russians obviously felt shoved-aside and have been engaged in a military buildup pretty much ever since, were confrontational with Bush as soon as an opportunity presented itself, etc.
One could argue that typical Clinton hubris -this was his war- brought us the unfortunate Putin era.
Perhaps Hillary's 'reset' nonsense would never have been needed -not that it ever accomplished anything- if Bill Clinton had listened to them in the first place on Yugoslavia... the Russians obviously felt shoved-aside and have been engaged in a military buildup pretty much ever since, were confrontational with Bush as soon as an opportunity presented itself, etc.
Is Assad the new Milosevic, where we picked the wrong side? Opposed to Moscow again, too- except this time with a stronger, wiser Russia running circles around us, while beating-back the Islamists BHO was unable to confront effectively? Looks like it-
And I'm not what you'd call a Trump 'hater', but he's crazy when he says
'let Putin go after ISIS'... Trump should know that the Russians aren't there for that, and are NOT going to do anything idealistic, to help the world, etc- their involvement is never high-minded nor benevolent. And with ISIS far more focused on infidels in the USA than anybody in the Russian Federation, it's safe to assume Putin would happy to let them run wild a bit longer.
Trump seems to think he'll be able to do 'deals' with Moscow, and that's going to solve everything- something I would consider insufficient as a base of any relationship with today's belligerent, expansionist, KGB-alumni-ran Kremlin. He might be right about their lack of respect for Obama, but the Russians need a gun to their head to be driven into any kind of binding agreement they would actually adhere to- just like the Gipper did it. Don't expect to shake their hand- rather, you need to put Ivan up against the wall-
it's always been that way.
Russian attacks on ISIS would solely be tactical, as it seem Putin is setting-up for the long-haul in Syria, to increase his influence in the ME, expand their military base(s), stabilize the Assad regime, maybe take a crack at some of the oil in the surrounding area, like in Iraq.
Putin could be interested in pounding much of the Islamic State's
Chechen leadership, too- might save him a lot of trouble further down the road, but he's not going to spend vast resources attempting to completely wipe ISIS out/make Russia their primary enemy- it's doubtful they can even afford to right now.
100% opportunism... remember, it's the notoriously self-serving Russians we're dealing with here. And we're the ones that opened the door for them...
And I'm not what you'd call a Trump 'hater', but he's crazy when he says
'let Putin go after ISIS'... Trump should know that the Russians aren't there for that, and are NOT going to do anything idealistic, to help the world, etc- their involvement is never high-minded nor benevolent. And with ISIS far more focused on infidels in the USA than anybody in the Russian Federation, it's safe to assume Putin would happy to let them run wild a bit longer.
Trump seems to think he'll be able to do 'deals' with Moscow, and that's going to solve everything- something I would consider insufficient as a base of any relationship with today's belligerent, expansionist, KGB-alumni-ran Kremlin. He might be right about their lack of respect for Obama, but the Russians need a gun to their head to be driven into any kind of binding agreement they would actually adhere to- just like the Gipper did it. Don't expect to shake their hand- rather, you need to put Ivan up against the wall-
it's always been that way.
Russian attacks on ISIS would solely be tactical, as it seem Putin is setting-up for the long-haul in Syria, to increase his influence in the ME, expand their military base(s), stabilize the Assad regime, maybe take a crack at some of the oil in the surrounding area, like in Iraq.
Putin could be interested in pounding much of the Islamic State's
Chechen leadership, too- might save him a lot of trouble further down the road, but he's not going to spend vast resources attempting to completely wipe ISIS out/make Russia their primary enemy- it's doubtful they can even afford to right now.
100% opportunism... remember, it's the notoriously self-serving Russians we're dealing with here. And we're the ones that opened the door for them...