US Realpolitik Revealing Another Double Standard?

So John McCain was on CBS's Face the Nation this weekend, and he said this about Russia and the Ukraine

What does Putin do here? I think the message has to be sent to him to let the Ukrainian people determine their own future. And a partition of Ukraine is totally unacceptable.

Really?

So a partition was totally acceptable in Serbia/Kosovo, but not in Ukraine? Serbia was punished for intervening to protect their own minority (note the date of the article). And we don't think the Russians would be justified in protecting their ethnic minority?

He continued

The people of Russia are have watched this transpire and they're tired of the crony capitalism and kleptocracy that governs Russia today.

So we put a rebranded organization of drug runners and human traffickers (the KLA) in charge of a neo-country we stole from another sovereign nation, effectively creating - and then protecting! - a kleptocracy in the Balkans. And then we tacitly opposed the Russians for trying to clean out the gangster state on their own doorstep as the criminal gangs in Chechnya decided to call themselves "freedom fighters" because some of them happened to be Muslims.

We've given the Russians all the political pretext they need to effect a partition of the Ukraine. The question is whether or not we've recognized it. And how long before it bites us in the ass closer to home.

Anniversary: Start of Bosnian War

Yes, it's been 20 years, as the Bosnians mark the 20th anniversary of that civil war.

Bosnia-Hercegovina is marking 20 years since the start of its civil war, a conflict that saw the worst atrocities in Europe since World War II.
The conflict began in April 1992 following the break-up of the former Yugoslavia.
An estimated 100,000 people were killed and nearly half the population were forced from their homes.
A number of events are taking place across the country to remember those who died in the four-year conflict.
The main event to mark the anniversary will be a concert in the capital Sarajevo, where an orchestra will play to thousands of empty chairs.
The concert organiser says that 11,541 empty chairs will be set out - estimated to be the number of those killed during the lengthy siege of Sarajevo by Serb forces.

Watch for more coming....

By: Brant

Monday Video: Balkan Battle Babes

An estrogen-infused BANG. If you mind, you're probably reading the wrong blog.




By: Brant

Anniversary: The Fall of Vukovar

Very few battles in the last 20 years have been a psyche-scarring as the 87-day siege of Vukovar, during the Croatian fight for their independence. The start of the siege by the Serb-dominated Yugoslavian National Army is generally accepted as the start of the war between Croatia, and what was then "Yugoslavia". Today marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of Vukovar.

The Croatians are holding their own memorial services.

Croatian President Ivo Josipovic has honoured several people and institutions for their wartime involvement in Vukovar at the commemoration of the Vukovar Rememberance Day held yesterday (Tues).
Vukovar was one of the Croatian cities most devastated by the war of independence from former Yugoslavia that took place between 1991 and 1995 in Croatia.
Josipovic received the representatives of the families of soldiers killed or disappeared during the battles, as well as workers from the Vukovar hospital that took care of the sick and the wounded.
"Thanks to you and all our veterans, Croatia has the perspective today to become a country of happy and satisfied people, a country of justice and welfare for its citizens," Josipovic said.
He said Vukovar was the biggest and most important Croatian symbol of the war and sacrifice, but also of the final victory and freedom.

From Wikipedia's article about the Battle of Vukovar.

At the time it was the fiercest and most protracted battle in Europe, and Vukovar was the first major European town entirely destroyed since the Second World War. When Vukovar fell on 18 November 1991, hundreds of soldiers and civilians were massacred by Serb forces and at least 31,000 civilians were deported from the town and its surroundings. Vukovar was ethnically cleansed of its non-Serb population and became part of the self-declared Republic of Serbian Krajina. Several Serb military and political officials, including Milošević, were later indicted and in some cases jailed for war crimes committed during and after the battle.

The battle exhausted the JNA and proved a turning point in the Croatian war. A ceasefire was declared a few weeks later. Vukovar remained in Serb hands until 1998 when it was peacefully reintegrated into Croatia. It has since been rebuilt but has less than half of its pre-war population and many buildings are still scarred by the battle. Its two principal ethnic communities remain deeply divided and it has not regained its former prosperity.

Years ago, the BBC analyzed what happened in Vukovar, with a look at 'why', as well.

Vukovar was a modestly prosperous, sleepy, provincial town in eastern Croatia, near the border with Serbia, noted for its picturesque baroque architecture. That was before the war for Croatia's independence erupted in July 1991.
By the end of its three-month siege at the hands of Serb forces in November 1991, Vukovar had become utterly devastated.

It was, perhaps, the most comprehensively destroyed town of any size in either Bosnia-Herzegovina or Croatia during the wars of the first half of the 1990s.

Capture of the town was an important strategic objective for the Serb-dominated Yugoslav army. It was designed to consolidate Serb control over the region of Croatia known as eastern Slavonia.

That objective was achieved, even though there was little left, apart from than ruins, following the siege.

It was also accompanied by the ethnic cleansing of Croats, who prior to the war were present in Vukovar municipality in roughly the same numbers as Serbs.

Croat defenders of Vukovar later claimed that the town could have been saved from capture by Serb forces if the nationalist President Franjo Tudjman had been willing to send reinforcements.

Mr Tudjman was accused of deliberately sacrificing Vukovar - dubbed the Croatian Stalingrad because of its devastation - so as to reinforce his portrayal of Croatia as the victim of Serb aggression.

The fallout of Vukovar is still being felt today.

Croatian doctors have filed war crimes accusations against 19 former Yugoslav army commanders for the relentless shelling of a hospital in Vukovar during an 87-day siege of the eastern Croatian town in 1991.
The head of the hospital, Vesna Bosanac, said Friday that 500-700 grenades hit the facility during the bombardment by the Serb-led Yugoslav army.

View Larger Map

If you're interested in wading through some nationalistic commentary (on both sides) you can check out the collection of photos/videos on MilitaryPhotos.net.

And if you want to know how much it meant to either side, check out Sports Illustrated's coverage of the '96 Olympics. Yes. The Olympics.

The word sounded to an American ear like another cheer that had been stretched out, syllable by syllable. Vu-ko-var.
Vu-ko-var. Vu-ko-var. The Croatian fans in the water polo crowd repeated the word again and again in the closing seconds of their team's 8-­6 win in the quarterfinals, and surely this was the name of a player or a coach, or maybe the Croatian term for "Way to go, boys."

Not really.

There's more. Go read it.

By: Brant

Still Wrangling Over Kosovo's "Borders"

NATO is trying to defuse another Kosovo border crisis

Kosovo's special police forces that moved into the country's disputed north overnight to extend the government's writ at borders with Serbia will withdraw as part of a deal between Kosovo and Serbia and mediated by NATO, a spokesman for the military alliance said Tuesday.
The overnight operation by Kosovo's special police units was criticized by the European Union, which is currently mediating normalization talks between the former foes, and is likely to inflame tensions in the region that remains disputed over a decade after the end of Kosovo's war.
Lightly armed special police units in riot gear crossed into the Serb-dominated area and took control of one border post, before being blocked by local Serbs on the way to the other crossing point.
One police officer was wounded during the police operation launched late Monday, said police spokesman Brahim Sadriu.
Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Serbia has said it will not recognize the new state and Serbs living in Kosovo's north do not recognize Pristina's authority over them.
Kosovo government officials defended the overnight operation as an attempt to restore order in the north.

By: Brant

Missile Warheads Stolen from Romanian Train

And not just a few, either... 64(?!)

Authorities say they are investigating the theft of 64 missile warheads from a train transporting military equipment to Bulgaria.
Interior ministry spokesman Marius Militaru said Sunday the components are not dangerous on their own — only when integrated into missile systems. Prosecutors said Monday they are investigating the theft.
Railway workers on Saturday noticed the seals on a carriage door were broken, and it was not properly closed when the train reached Giurgiu, a Danube port that borders Bulgaria.
Tohan Zarnesti, the Romanian company that was shipping the warheads, produces artillery ammunition, ground to ground missiles and air to ground missiles and warheads for 122mm missiles.

By: Brant

Anniversary: 20 years of Slovenian Independence

Today marks the 20-year anniversary of the end of Slovenia's Ten-Day War of independence.

This was the first domino to fall in the breakup of Yugoslavia, and triggered one of the more protracted conflicts in recent European history as the fallout continues today.
You can read the Slovenian government's version of the history here.

Slovenia has actually emerged from the conflicts relatively unscathed. As the US State Department notes:

As a young independent republic, Slovenia pursued economic stabilization and further political openness, while emphasizing its Western outlook and central European heritage. Reflecting its success in these goals, Slovenia became a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU) in 2004. Today Slovenia is a stable democracy that is increasing its international engagement. Though small in size, Slovenia enjoys a growing regional profile and plays a role on the world stage that is out of proportion to its size.

US sports fans, of course, remember the phantom whistle from suspended/disgraced referee Koman Coulibaly that cost the US a winning goal, when he somehow determined there was a foul on the Americans in the following action:

By: Brant

Mladic Busted, Headed for Trial

Mladic is headed for trial, and will likely finally answer for war crimes 15 years ago.

After spending a night in jail, Mladic was due back in a Belgrade court on Friday for a hearing on his extradition to a U.N. war crimes tribunal.
The Bosnian Serb wartime army commander is facing international war crimes charges, including the slaughter of 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica.
A Thursday extradition hearing was adjourned due to what Mladic's lawyer claimed was his poor health.
Serbian war crimes prosecutors say the health issue appears to be a tactic to delay his extradition to the U.N. tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands.

In a day full of irony (see PATRIOT Act article below), Mladic is headed for trial in the same country whose peacekeepers were completely useless at Srebrenica.

By: Brant

NEWS: Shooting in Germany Hits Busload of US Troops

Looks like some Kosovar took a shot at a US bus. Don't they know that we stole their country from Yugoslavia for them?

From CNN

Two people were shot and killed Wednesday in an incident involving a U.S. military bus at Frankfurt Airport in Germany, a police spokesman said.
Another person is severely wounded, Juergen Linker told CNN, and one person is in custody.
A U.S. military official said initial reports were that two people had been killed, including the driver of the bus.
It is not clear if the driver was German or American, or military or civilian.
Two others are wounded, said the source, who is not authorized to speak publicly about the incident.
The troops killed and injured are U.S. Air Force airmen from Lakenheath base in the United Kingdom, the U.S. official said, emphasizing that the information was only preliminary.
They were security forces on their way to a deployment, the source said, without saying specifically where they were heading.
They were flying commercial, not on a military plane, according to the source.
It's believed the German police have a young Kosovo national in custody, the U.S. official said.

From MSNBC

It reported that a U.S. service member and the bus driver were thought to have been killed with at least two other people injured.
The Local, citing police, said the suspect was a 21-year-old from Kosovo.
The shootings appeared to have taken place inside the bus, police spokesman Jurgen Linker told Germany's Die Welt newspaper.

By: Brant

GrogNews Insomniac Headlines

Yes, they're late. Sorry. It's been a loooooong day.

The Southies are pretty sure the Norks have more uranium sites. Hey, if they've got one, then it's one more than the number of army chiefs the Southies have right now.

Richard Holbrooke, who brokered the Bosnian peace accords in Dayton, has died.

The Army birther who refused to deploy is having his day in court.

Another bomb threat in Sweden as we learn that the bomber was hoping for bigger targets.

Assange is hoping for bail.

By: Brant

UK In Action: Macedonia Warrior

Petrovac ranges, FYRO Macedonia: A Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicle of No.1 Company, 1st Battalion, Irish Guards, joins a Challenger 2 Main Battle Tank training on the Petrovac Ranges. No 1 Company, 1IG, formed the Armoured Infantry component of the Kings Royal Hussars Battle Group on operations in FYROM.

Image: UK MoD

By: Widow 6-7

UK In Action: Freakin' Cold!

Ex Joint Resolve XIII, Manjaca Range, Central Bosnia. A captain serving with 3 Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery, covered up to protect against the hostile conditions of the Bosnian winter, whilst atop his Warrior armoured vehicle Officers. OPV. FOO. People.

Image: UK MoD

By: Widow 6-7

Singer and Former Royal Army Officer Might Have Stopped WW3

According to this article from the BBC, singer and former Royal Army officer James Blunt, backed up by then-Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Lt. Gen. Mike Jackson, might very well have stopped World War III by refusing a direct order from General Wesley Clark to "overpower" Russian forces who had seized Pristina airport at the beginning of the NATO-led peace-making operation in Kosovo. To quote Lt. Gen. Jackson:

I'm not going to have my soldiers be responsible for starting World War 3.

Personally, I've heard bits of pieces of the Pristina airport story, including a memorable quote from one British officer who was ready to "put some 25mm rounds in their Commie asses." I never quite realized how hot the situation on the ground really was.

By: Guardian

GrogNews Morning Headlines

(post rain-soaked commute...)

The police have unearthed a drug-smuggling tunnel from Tijuana into the US. Great, now how long before they start importing their drug-war massacres, like the latest 18-body-count mass grave they've discovered. Shut the border now.

The US wants to boost still more aid to Yemen.

Darfur rebels have targeted Sudanese police and claim to have killed 50. Note, we said "claim"...

Human rights groups are claiming that the battle for Khandahar has destroyed hundreds of houses.

Iran says they've arrested four "terrorists", supposedly with UK connections. Are they "terrorists" or are they hikers? Or are they tourists? Or are the Iranians just nuts...?

The ghosts of the Balkans won't go away, but at least some efforts at healing are being attempted. Serb leader Boris Tadic is visiting the war graves at Vukovar in Croatia.

By: Brant

ORBAT: Slovak Air Force

From the excellent Scramble on the Web, we have the Slovak Air Force order of battle for you...

Dopravniho Kridlo "generála Milana Rastislava Štefánika"
1 Dopravná Roj
An-26
2 Dopravná Roj
L-410FG
L-410UVP-E
L-410UVP-S
L-410UVP-T

Zmiešané letecké krídlo "Otta Smika"
1 Stíhacia Letka
MiG-29AS
MiG-29UBS
2 Stíhacia Letka
L-39CM
L-39ZAM
3 Spojovaci Letka
L-410UVP-T
Mi-8PS11
Mi-17
Vyhl'adávacia A Záchranná Sluzba
Mi-17M

Vrtulníkové Letecké Krídlo "generálplukovníka Jána Ambruša"
1 Bitevná Vrtul'nikova Letka
Mi-24D
Mi-24V
2 Dopravná Vrtul'nikova Letka
Mi-17M
3 Vycvíkový Vrtul'nikova Letka
Mi-2

Letecke Útvar Ministerstva Vnútra SR
VIP flight
Tu-154M
Yak-40
Policia
Mi-2
Mi-8PS
Mi-171


What do the names mean?
Bitevná Letka - Attack Squadron
Bitevná Vrtulníková Letka - Attack Helicopter Squadron
Dopravné Letecké Kridlo - Air Transport Squadron
Dopravná Letka - Transport Squadron
Letecký Školský Pluk - Air Training Regiment
Letecká základna - Air Base
Samostatná Stíhacia Letka - Independent Fighter Squadron
Stíhacie Bombardovacie Letecké Krídlo - Fighter Bomber Air Wing
Stíhací Bombardovací Letecký Pluk - Fighter Bomber Air Regiment
Stíhacia Letka - Fighter Squadron
Stíhacie Letecké Krídlo - Fighter Air Wing
Stíhací Letecky Pluk - Fighter Air Regiment
Vojenská Letecká Akadémia - Military Air Academy
Vrtulníkové Krídlo - Helicopter Wing
Vrtulníková Letka - Helicopter Squadron
Vrtulníkový Pluk - Helicopter Regiment
Výcvikové Stredisko Letectva - Flying Training Center
Zmiešaný Letecký Pluk - Mixed Air Regiment

image from Wikimedia

By: Brant

Israel Expanding Ties with Greece?

Possibly in response to worsening ties with Turkey, Israel and Greece are cozying up.

Israeli and Greek leaders discussed expanding military ties on Tuesday including sharing military know-how and holding joint war games, officials said.

Israel has been keen to expand ties with Greece as its relations with Turkey -- another strategic Mediterranean partner -- soured since an Israeli raid on a Turkish-backed aid flotilla to the Gaza Strip in May.

As he wrapped up his two-day trip to Greece, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu -- the highest ranking Israeli to visit the country -- said the two nations were "opening a new chapter".

He told reporters that he and Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou had discussed military cooperation.

An official in Netanyahu's entourage told Reuters these discussions "explored establishing greater cooperation between both countries' military industries and armies".

A Greek official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed they "talked about new forms of cooperation on defence and security issues" including the expansion of joint military exercises and sharing technological knowledge.

By: Brant

Serbia and Kosovo: Round XLVIII or something like that

Serbia is actually on the right side of a new UN draft resolution on Kosovo.

Serbia's foreign minister says the UN resolution will stop other separatist movements from following Kosovo's example.

Serbia is seeking support for a UN resolution which it says will prevent separatist movements from following the example of Kosovo, which unilaterally declared independence from Serbia.

Last week the UN's highest court ruled that Kosovo's secession in 2009 did not violate international law.
Kosovo says the resolution - which says unilateral secession should not be a way of resolving territorial disputes - is "disastrous".

Serbia rejects Kosovo's independence.

Serbia's Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic met UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday to discuss the draft resolution, which says unilateral secession should not be a way of resolving territorial disputes.

Sixty-nine countries - including the United States, the UK and a further 21 of the EU's 27 member states - have so far recognised the majority ethnic Albanian Kosovo as an independent state.

By: Brant

Legality of Kosovo's Secession to be Settled Soon

While the US is supportive of Kosovar independence, they need to tread very, very carefully around the precedents about to be set by the ICJ. The legal claims being extended in support of Kosovo independence could very easily be used to turn over Los Angeles and San Antonio to Mexico. From the BBC:

The International Court of Justice is due to rule on the legality of Kosovo's unilateral secession from Serbia.

Judges will issue a non-binding ruling on Serbia's claim that Kosovo's declaration of independence was a violation of its territorial integrity.

If the ICJ sides with Serbia, Kosovo could be pushed into negotiating a settlement. The opposite could see more countries recognising its independence.

Earlier, the US reaffirmed its "full support" for an independent Kosovo.

The commander of the Nato-led peacekeeping force meanwhile said its 10,000 troops were ready for any violence sparked by the ruling.

69 of the UN's 192 countries have recognised Kosovo's independence. Key players:
For- US, Japan, Germany, France, UK, Italy, Turkey, Albania, Croatia, Montenegro, Macedonia
Against- Serbia, Russia, China, India, Spain, Greece, Romania, Slovakia, Cyprus, Bosnia

By: Brant

Anniversary: Srebrenica

15 years ago, the Serbs massacred thousands at Srebrenica.

Weeping among endless rows of coffins, tens of thousands gathered Sunday in the eastern Bosnian town of Srebrenica to bury hundreds of massacre victims on the 15th anniversary of the worst crime in Europe since the Nazi era.
A whole hillside was dug out with graves waiting for 775 coffins to be laid to rest at the biggest Srebrenica funeral so far. Still, that was less than a tenth of the total number of Muslim men and boys executed after Serb forces overran the U.N.-protected town on July 11, 1995, during the 1992-1995 Bosnian war.
At the time, some 30,000 Bosnian Muslims had flocked to the U.N. military base in the town's suburb of Potocari for refuge. But when Serb forces came, outnumbered Dutch troops opened the gates. The Serbs separated out men and boys, putting them on trucks and carting them away, the vast majority never to be seen again.
The Srebrenica memorial center now stands across the road from that former U.N. base. The bodies being buried Sunday were previously excavated from mass graves and identified through DNA tests.
An estimated 60,000 people were at the memorial Sunday. Relatives mingled among the pits on one side and rows of green coffins on the other, looking for the names of their loved ones. Muslim prayers and weeping mixed with speeches of dignitaries condemning the crimes and calling for the perpetrators to be punished.
Fifteen years later, no one represented the U.N. at the ceremony. Serbian President Boris Tadic was the first dignitary to arrive, saying he was coming in an "act of reconciliation."
"(I want to) build bridges of trust and understanding among the nations in the region," he said in Belgrade.
In Srebrenica, some in the crowd yelled "Bravo, Boris!" others asked "Where is Mladic?" — a reference to former Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladic, who led the Serb troops into Srebrenica. "I wish to welcome you, we are receiving you in peace," said Kada Hotic, a representative of the Srebrenica widows, while Tadic held both of her hands.

By: Brant

Balkan War Crimes Now Resulting in Jail Time

2 Serbs are heading behind bars for the Srebrenica massacre.

Two Bosnian Serbs were convicted Thursday of genocide and sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1995 massacre of Muslims in Srebrenica — the harshest judgment ever delivered by the U.N. war crimes tribunal on the Balkan wars.
A third Bosnian Serb officer was given a 35-year prison sentence for aiding and abetting genocide. Two others were acquitted of genocide charges but convicted of extermination, murder and persecution, while a final two officers were found guilty of lesser charges of war crimes.
It was a dramatic conclusion to the largest trial conducted by the tribunal since it was set up in 1993 to prosecute the worst war crimes offenders even while the fighting was still under way among the ethnic groups in the disintegrating Yugoslavia.
The verdict could have an indirect bearing on the trial of former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, which began last year following his capture in Belgrade in 2008.

It'll be interesting to see when/if/where they catch Mladic.

By: Brant