http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/opinion/story.html?id=32b1a951-15cf-4193-bff5-af0cb5d3fa90&p=1
The Ottawa Citizen
Why Canada should not recognize Kosovo
James Bissett,
Published: Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence should not be recognized
by Canada. It has not been authorized by the United Nations and is
therefore in violation of international law, the United Nations Charter
and the Helsinki Final Accords. In addition, UN resolution 1244, which
ended the bombing of Serbia, reaffirms Serbia's sovereignty over Kosovo.
The basic principles of territorial integrity and state sovereignty have
governed the relations between states since the treaty of Westphalia in
1648. While they have been violated many times in the intervening years,
usually by acts of aggression by dictators, they remain the essential
components of international law.
After the cataclysmic events of two world wars and the dropping of the
atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki the framers of the United Nations
incorporated the principles of territorial integrity and state
sovereignty into the United Nations Charter. The Charter was seen as the
primary safeguard of peace and security in a nuclear age. The Helsinki
Final Act of 1975 reinforced these principles by adding to them the
principle of the inviolability of borders.
These are fundamental principles and they have universal application.
They cannot be set aside because of special cases or because they
present an obstacle to the policy objectives of a powerful nation. Their
message is simple and clear --borders cannot be changed without the
consent of the state involved.
In the spring of 1999 the U.S.-led NATO countries intervened militarily
in Kosovo and, in violation of the UN Charter, bombed Serbia. The
bombing was justified on allegations that genocide and ethnic cleansing
were taking place in Kosovo. We now know these allegations were
completely unfounded.
In the three years of armed conflict in Kosovo leading up to the bombing
by NATO the UN estimates there were a total of 4,600 people killed
during the fighting and this figure includes both Serbs and Albanians.
In fact, so far there have been only a little over 2,000 bodies
discovered. This in itself is a tragic figure, but it is not genocide.
As for ethnic cleansing it is now generally acknowledged that the mass
expulsion of the Albanians took place after the bombing started. While
there were thousands of Albanians displaced within Kosovo as a result of
two years of armed conflict there was not a deliberate policy of ethnic
cleansing taking place.
Although the western media continue to justify the independence of
Kosovo on the grounds of ethnic cleansing and atrocities committed by
Slobodan Milosevic's security forces the facts do not support these
allegations. They do stand, however, as testimony to the success of
NATO's propaganda machine.
The intervention in Kosovo had nothing to do with humanitarian reasons
but was deliberately designed to justify the continued existence of NATO
and to fundamentally change its role from a purely defensive
organization acting in accordance with the UN Charter into one that
could intervene wherever or whenever it decided to do so, and with or
without UN approval.
There have been numerous reports that western security agencies trained,
equipped and armed members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and sent
them back into Kosovo to assassinate Serbian mayors, police officials
and Albanians who did not support their cause. It was a highly
successful operation and it fuelled the armed rebellion by the KLA.
In August 1998 -- seven months before the NATO bombing -- the U.S.
Senate Republican Policy Committee reported that, "planning for a
U.S.-led NATO intervention in Kosovo is largely in place. ... The only
missing element seems to be an event with suitably vivid media coverage
that could make the intervention politically saleable. ... That the
administration is waiting for a 'trigger' is increasingly obvious." That
trigger was soon to be pulled. It was the highly suspicious "Racak"
massacre that, as Madeleine Albright said, was the galvanizing incident
that led to the bombing.
The bombing of Serbia by NATO without UN approval was a historical
turning point. The precedent had been set. The UN Charter could be
subverted if the military intervention could be cloaked and justified in
terms of humanitarianism.
The intervention in Iraq was to follow but this time not all of the NATO
countries went along with the American initiative. Many of those who
supported the bombing of Serbia condemned the invasion of Iraq. There
seemed some hope that a lesson had been learned- that violation of the
UN Charter leads to a slippery slope and a return to the days when the
resolution of international disputes would only be by the use of force.
The recognition of Kosovo outside of the UN framework will set a
dangerous precedent. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said that Canada
should make foreign policy decisions that are not only independent but
are noticed by other powers around the world. Here is an opportunity for
Canada to illustrate both of these objectives and stand firm for the UN
Charter -- by saying no to the recognition of Kosovo.
James Bissett served as Canadian ambassador to Yugoslavia.
The Ottawa Citizen 2008
Serbian News Network - SNN
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http://www.antic.org/
