http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41898
INTER PRESS SERVICE BALKANS: Now Divided by NATO Membership Analysis by Vesna Peric Zimonjic BELGRADE, Apr 8 (IPS) - Security issues in the Balkans came under the spotlight once again at the NATO summit in Bucharest, where some nations from the region were invited to join the alliance, some remained in the waiting room, and some like Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia, outside. Albania and Croatia received the invitation to join NATO as expected. "You all come from a region that has been affected by terrible conflicts until only a few years ago, and that is why your membership has special significance," said NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. The disintegration of former Yugoslavia took more than 100,000 lives in the 1991-95 wars. Serbia's violent response to ethnic Albanian rebellion in its southern province Kosovo, and the Kosovo Albanian drive for independence led to the first North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) military intervention in Europe, in 11 weeks of heavy bombing in 1999. The situation has improved greatly since the wars, but the consequences are still felt through poor economic development, slow reconciliation, and the presence of 15,000 peacekeeping NATO troops in Kosovo, that recently declared independence from Serbia. A third Balkans nation -- Macedonia -- met the membership criteria, but its membership was put off until it settles a name dispute with Greece. Macedonia has the same name as a region in Greece, and the Greek government is demanding a change. With Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro there will be "intensified dialogue", a step towards a Membership Action Plan (MAP) that precedes admittance to the alliance. All nations in the region, including Serbia, have been members of the Partnership for Peace (PfP) programme, also a precondition for NATO membership. Accordingly, they have all significantly scaled down their armies and equipment, abandoned draft, and set up forces that in no way resemble those that waged the bloody wars of the 1990s. But Serbia, the biggest nation in the region, has quietly reduced many changes within the PfP. Serbia's coalition government collapsed in March following declaration of independence by Kosovo. The nationalist section of the ruling coalition, led by Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, could not agree with the reform-oriented Democrats of President Boris Tadic on the nation's future. Kostunica stood for cutting all ties with countries that recognise independent Kosovo. Tadic's Democrats were against such an approach. Serbia faces new elections in May. The Serbian Prime Minister repeatedly defines Kosovo as a "NATO-created illegal state", and often reminds Serbs of the NATO bombing over the Kosovo issue. He says such an organisation cannot be a "friend of Serbs". In the election campaign, his Democratic Party of Serbia stands for "neutrality" in military matters. The outgoing ministers from the Democratic Party, who have been in coalition with Kostunica's party, try to calm down such rhetoric both at home and abroad. "We prevented war in Kosovo," Serbian Defence Minister Dragomir Sutanovac said in an interview with the Vecernje Novosti newspaper. Sutanovac comes from the Democratic Party of President Tadic. "Some (in the government) wanted us to help Serbs in Kosovo by sending arms and ammunition," he said. The biggest opposition, the ultranationalist Serbian Radical Party (SRS) goes so far as to supporting extremists who speak of armed battles for the return of Kosovo to Serbia. SRS leaders say they are ready to offer Russia bases for its long-range missiles in Serbia as an answer to the U.S. moves to set up bases in eastern Europe. The heated atmosphere in Serbia after Kosovo declared independence in February has intensified such arguments. But for Kosovo, the invitation to Albania to join NATO was seen as a historic moment for the whole region. "Albania, by achieving the democratic norms necessary for NATO membership, has proven itself to be a factor of peace, security and stability for the region," Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci said in a telegram sent to his Albanian counterpart Sali Berisha. Military analyst Aleksandar Radic says two issues stand out in view of the NATO enlargement. "First, Croatia is now being viewed as leader in the region, due to the current instability in Serbia," Radic told IPS. "Second, Serbia's behaviour is biased, paradoxical. A large segment of its political elite (nationalists) is against NATO, while we're almost surrounded by NATO. "Besides, it's NATO that should take care of the security of Serbs in Kosovo. This speaks about non-understanding of circumstances on that part of the elite. However, things will change when the new political reality is accepted." According to Radic, unlike in the cold war era, NATO is more of a political organisation now, with "less sabre rattling and counting of brigades, divisions, planes, battleships. "To become a member of the European Union (EU), each and every former eastern European nation had to be part of NATO, and all countries in the Balkans have bid for EU membership in the coming years." In Croatia, the invitation to NATO membership was viewed as major victory for the nation. Prime Minister Ivo Sanader told local media from Bucharest that "this is the best news, the best option for a stable and secure future of the region." But not all Croats shared his enthusiasm or that of President Stipe Mesic, who said the invitation was "the recognition of all reform efforts and of the foreign policy of Croatia." Many NGOs staged peaceful rallies during the visit of U.S. President George W. Bush to Zagreb on Friday and Saturday following the NATO summit in Bucharest. Anti-NATO activists have set up a Committee for NATO Referendum, demanding a say by citizens in membership of the alliance. They have collected some 70,000 signatures out of 400,000 needed to start the legal procedure for a referendum. (END/2008)
