-- begin forwarded message: --

Covert Action Quarterly

CARVING ANOTHER SLICE FROM YUGOSLAVIA 

by Gregory Elich 

The image of Western involvement in the Balkans following the Yugoslav
civil war is one of benign peacekeeping, an attempt to bring civilization
to the uncivilized. NATO's war against Yugoslavia is painted as a
"humanitarian" gesture. That these images should be so widely accepted,
even among those on the left, is a tribute to the efficacy of western media
obfuscation. Forgotten is the primary role of the West in dismembering
Yugoslavia, and creating and fueling the civil wars. Its involvement since
the 1995 Dayton peace accord has been no less significant. The demise of
the Soviet Union has left in its wake a unipolar world which has greatly
enhanced Western access to resources. It has also created the opportunity
for a return to the crudest forms of imperialism. NATO's savage bombing of
Yugoslavia, the culmination of western destabilization and intervention in
the region, is only the most visible manifestation of a larger policy to
place that nation in a dependent position. 

Overturning the Economic system 

The common theme running through Western policy is the further
fragmentation of Yugoslavia and the overturning of its economic system.
Montenegro, one of Yugoslavia's two remaining republics, receives support
and encouragement from Western leaders, who make no secret of their desire
for its secession from Yugoslavia. While Serbia, Yugoslavia's other
republic, continues to suffer under draconian Western economic sanctions,
which have continued unabated in one form or another since 1992, Montenegro
has received a pledge from U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to
"shield" it from sanctions. Already Montenegro receives $5.9 million in aid
from the U.S., and $3.3 million from the European Union. The Prime Minister
of Montenegro, Milo Djukanovic, declared the entire republic to be an
"offshore center," in which foreign businesses can benefit from an income
tax of only 2.5 percent. Foreign investors are also granted a host of
additional benefits. Montenegro has embarked on a massive privatization
program, in which the majority of its state assets are to be turned over to
private investors. No doubt it is these moves which led Albright to
exclaim, "The United States salutes Montenegro's achievements...."1 

Privatization in Serbia is far more limited, and many elements of socialism
remain. Consequently, both Serbia and the federal government of Yugoslavia
face unremitting Western hostility. Reports surfaced last November of an
American plan to topple Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic and his
Serbian Socialist Party-Yugoslav United Left-led coalition government. A
high-ranking DIA official disclosed that "activation of a policy of the end
of Milosevic and his power in Yugoslavia is very much on the table." The
plan calls for supporting Montenegro's secession from Yugoslavia, as well
as expanded CIA and DIA contacts with the Yugoslav right-wing opposition,
with the overthrow of the left-wing government as its goal. "Clinton is
doing this right now," said a White House source, "and it's beginning at a
local level."2 "It's a cornerstone of our policy in the Balkans," said U.S.
State Department spokesman James Rubin, "to promote democracy...."- a
euphemism for capitalism. Along those lines, "We are spending $15 million
in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, including $2 million for independent
TV."3 Most of the funds to the opposition are channelled through such
organizations as the National Endowment for Democracy and the National
Democratic Institute. Significant financial assistance to the opposition is
also provided by the European Union and George Soros' Open Society
Institute.4 

The primary component of the Western destabilization campaign is support
for the violent secessionist movement in the Kosovo region of Yugoslavia.
According to a report by the Russian Federal Security Service, the CIA has
operated in Kosovo since 1995, and the number of its operatives multiplied
rapidly just prior to the explosion of violence in early 1998. Most of
these agents act "under cover of `humanitarian« missions and various
observer teams," the report stated.5 

The military arm of the secessionist movement is the Kosovo Liberation Army
(KLA), which not only engages in military operations, but has also
assassinated several hundred pro-Yugoslav civilians of all ethnic groups,
including Albanian. The policy of killing civilians, KLA spokesman Jakup
Krasniqi declared, is justified because "collaborators are warned that we
will kill them if they continue to follow the wrong path."6 A number of
execution sites have been discovered, and last August, when Yugoslav police
captured a KLA stronghold at Klecka, they discovered the charred remains of
22 executed men, women, and children, and a handcuffed, decapitated body in
a cellar. An examination of the remains showed evidence of torture. A
captured KLA soldier confessed to executions, saying that "after the
shooting the firing squad threw the bodies into the lime-pit," poured
gasoline on the bodies and set them afire. "Some of them were still alive,"
he added, "since whining could be heard."7 

A large proportion of the KLA's force is composed of mercenaries and
Kosovar Albanian expatriates, and Krasniqi has admitted that half of the
KLA's soldiers come from abroad. Many of these mercenaries act as training
instructors.8 According to a Yugoslav policeman, "The way in which [the
KLA] conduct their operations, prepare the ground for attack, or build
fortifications, confirms that they are very well-organized and that they
have very good trainers."9 

Many Kosovar Albanians living in Western Europe donate three percent of
their income into bank accounts of the organization, "Homeland Calling."
The German Foreign Ministry notes that those unwilling to pay this
"solidarity tax" are often forced to do so.10 

The bulk of the KLA's financing for arms purchases derives from the drug
trade. A report in the Swedish press points out that "it is mainly Kosovo
Albanian rings that organize heroin smuggling into the Nordic area.... They
have pushed other groups out of competition from portions of the European
market." Swedish police report that up to 90 percent of heroin seized in
Sweden "can be linked to Kosovo Albanian rings."11 Last June, a nation-wide
police sweep in Italy netted 100 drug traffickers, including members of a
Kosovar Albanian mafia. Profits from the sales of drugs were used to
purchase arms in Italy, which were then shipped to Kosovo.12 A report by
the German Federal Criminal Agency states, "Ethnic Albanians are now the
most prominent group in the distribution of heroin in Western consumer
countries."13 

Hundreds of tons of weapons have flooded across the border from Albania
into Kosovo. Many of these arms were purchased on the black market or
looted from armories during the July 1997 uprising in Albania, but the KLA
also receives arms through contact with Western intelligence agencies. The
German "Monitor" television program on ARD Television Network reports that
the German Military Counter-intelligence Service was involved in "several
illegal arms supplies" to Albania and that "via these channels" German
military equipment reached the KLA. In the program, a former
counter-intelligence official claimed that the arms supplies were "ordered
by the very top."14 One NATO official noted, "We have seen sophisticated
weapons like the German-designed Armbrust anti-tank weapon being used."15
Austrian radio reported that a photograph of a KLA soldier holding a Steyr
automatic rifle "caused quite a stir." The Steyr, the report said, "is a
showpiece of Austria's military technology" and "is considered one of the
best automatic rifles in the market by military circles."16 

On July 2 last year, the Albanian press noted mysterious flights by U.S.
military cargo planes, flying into Albania without reporting their
presence. "An average of two U.S. C-130 military aircraft have landed daily
at Gjadar," the report said, alarming civil aviation personnel, who worry
that the lack of notification may lead to air collisions with civil
aircraft.17 The New York Times reported that an officer in the Western
observer mission "was taken aback when a powerful U.S.-made Barret sniper
rifle was brought out for display" by a KLA soldier. "He was told the
guerrillas had more of them and additional ones would be coming in." This
rifle, a NATO officer claims, is capable "of blowing a head off from a mile
away."18 Last December, a Western journalist reported that the KLA had
"acquired satellite communications" and "smuggled in significant amounts of
anti-tank rockets, anti-aircraft guns, shoulder-fired Stinger anti-aircraft
missiles and long-barreled sniper rifles." He was told by a KLA deputy
commander, "We're getting more and more arms every day."19 

Last summer, Albanian Secret Service director Fatos Klosi said that
relations with the CIA were "intensified in recent months," and that "CIA
specialists" were active in Albania, including northern Albania, a region
under the control of the KLA.20 According to Yugoslav special units expert
Stojan Jovic, the entire Kosovo-northern Albania operation was "being
carried out by American Green Berets," and the KLA had "intelligence
support" from NATO's South Wing Headquarters in Naples. KLA fighters, he
said, "maintain satellite contacts with U.S. intelligence agents who
conduct aerial surveillance...."21 

Western news reports last summer may have inflated the scale of refugee
flight to justify NATO intervention. Austrian journalist Paul Flieder
pointed out that such figures were "impossible to verify," and that he
could find "no trace" of such large numbers of refugees in northern Albania
and in Kosovo. "I got the impression that the refugee figures are being
deliberately exaggerated to get hold of relief supplies. An Albanian who
houses a couple of refugees told me that none of the relief supplies get
through to the refugees. Everything seems to go into arms dealing."22 This
year, the abrupt termination of the Paris peace conference by Western
leaders and NATO saber-rattling merely ignited the region into full-scale
warfare, resulting in a genuine mass refugee crisis. 

Last September, the Western policy of low-intensity conflict in the region
seemed on the point of collapse, as the KLA, forced out of most of Kosovo,
faced defeat at the hands of the Yugoslav police and army. NATO responded
by threatening to bomb Yugoslavia. Such threats enabled NATO to win
Yugoslavia's agreement to allow Western monitors to patrol Kosovo and NATO
spy planes permission to overly the region. While this fell short of NATO's
objectives, it essentially got what it wanted: a Western presence and
further opportunities for meddling in the internal affairs of Yugoslavia.
Under terms of the agreement, Yugoslav police and army presence in the
region greatly diminished, and large areas of Kosovo fell into the hands of
secessionists-a not unintended consequence. 

NATO needed a pretext for more direct intervention, and this arrived with
the alleged massacre in the village of Racak on January 15. Brandishing the
threat of bombing Yugoslavia, western leaders brought both parties in the
conflict to a peace conference in Rambouillet, France, to negotiate over a
U.S.-drafted peace and autonomy plan. A high-ranking American official
admitted the plan would be "basically imposed" upon the negotiating
parties.23 The attitude that a complex and difficult conflict could be
resolved rapidly through belligerence is stunning in its arrogance. 

The two negotiating teams presented a stark contrast. The secessionist
delegation consisted solely of Albanians, with heavy representation from
the KLA. The KLA's position, as stated by its spokesman Bardhyl Mahmuti a
few months before, was that "We will never change our position. The
independence of Kosovo is the only solution.... We can't live together
[with Serbs]. That is excluded."24 The composition of the Yugoslav
delegation reflected Kosovo's ethnic complexity, consisting not only of
Serbs, but also two Albanians, a Slavic Muslim, a Turk, a Goran, a Roma,
and an Egyptian. Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Marjanovic declared, "We want
a solution that guarantees equality for every national community and
enables everyone to be master of his own fate," but that "we are not going
to allow foreign rule over a single inch of Serbia."25

Farce at Rambouillet

It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that the peace negotiations were
intended to fail. Repeated requests by the Yugoslav delegation for
face-to-face talks were rejected by Western mediators. Serbian President
Milan Milutinovich complained, "We have not received all the documents for
this conference. It is clear...there are games being played here and we
don't know what these games are."26 He soon found out. During the 17 days
of negotiations at Rambouillet in February, the Yugoslav delegation
substantially accepted the Western political proposals, but they
understandably rejected the demand for occupation by NATO troops. On the
final day, just hours before the conclusion of the conference, Western
mediators presented a new document, containing 56 pages for the first time.27

The following month, when the Yugoslav delegation arrived in Paris for the
resumption of negotiations, Western officials told them that no discussion
of the new proposal would be permitted. Western mediators would allow
discussion only of "implementation" of this new plan, which had never been
discussed. For weeks Western officials had begged the KLA to sign the plan,
and British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook tipped the Western hand when he
urged the KLA, "If you don't sign up to these texts, it is extremely
difficult to see how NATO could then take action against Belgrade."28 Once
the KLA signed on, Western officials immediately aborted the Paris
conference. Milutinovich denounced the Paris talks as "a fraud, some sort
of deceit, a very big deceit," and pointed out that "no one consulted us
during these four days in Paris. Now we got an imposed document. We saw
that we have been betrayed."29

The text of the new peace plan contains several provisions that no
sovereign nation could accept. The plan allots Kosovo a status transcending
either of Yugoslavia's republics and provides for direct Western
involvement. A Chief of the Implementation Mission (CIM), appointed by
NATO, would be empowered to "recommend to the appropriate authorities the
removal and appointment of officials and the curtailment of operations of
existing institutions" and to "issue binding directives to the parties and
subsidiary bodies on police and civil public security matters...." Western
officials would also appoint the chief prosecutor, and "when necessary,
direct the operations of the office of the Prosecutor...." Censorship would
be effectively imposed, as the CIM would be responsible for "allocation of
radio and television frequencies." The CIM would also act "as the final
authority" and "his determinations" would be "binding on all parties and
persons." Yugoslavia, according to the plan, would "invite" occupation by
hostile NATO troops. A provision stating that "the economy of Kosovo shall
function in accordance with free market principles" would ensure Western
corporate interests. Additionally, the plan provides for "the free movement
of persons, goods, services, and capital to Kosovo, including from
international sources."30

The plan covers a three-year transition period, at the end of which "an
international meeting shall be convened to determine a mechanism for the
final settlement for Kosovo." The fate of Kosovo would be decided by "the
will of the people," presumably only those residing within Kosovo and not
the rest of the nation, and by "opinions of relevant authorities,"
unquestionably a reference to NATO. State Department spokesman James Rubin
was clear about what is intended to follow the interregnum covered by the
plan. "Some Kosovar Albanian leaders are starting to understand that an
interim arrangement doesn't mean that the Kosovar Albanians need to forgo
permanently their aspirations, but rather it is an interim solution...."31
According to an analyst from Pax Christi, American mediators told the
secessionist delegation at Rambouillet that they need only "symbolically
disarm," and they "would be allowed to keep large parts of their weaponry,
provided they concealed them."32 One high-ranking official from the Clinton
administration indicated that "some members" of the KLA "are going to have
to morph into a new role" as the Kosovo police force, and another was quick
to assure the KLA "they can still exist" as part of the police force.33

As revealed by a German intelligence official, "The [German] Chancellor and
Foreign Minister knew from the outset that no Yugoslav government could
ever sign" the Rambouillet plan. "Both understood clearly that this would
mean the end of Yugoslavia as a sovereign state. War was therefore
inevitable." The last-minute additions to the plan were so extreme that
"experts of the [German] Justice Ministry poked fun at these passages." 34

Disinformation

Western propaganda has succeeded in winning over a majority of public
opinion in support of a blatant violation of the U.N. Charter and
international law. The emotional pretext for NATO's war of aggression was
an alleged massacre in the village of Racak. Yet, Western European
observers and an Associated Press film crew covering the police action did
not witness a massacre. The bodies of the victims did not appear until the
next day, several hours after the departure of Yugoslav police. Forensic
tests showed traces of gunpowder on 37 of the 40 bodies, indicating that
the individuals had been engaged in combat.35

Pentagon press conferences often focus on the suffering of refugees,
resorting to highly emotive and overwrought terms like "genocide" and
"great terror." No doubt abuses have taken place, and on both sides, but
there is a pattern of deliberate exaggeration and fabrication, in order to
build public support for the death and destruction that NATO is inflicting.
The execution of secessionist leaders was widely reported, including
"eyewitness accounts," but these same leaders achieved a remarkable
resurrection when they were found very much alive several days later.36
Another Kosovar Albanian leader, Ibrahim Rugova, was said to be either
killed or in hiding, and his home demolished. Inconveniently, he was found
very much alive in his intact home.37 Another story charged Yugoslav police
with rounding up 100,000 Albanians in a Pristina stadium, in preparation
for a massacre. A French reporter went to the stadium and found it
"completely empty."38

A reporter from The Times visiting Macedonia heard two refugees relate
stories of their village being burned and civilians driven away. Noticing
their spotless white running shoes, a Red Cross worker commented, "These
men don't look as though they have walked 20 miles. They look as though
they arrived by Mercedes." According to the reporter, "There were so many
discrepancies" in the stories of refugees from the village of Kotlina, "it
was impossible to know the truth." The same reporter noted that there was
speculation that villagers from Kotlina had fled from the KLA, and there
have been reports of "forcible conscription" by the KLA, including attacks
on those refusing to join. The KLA issued an order for all Kosovar Albanian
men between 18 and 50 to join its forces. In addition to accepting
volunteers, a KLA officer says, "we will also use force to recruit" men,
and a KLA statement announced that "if the men refuse to join the KLA...the
military police will act even outside Kosovo." According to Reuters, "Some
refugees reaching the relative sanctuary of Albania said they were willing
to pay local taxi drivers hefty sums to help them escape KLA press gangs."

There are many reasons people flee their homes, some due to abuses, and
some due to the all-out warfare that has erupted between the KLA and
Yugoslav forces. But NATO itself is also responsible for generating the
refugee crisis. When asked if Serbian police had driven her from her home,
one woman told The Times reporter, "There were no Serbs. We were frightened
of the bombs." Red Cross officials told the reporter that "many of the most
recent arrivals intend to return to Kosovo as soon as the NATO bombardment
stops."39

A statement released anonymously by a high-ranking German official,
declaring he "can no longer remain silent," accused "both the entire NATO
propaganda staff," as well as German leaders, of "unabashedly lying to the
public with nearly every 'fact' they present about the Balkan war, while a
willing media pack is keenly spreading these lies, unverified, as gospel
truth." Furthermore, the German government "is cynically playing with the
calculated misery of the refugees." NATO, he added, does not have at its
"disposal photographic, intelligence knowledge, indications and proof
leading to the conclusion that there is systematic expulsion or deportation
of refugees by Yugoslav special forces, army or police." The German defense
ministry, he claims, has determined that the following factors are equally
responsible for refugee flight:

" * Excess on the part of Yugoslav soldiers and police forces, often
triggered in part by KLA attacks carried out under cover of Kosovar
Albanian civilians. Information is on hand that Yugoslav soldiers caught
looting are summarily court martialled.

* The results of the NATO bombing, such as the lack of potable water in
nearly all cities of Kosovo, and general devastation.

* Understandable fear of getting caught in the crossfire between the KLA,
the Yugoslav military, and NATO attacks.

* Constant spreading of panic and horror stories in the broadcasts of
dozens of small KLA, NATO or Albanian shortwave radio stations located in
the mountains alongside the propaganda broadcasts of the KLA over Radio
Tirana.

* Pillaging bands of the Albanian mafia, who...extort money, search
abandoned houses for anything of value and then burn the houses down to
create a political effect.

* KLA irregular troops, who have declared a 'general mobilization' and are
forcing every available man into their military service. Those objecting
are submitted to grave physical abuse and released only upon paying a
ransom, and having sworn under threat of vendetta, not to tell the truth
but to tell family and the media that they had been mishandled by Serbs

* The announcement by the KLA that NATO will inevitably have to carry out a
ground attack and that this attack is imminent." 40

Transforming Low Intensity Conflict into Full Scale War

NATO's bombardment has spared nothing. Not only military targets, but
factories, public buildings, residential areas, schools, pharmaceutical
plants, chemical plants, oil refineries, bridges, and roads have been
destroyed. The city of Novi Sad was without a supply of water for two
weeks. NATO is deliberately destroying Yugoslavia as an industrial economy.
Each day sees more factories obliterated and more workers faced with a loss
of income. Several hundred civilians have been killed, and countless more
wounded. This ruthless unprovoked savagery has only brought more suffering
to the people of the Balkans.

NATO and the KLA are closely coordinating operations during the bombing
campaign. A French reporter was told by a KLA soldier, "The KLA gives
information on targets to NATO. Tuesday I transmitted information on a
bridge and a road used by Serbs. The bridge was bombed and destroyed
Wednesday morning." 41 An Italian journalist visiting a KLA camp was
surprised to see walk in an officer "from NATO special forces. He does not
seem surprised to see me, nor worried. He sat down next to [KLA soldiers]
and began looking at a number of military maps." 42 According to the
anonymous German official, "NATO and the German army are logistically
supporting the KLA. Food, uniforms and instructors are furnished mainly by
the Bundeswehr as well as by the USA. All KLA commanders are in constant
radio contact with NATO. 43

NATO has also completed "detailed plans" for a ground invasion that is
scheduled to take place no sooner than the end of May. The plan calls for
80,000 troops to invade the Kosovo region, and for an additional 200,000
troops in Bosnia, Hungary and Romania "to all but throttle Serbia and to
cage Milosevic." A Romanian diplomat revealed that U.S. officials had
discussed the deployment of NATO troops in Romania. According to a NATO
officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, "There would be no point in
just taking Kosovo. You'd have to take the whole country down." 44 Russian
Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov claims to have obtained "reliable information"
that the invasion would ensure the secession or splitting off of Kosovo.45

"Since the first term of the Clinton Administration," the German official's
statement states, the CIA, DIA and German BND have undertaken a covert
action aimed at "the destruction of Yugoslavia...the last bastion of
resistance in the Balkans." The objective of the plan "is the dissociation
of Kosovo as the principal source of raw materials for Yugoslavia through a
comprehensive autonomy, by Albanian annexation or total independence; the
secession of Montenegro, its only remaining access to the Adriatic and the
dislocation of Vojvodina, the 'bread basket' and another source of raw
materials for Yugoslavia, leading to the total collapse of Yugoslavia as a
viable industrial state." 46

The West, U.S. Ambassador to Macedonia Christopher Hill asserts, will be
"heavily involved" in Kosovo for decades.47 Madeleine Albright has declared
that "NATO will be in charge of the real estate in Kosovo, just as they are
in Bosnia."48

A precedent is being set. NATO's abrogation of international law and the
United Nations Charter will have profound ramifications far beyond the
Balkans in the years ahead.

NOTES

1. "U.S. Seeks to Shield Montenegro from Sanctions," Reuters, Apr. 22,
1998; "Montenegro Plans 1.3-Billion Dollar Privatization Programme," Agence
France-Presse (AFP), Aug. 17, 1998; Branka Plamenac, "Serbian Boycott of
Montenegrin `Tax Paradise«," Nasa Borba (Belgrade), Nov. 18, 1996;
"Agreement with Montenegro," Reuters, May 18, 1998.

2. Fran Visnar, "Clinton and the CIA Have Created a Scenario to Overthrow
Milosevic," Vjesnik (Zagreb), Nov. 30, 1998; Paul Beaver, Ed Vulliamy,
Chris Bird, "Clinton Tells CIA to Oust Milosevic," The Observer (London),
Nov. 29, 1998.

3. James Rubin, "State Department Noon Briefing," Dec. 1, 1998.

4. Steven Erlanger, "U.S. to Increase Funds for Anti-Milosevic Media and
Unions," New York Times, Feb. 13, 1997.

5. Tomislav Kresovic, "Numerous U.S. Agents in 'Humanitarian Missions,'"
Politika Ekspres (Belgrade), Apr. 9, 1998.

6. Interview with Jakup Krasniqi, "The Reality is War," Der Spiegel
(Hamburg), July 6, 1998.

7. M. Laketic, "The Testimony of Bekim Mazreku on the Albanian Terrorists'
Crimes Against the Kidnapped Serbs in the Village of Klecka," Politika
(Belgrade), Aug. 31, 1998; "Mass Grave Found in Former Kosovo Rebel
Stronghold," AFP, Aug. 29, 1998; "Serbs Show Mass Grave Found in Kosovo,"
AFP, Aug. 29, 1998.

8. Interview with Jakup Krasniqi, "The Reality is War," Der Spiegel
(Hamburg), July 6, 1998; Mirjana Nikic, "After Bosnia Dogs of War Arrive in
Kosovo," Politika (Belgrade), June 3, 1998; D. Stevanovic, "Dogs of War
Arrive from Croatia, Bosnia and the Islamic Countries," Politika
(Belgrade), June 24, 1998; "There are 40 Mercenaries from Croatia Fighting
in Kosovo," Vecernji List (Zagreb), June 14, 1998.

9. "New Phase of the Kosovo Fighting: Stench of War," Beta (Belgrade), June
11, 1998.

10. Peter Muench, "Secret Weapons Aid to Kosovo," Sueddeutsche Zeitung
(Munich), July 4-5, 1998; Pekka Mykkanen, "Albanians From Kosovo Living in
Sweden Suspected of Collecting Money for Rebels," Helsingin Sanomat
(Helsinki), July 10, 1998; Florian Klenk and Wolfgang Paterno, "When the
Homeland Calls," Profil (Vienna), July 20, 1998.

11. Elisavet Andresson, "Record Seizures of Heroin from the East," Svenska
Dagbladet (Stockholm), June 22, 1998.

12. "Police Break Up Kosovar Drug, Gun-Running Gangs," AFP, June 9, 1998.

13. Roger Boyes and Eske Wright, "Drugs Money Linked to the Kosovo Rebels,"
The Times (London), Mar. 24, 1999.

14."German-KLA Ties," ARD Television Network (Munich), Sept. 24, 1998.

15. Paul Beaver, "Fear Grows That Aid is Buying Arms in Kosovo," Jane's
Defence Weekly, July 29, 1998.

16. Klaus Webhofer, broadcast, Vienna Oesterreich Eins Radio Network, Mar.
15, 1999.

17. "Unreported US Military Flights to Kosovo Could Pose Threat to Civil
Aviation," Gazeta Shqiptare (Tirana), July 2, 1998; "Officials Warn Against
Unscheduled U.S. Military Flights," ATA (Tirana), July 2, 1998.

18. Jane Perlez, "Guerrillas in Kosovo Rebound, Provoking Concern," New
York Times, Nov. 11, 1998.

19. Dave Carpenter, "Kosovo Rebel Group Grows and Rearms," Associated Press
(AP), Dec. 19, 1998.

20. "CIA Helping Albania Upgrade its Own Secret Services," AFP, Aug. 13,
1998; Arlinda Causholli, "Albanian Official Reportedly Admits CIA Operating
in the Country, Even in the North Near Kosovo," AP, Aug. 13, 1998.

21. Dragan Vujacic, "Terrorists Under NATO Helmut," Vecernje Novosti
(Belgrade), July 5, 1998.

22.Interview with Paul Flieder by Hans-Christian Scheidt, "Chaos Within
KLA," Oesterreich Eins Radio Network (Vienna), July 21, 1998.

23. Steven Erlanger, "Kosovo Negotiators Will Look to Impose a Quick
Settlement," New York Times, Feb. 4, 1999.

24. "Albanian Rebels Say Kosovo Independence Vital," Reuters, Oct. 27, 1998.

25. Broadcast report of address by Mirko Marjanovic, Radio Belgrade Network
(Belgrade), March 16, 1999.

26. Dusan Stojanovic, "Serbs Accuse Foreign Mediators," AP, Feb. 12, 1999.

27. Press Conference by Serbian President Milan Milutinovich, Tanjug
(Belgrade), Feb. 23, 1999.

28. Barry Schweid, "Albright Makes No Headway on Kosovo," AP, Feb. 21, 1999.

29. "Kosovo Talks Set to Be Adjourned in New Reprieve for Serbia," AFP,
Mar. 19, 1999.

30. "Interim Agreement for Peace and Self-Government in Kosovo, Feb. 23,
1999"; Ronald Hatchett, "Serbs Had Little Choice," Houston Chronicle, Mar.
28, 1999.

31. U.S. State Department Report, "U.S. Pushes for Three-Year Deferment of
Question of Kosovo's Permanent Status," Nov. 17, 1998.

32. Peter Dejaegher, "Serbs Feel Cheated," De Standaard (Groot-Bijgaarden,
Netherlands), Mar. 31, 1999.

33. Jane Perlez, "Abright Due at Kosovo Talks to Push Pacts on Forces," New
York Times, Feb. 13, 1999; Barry Schweid, "Albanian Leaders Invited to
D.C.," AP, Feb. 26, 1999.

34. "Erkldrung eines Insiders aus dem Bonner Regierungsapparat zum
Balkan-krieg vom 7.April 1999," on the web site of the Party of Democratic
Socialism, April 7, 1999, ww2.pds-online.de/bt/index.htm.

35. Christophe Chatelot, "Were the Dead in Racak Really Massacred in Cold
Blood?" Le Monde (Paris), Jan. 21, 1999; Renaud Girard, "Massacre Under a
Cloud," Le Figaro (Paris), Jan. 20, 1999; Helene Despic-Popovic, Pierre
Hazan, Jean-Dominique Merchet, "Nine Questions Concerning the Racak Dead,"
Liberation (Paris), Jan. 21, 1999; "Victims of Racak Massacre Shot From a
Distance: Belarussian Experts," AFP, Feb. 23, 1999; "Yugoslav Forensic Team
Statement," Serbia Info News, Mar. 18, 1999; "Yugoslav Forensic Expert Says
'No Massacre' in Racak," Tanjug (Belgrade), Mar. 17, 1999; M. Laketic,
"Albanians Killed in Racak Were Armed," Politika (Belgrade), Mar. 18, 1999;
Interview with Vladimir Kuzmichov, "There Was No Massacre in Racak,"
Politika (Belgrade), Mar. 22, 1999.

36. Douglas Hamilton, "NATO Expands Bombing, 'Dead' Kosovans Alive,"
Reuters (London), Mar. 31, 1999.

37. "Stop the Bombings, Rugova Says," AFP, Mar. 31, 1999; "Milosevic
'Meets' Albanian Leader," BBC News, Apr. 1, 1999; "Rugova Wants Bombing to
Stop," BBC News (London), Apr. 5, 1999.

38. "No Sign of Serbs Massing Kosovars in Pristina Stadium," AFP, Mar. 31,
1999.

39. Tony Allen-Mills, "Truth Chokes on the Fog of War," The Sunday Times
(London), Mar. 28, 1999; Benet Koleka, "KLA Needs More Than Volunteers to
Hit at Serbs," Reuters (London), Apr. 8, 1999; "Kosovo Rebels Seek Refugee
Recruits," AP, Mar. 31, 1999.

40. Op. cit., n. 34

41. "KLA Helping NATO Bombing Raids: French Reporters Inside KLA Areas,"
Agence France-Presse (Paris), April 8, 1999. "French Journalist Says KAL
Cooperation with NATO," France-Info Radio (Paris), April 8, 1999.

42. G. Mic, "On the Road With the UCK Taking Arms to the Front," Il Giorno
(Milan), April 14, 1999.

43. Op. cit., n. 34

44. Peter Beaumont, Andy McSmith, Patrick Wintour, Ed Vulliamy, "NATO Gears
Up for Invasion of Kosovo at End of May," The Observer (London), April 18,
1999. "March on Belgrade Needs 200,000," The Province, April 15, 1999.

45. "U.S. Has Secret Plan for Kosovo Independence-Moscow," CBC TV, Mar.
31,1999.

46. Op. cit., n. 34

47. R. Jeffrey Smith, "Kosovo Plan Spells Out Local Powers," Washington
Post, Nov. 10, 1998.

48. Jane Perlez, "Albright Due at Kosovo Talks to Push Pacts on Forces,"
New York Times, Feb. 13, 1999.
--

Source:
Covert Action Quarterly [Spring-Summer 1999 ]
Web: http://www.covertaction.org/

--



-- end forwarded message --