Crossfire War - Southeast Europe Theatre: Death of Two Serbian Scapegoats

By Willard Payne

Crossfire War - Southeast Europe Theatre: Belgrade - Tehran/Hague; Death of Two Serbian Scapegoats - Milosevic - Babic

Night Watch : HAGUE - Reuters reports that former Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic was found dead in his cell in the Netherlands where he has been on trial since June 2001. The trial has been conducted at the Hague under the UN Tribunal that has accused him of 66 different counts of crimes against humanity during the Balkan Wars from 1991-1999. [Swissinfo]

Milosevic had stated that his health, heart condition was worsening and it was confirmed by two cardiologists that had been treating him. The Tribunal, however refused his request to be treated by specialists in Moscow. Moscow never placed the entire blame for the Balkan wars on Milosevic and never agreed to the bombing of Serbia by NATO in 1999. That was when NATO's leading General Wesley Clark became obsessed with beating Russia to Pristina's airport.

Milosevic's death is right after the apparent suicide of the Croatian Serb leader Milan Babic, also under accusation and trial by the Hague. Both leaders death are indeed convenient for the Vienna based Organization of Security and Cooperation for Europe (OSCE) that orchestrated the regressive, abysmal decision making that lead to the division of Yugoslavia in 1991 and in doing so set the stage for this front in World War III. That is one of the reasons I date the beginning of this war with NATO's bombing campaign in the spring of 1994 against Serbian forces.

Milosevic's decisions, as President of Serbia, were crucial for NATO - Brussels, to find reasons to enter the war, decisions they were extremely grateful for. In 1998, as the crisis shifted further south to Kosovo, Serbians actually stated, as Milosevic was meeting regularly with Washington's UN Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, that Milosevic was involved in an elaborate charade with the West. The charade broke down in 1999 as the bombing of Serbia continued for 78 days, much longer than NATO had planned.

Brussels assumed that Milosevic would allow NATO forces to enter Serbia after just a few days of bombing as in 1994 when he convinced Bosnian Serbs to cooperate with NATO after its bombing campaign that year. But with the war spreading in 1999 Moscow began to end its cooperation as it had more serious concerns regarding the Caucasus - Central Asia and knew they had to prepare for war with Tehran and governments in the region in Tehran's sphere of influence.

That sphere extends all over Aegean - Adriatic - Black Sea. Crossfirewar.com mentioned recently that Tehran-Belgrade just signed a security agreement, a military follow-up to their establishing diplomatic relations in 1992. Tehran and its Expediency Council are aware that the Serbs are now the most vicitimized people by Brussels-Vienna's decision making as the Bosnian Muslims were during the first part of the Balkan Wars from 1991-95. Therefore Serbia has become another non-Muslim Axis partner against the West as is Zagreb, Croatia, with whom Tehran established relations in 1992.

The Council of Guardians in Tehran know that the division of Yugoslavia divided more than Yugoslavia and that there is other identity among peoples besides religion, regional identity for instance. The Persian mentality in Tehran has no problem working with diverse people who harbor the same hatred or have the same aim. Greece for instance never agreed with the bombing of Serbia, since they follow the same Orthodox ritual so last summer crossfirewar.com reported that Athens-Ankara had joint maneuvers in Kosovo. Greek units were even housed in Turkish barracks named after an Ottoman Sultan.

When Tehran-Zagreb established relations in 1992 Tehran stated publicy that Croatia was their entry into Central Europe, an entry Tehran intends to use to silence Vienna. Tehran would not mind either if Greek units beat the Jihad to Vienna. Since 1992 Berlin has sent to Warsaw Leopard tanks, Washington has helped Poland upgrade its airforce with F-16's and Moscow has been helping Warsaw upgrade its Soviet-era aircraft. Someone will have to hold the line somewhere.

Oddly enough as you study history you come across interesting parallels. During the siege of Vienna, at the height of the Ottoman Empire, the siege was lifted by a Polish Count. About a year ago C-Span interviewed a Polish Lieut-General and he looked like he knew what he was doing, that he knew war and would remain a serious professional as opposed to the star-craziness of former General Wesley Clark.

Speaking from Moscow, Borislav Milosevic Slobodan's older brother, said that their family does not trust the UN Tribunal's ability to conduct an impartial autopsy. He said that Slobodan Milosevic will be remembered by Serbs as a leader who resisted separatism, terrorism and outside interference. Serbs and other Balkan people know that their region has long been a favorite military playground for leading European powers.

Vienna-Brussels underestimated more than the impact of weapon dealers when they planned the division of Yugoslavia. In their unreal, cloistered world of decision making they completely ignored the response of the world beyond them.

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