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Politics : War -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: TimF who wrote (917)	3/24/2001 3:46:18 AM
From: GUSTAVE JAEGER	Respond to of 23908

Slowly but surely, the Byzantine Alliance strenghtens.... Putin Hot on EU but Cold on Chechnya Barry James International Herald Tribune Saturday, March 24, 2001 STOCKHOLM President Vladimir Putin of Russia said Friday that he stood ready to cooperate with the European Union on trade and energy issues. But he brushed aside EU concerns about Russian action in Chechnya, saying that the Europeans were facing exactly the same problems of "terrorism" in Macedonia today. Mr. Putin was attending a summit meeting of EU leaders for the first time. His predecessor, Boris Yeltsin, attended such a meeting in Corfu, Greece, several years ago. At a short news conference following the discussions with the Europeans, Mr. Putin did not mention the dispute with the United States over the expulsion of Russian diplomats in Washington and Moscow's retaliation in expelling Americans. He also did not touch on Russian concerns that U.S. proposals for a defensive shield against ballistic missiles could upset the arms balance. Prime Minister Goran Persson of Sweden, who presided at the summit meeting, said it was imperative to find a peaceful settlement to Russia's heavy-handed suppression of rebellious elements in Chechnya. "We will go on expressing concern about developments in Chechnya," said Mr. Persson. "Our partnership must be based on moral values." Nevertheless, he said the EU would go on seeking a cooperative partnership with the Russians. Mr. Putin replied: "I heard the concerns of our colleagues. We share those concerns. There are problems that need humanitarian solutions, such as the return of refugees, and we have to implement the rule of law, strengthen the authorities in the republic and restore the economy." He said his government was pulling troops out of the republic and keeping only enough special forces there to deal with the problem of "terrorism." At the same time, he said the major humanitarian organizations were working in Chechnya and Russia was cooperating with them. "In 1996, Russia left Chechen territory completely," he said. "The vacuum that resulted was exploited by destructive and aggressive religious extremists and terrorists," with violence spilling over the frontiers. "Had we not reacted we would have faced an even more violent situation." "Today, we are witnessing exactly the same situation in Macedonia, where nothing has been done to disarm the terrorists - let's call a spade a spade," Mr. Putin declared. "This is creating the conditions to shake Europe at its very heart, and allows no confidence about the security of other countries in the region. Now ask yourselves whether Russia was right in its decision to combat terrorism. There are humanitarian problems, yes, and we are willing to help solve them." But Nicole Fontaine, the president of the European Parliament, appealed to the EU leaders to keep pressing Mr. Putin over the Chechnya issue. "In all of our countries, the moral indignation felt is all the greater because this tragedy is unfolding behind closed doors, with neither humanitarian organizations nor the international press being allowed into Chechnya," she said. The EU leaders also met with the president of Macedonia, Boris Trajkovski, who briefed them about the confrontation between his security forces and ethnic Albanian guerrillas in the north of the country that have touched off fears that this could lead to civil war and a wider conflict in the Balkans. He described the ethnic Albanian rebels as "criminals" who were using politics as a fig-leaf to cover up racketeering activities like smuggling. Asked if he agreed with Mr. Putin than the situation in Macedonia was comparable to that in Chechnya, he said, "transnational terrorism is a worldwide phenomenon and our joint commitment is to fight against terrorism and extremism." On Friday, the three leading Albanian political leaders - Ibrahim Rugova, Hashim Thaci and Ramush Haradjinaj - signed an EU-drafted declaration calling on the Albanian rebels in Macedonia to lay down their arms. The declaration also urged the Macedonian government "to show restraint and to address and resolve the grievances" of the ethnic Albanian population "through peaceful and democratic means." The EU's foreign policy representative, Javier Solana, said the statement was "most welcome." "We now have clear condemnations of violence from the government in Tirana as well as from Albanian political leaders in Skopje and in Pristina," Mr. Solana said. "I hope that further confidence-building measures can now be taken by all sides in order to defuse tensions and restore calm. When this has been achieved, legitimate grievances can and should be addressed according to democratic principles." Mr. Putin welcomed an offer by the EU to assist Russia's entry into the World Trade Organization. Mr. Persson said the EU wanted "to integrate not exclude" Russia in the world trading system, "but this requires reforms in Russia." iht.com ______________ That's the way neofascist Eurasia deals with minorities --"Police vs. bandits".... How long will it take for such a jackboot policy to spill over to the EU proper? Déja vu all over again... Gus.

To: TimF who wrote (917)	3/25/2001 11:33:27 AM
From: Tom Clarke	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 23908

If you don't think the bombing of Belgrade was not an act of aggression, I don't know what to say to you. We're not speaking the same language. Every target in Belgrade was a civilian target, except for the Chinese embassy. Cluster bombs are a particularly insidious destructive device, and we used them to bomb a marketplace at its busiest time. We used them in other places where civilians were gathered too. Cluster bomb units -- CBU-87/B, combined effects munitions, are 1,000-pound deadly munitions that break into 202 bomblets, and each bomblet fractures into 300 fragments of steel. It covers a football field, it can turn an apple orchard into apple sauce -- or people into hamburger. It's used against 'soft targets,' meaning troops and [other] people, though it can go through light armor to a certain point... Unexploded munitions are also a concern accuracy.org