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Pastimes : Kosovo -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: D. Long who wrote (2831)	4/8/1999 8:31:00 PM
From: Douglas V. Fant	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 17770

D.Long, Agreed- Whatever the outcome at this point the devastation and refugees turned loose guarantee IMO instability in this region for years to come. Hundreds of thousands of Kosovars are homeless and scattered (the next Palestinians?). We've backed a radical but militarily incompetent group the KLA to come into power in Kosovo. We've energized and embittered the Communists and Nationalists in Russia. Large parts of Yugoslavia have been bombed into total rubble (see pictures at CNN Main Site tonight of bomb damage to Pristina- they are incredible! It looks like Germany in 1945). Meanwhile the Russian Bear is working itself into a fury over standing by and watching its cousin Serbia being stomped to death by- in their eyes- 19 "NATO Gang Bangers". Hopefully Russia's warning tonight that if the bombing doesn't stop in a few days that "all of Europe will be affected" is a bluff, but....If Russia starts resupplying Yugoslavia with weapons (Or China) this thing could drag on for years to come with thousands of casualties on all sides....

To: D. Long who wrote (2831)	4/9/1999 4:57:00 AM
From: GUSTAVE JAEGER	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 17770

Derek... I'm still waiting for your opinion on my last message on the World War III thread! Anyway, how can you be so naive about the KLA? Of course, it's an outlaw, terrorist-like militia! And I agree with you on their likely connection with some drug trafficking. But you should be aware that armements trade has always been related to the drug trade! Both are inextricably intertwined... Just remember the Iran/Contra scandal under the Reagan administration, or the fate of Manuel Noriega who was the puppet of the CIA for so long before serving a jail sentence in Florida, or the fate of Carlos Salinas, former President of Mexico and currently a fugitive in Ireland (which has no extradition agreement with Mexico)... All these ''vilains'' were once good friends with the U.S.A.! Yet, all of them were heavily relying on cocaine smuggling for a living... Actually, if you want the U.S. not to deal with dirty Drug Lords then you should ask for your country to set up an embargo on RUSSIA! Because everybody knows that the Russian mobocracy is a major player in drug smuggling, prostitution and arms trafficking throughout Eastern and Western Europe. I can tell you that here, in Belgium, Antwerp is a major crossroads for money laundering and is consequently in the hands of the Russian mafia (drugs/other stuff >> money >> diamonds >> money >>...). But that's the price of dealing with a stable Russia: if you want Moscow to be able to repay its IMF loans then you'd better close your eyes on how they cope with it... BTW, yesterday we learnt that Senator Giulio Andreotti, Italy's former chief of government, was accused of dubious relationship with the Sicilian Mafia. Yet, it has not prevent Italy from being a faithful NATO ally since the end of WWII. So, be careful when dealing with such touchy matters: it's all too easy to find oneself in a double-standard mindset... Gustave.