Former Democratic Presidential Candidate and NATO General Wesley Clark’s quagmire may finally be turning the corner. Clark, an outspoken critic of the War in Iraq, stated today that he hopes to see democratic independence in Kosovo’s future. Clark led the aerial attacks on Kosovo back in 1999:
Wesley Clark told Kosovo Albanian leaders in Pristina he had confidence in their “strong, positive and visionary proposals” to find a solution for Kosovo, which has been run by the United Nations and NATO since 1999.
“I am confident that this issue will be solved very soon, and probably in few months, Kosovo will become independent and will respect the rights of all citizens,” said Clark.
“I believe that Kosovo will be welcomed into the family of the nations and that there will be many opportunities for the citizens of this country to prosper, raise big families and make their dreams come true.”
However, not everyone agreed with General Clark’s positive assessment of the situation in Kosovo:
“Serbia has expressed dissatisfaction with the way it’s going and with the people running it,” a senior Western official in Kosovo told Reuters on Thursday.
Kosovo daily Zeri reported on Thursday that Belgrade had written to the Contact Group of major powers asking them to sideline Ahtisaari’s U.N. team in Vienna and chair direct talks that would be held in the Macedonian lakeside town of Ohrid.
“It’s half true,” the western official said of the story, confirming the Contact Group — the United States, Britain, Russia, Italy, Germany and France — had received a letter expressing serious concern with Ahtisaari, former Finnish president.
Serbia is already reeling from the loss of the tiny Adriatic republic of Montenegro which voted in a referendum on Sunday to end a 90-year-union, one of the last acts in the break-up of the former Yugoslavia.
Diplomats expect Kosovo to be granted independence.
Despite more than five years of UN assistance and control, the lawless region is characterized by continuing ethnic cleansing and subject to increasing infiltration by al Qaeda-linked Muslim jihadists.
General Clark also had this to say about Iraq:
– transfer authority to Iraq
– start removing US and Allied soldiers
– give the fledgling government responsibility for security
– appoint ministers of interior and defense
Brilliant! How does he do it?
