February 15, 2008
Kosovo Options
According to many (usually) reliable sources, this weekend the Albanian majority in the Serbian province of Kosovo will, with tacit U.S. support, unilaterally declare independence. If not this weekend, then soon enough. Though unlikely to spark a new, full-blown round of Yugoslavia's civil war — made dormant by the Dayton agreement in 1995 — Kosovo's putative independence creates as many problems as it solves, or more. To get a sense of what's at stake and what sorts of logical options might be pursued I turned to Sir Ivor Roberts, who was the UK's Ambassador to Yugoslavia in the mid-1990s, now head of Trinity College, Oxford. Sir Ivor's perceptive analysis should be a model not only for those who struggle with Balkan issues but also those more generally concerned with humanitarian and other types of intervention. It was very gracious of Sir Ivor to take the time to talk with me, which I much appreciate. Total runtime an hour and eight minutes.
Comments
Hi George,
I'm a loyal fan of your podcasts. Very informative and thorough interviews you donate to the world.
Thnx.
Posted by: Maciano | February 18, 2008 4:27 AM
A perfect podcast for the present moment.
Thanks George.
During a previous podcast on the tribunals in the Hague the idea was floated that a "guest presenter" would be invited in to interview George about his own experiences of and opinions on all things Yugoslav. It is a shame that this idea has never come to fruition because, from what I can tell from my own understanding of the case, George took a very principled -- and absolutely correct -- stance in 1992, and since then has developed positions that deviate significantly from the official narrative. So the question remains: When will George Kenney be appearing on Electric Politics?
Posted by: joe francis | February 20, 2008 7:36 PM