Vujinovic: NATO did not come to preserve peace, but to strengthen Kosovo's independence

NATO arrived in Kosovo 27 years ago as an occupying force and was not there to preserve peace, but rather to strengthen Kosovo's independence, security studies researcher Nikola Vujinovic told Kosovo Online.

Vujinovic said that the greatest stain of that period is reflected in the crimes committed in Kosovo at the time, as they were largely carried out after NATO troops entered the territory.

“Twenty-seven years have already passed, which is a sufficient historical distance to assess the way NATO behaved upon entering Kosovo. It allowed a certain vacuum to exist between the withdrawing Yugoslav Army troops and the arrival of NATO forces. It was precisely in that vacuum that numerous crimes were committed and ethnic cleansing was carried out in many areas. If I am not mistaken, nearly 300,000 people left Kosovo and Metohija. NATO was not there to preserve peace, but to strengthen Kosovo's independence,” Vujinovic said.

He does not believe that the Alliance plans to bring its mission in Kosovo to an end in the foreseeable future.

“Only the main actor is changing. For many years, even decades, the United States was the main actor insisting that the mission continue. I believe circumstances have now changed and that Turkey is today the dominant factor insisting that KFOR remain, for the simple reason that Turkey is quite obviously using it as a framework for demonstrating its power on the ground. This includes the Sultan Murat Barracks, the large number of troops, and now even the KFOR commander is from the Turkish Armed Forces. By all indications, his successor will also come from the Turkish military. For that reason, I believe this is a very suitable framework for demonstrating power on the ground,” Vujinovic said.