yugoslavias implosion

268
ChApter 3
Belgrade’s reaction to Kosovo’s declaration of independence
was as expected after Koštunica’s intensive campaign against independence.
A protest rally against the declaration of “the phony state”
of Kosovo was the manifestation of nationalistic frustration and a
rejection of reality. Old stereotypes about Albanians being thugs and
criminals and incapable of governing their own state were quickly
revived. 472 The attacks launched immediately after the rally on foreign
embassies, most notably the u.s. embassy, were planned well in
advance. 473
Koštunica called Kosovo “a fundamental state and national
issue” in a bid to cover up his political defeat and to prevent Democratic
Party and Serbian president Boris Tadić from gaining ascendancy
over him in the so-called democratic camp. In a speech to a
rally in February 2008, Koštunica claimed that “as long as the Serbian
people exist, Kosovo remains Serbia” and that “the president of the
u.s., who is responsible for this violence, and his European followers,
will be written with black letters in Serbian history books.” He
accused the United States of
putting violence over the principles of international law, the u.s. used
blind force and humiliated and forced the eu to break the principles
that the very eu is based on. America forced Europe to follow it in
unprecedented violence demonstrated against Serbia. Europe has bent
472 For instance, Momo Kapor, a radical Serbian nationalist who had played an important role
in propaganda before and during the wars in Croatia and Bosnia, interpreted Kosovo’s
independence thus: “That declaration of independence and secession is in fact a conflict with
semi-wild tribes who don’t own a single proof of their civilization and culture, a single proof
of their historic monuments, temples, old manuscripts, old frescoes . Their mosques were built
from stones taken from ruins of the palace of our wonderful emperors . From those stones they
only carved holes for ropes for their asses . Those are their only historical sculptures . They don’t
have a single writer, a single painter whose name resonates in the world .” NIN, March 6, 2008 .
473 Foreign embassies, that of the United States in particular, were not protected by the
police in spite of fears that demonstrators might attack them . The police reacted only
following interventions by the U .S . ambassador in Belgrade and by Nicholas Burns, U .S .
under-secretary of state for political affairs, who telephoned Koštunica directly . The
situation outside the embassies was covered live by several Belgrade TV stations .