Drama of Eight Soldiers

Tensions in Kosovo

The destiny of the kidnapped members of the Army of Yugoslavia

• however cruel it may sound - might easily determine the destiny of war and peace in Kosovo

AIM Podgorica, 12 January, 1999

(For AIM by correspondent from belgrade)

The illegal Liberation Army of Kosovo (Albanian abbrev. UCK) has started its winter offensive: about 10.00 h on 8 January, in an ambush at the Dulje pass near the Birac village on the road Pristina-Prizren, three policemen were killed and four were wounded; on that same day, two hours later, near Stari Trg, close to Kosovska Mitrovica, a large group of members of this organization kidnapped eight members of the Army of Yugoslavia (VJ). And this is not all. There were conflicts between Serbian police and the UCK near Podujevo in village Perani and in village Dragasinovci in the municipality bearing the same name, and as information service of the command of Pristina corps of the Army of Yugoslavia states, Yugoslav border guards prevented large groups of armed men from crossing the border from Albania on several occasions. All this happened in less than twenty four hours after armed Kosovo Serbs had removed barrickades from the roads around Pristina which had been there for two days. Escalation of armed violence of the UCK was given as the reason for putting them up.

Deadlines and Appeals

At the moment all eyes are turned in the direction of the drama of eight kidnapped soldiers. "Their task was to transport food to one of the facilities of the Army of Yugoslavia in a PUCH army vehicle", stated major general Radivoje Lazarevic, commander of the Pristina Corps. According to his words, thirty odd armed Albanians intercepted the military vehicle and by shooting in the air forced the soldiers to surrender.

Immediately after the kidnapping, the Army informed the OSCE Mission and the official Washington, and the verifiers began mediation and negotiations. At first, the Pristina corps set a deadline of six hours for the UCK to release the soldiers. When it did not happen, infantry and armoured units of VJ surrounded the region where the kidnapped were taken. The deadline for their release was then postponed, but to this moment there have been no results. OSCE verifiers claim that eight soldiers are alive and that they are treated well. The subject of negotiations, or the conditions for their release have not been stated, the verifiers do not wish to jeopardize the negotiations in any way, they say.

In the first few hours of the crisis, general Lazerevic announced that if no solution were reached by negotoiations, "Pristina corps will free its soldiers in its own way". In the meantime, parents of kidnapped soldiers started arriving in Pristina. They denied the statement of the spokesman of the OSCE Verification Mission that they were enabled to speak to their sons on the phone.

Kidnapping of members of VJ caused lively diplomatic activity. NATO Secretary General Javier Solana addressed an appeal "that the soldiers be immediately set free". Reactions of almost everybody relevant involved in resolution of the Kosovo crisis were in the same tone of condemnation of armed activities of the UCK. OSCE Verification Mission assessed that "irresponsible actions of the UCK are the main reason for significant increase of tension in Kosovo". In the shadow of the crisis with kidnapped soldiers, on 11 January, chairman of OSCE, Knut Volebek, met president of FR Yugoslavia, Slobodan Milosevic. After the meeting Volebek declared that Milosevic had agreed to postpone the deadline for the release of members of the VJ, but added that "time was slipping by". At the same time, in a statement from Milosevic's office it is stated that "the authorities will not tolerate terrorist activities, nor can anyone ask them to". American ambassador in Macedonia and mediator in Serb-Albanian negotiations, Christopher Hill, also arrived in Kosovo with the assignment to find a solution for peaceful release of the soldiers.

Nevertheless, it seems that the UCK is not at all impressed by pressure exerted by the international cpmmunity. Political representatives of this organization declared: "Release - yes, but mutual, because imprisoned Albanians also have a right to life and freedom"". Bardil Mahmuti, representative of the UCK in western Europe, said in Geneva that it is possible that a few soldiers will be released soon: "It is not probable that we will set them all free. We are expecting that the Serbs will release at least some Albanians. If they do that, we will release more soldiers. This is a conflict between two armies. They are prisoners of war".

Prospects

It is not at all convincing that the ambush in which policemen were killed and kidnapping of soldiers of VJ are just isolated incidents. Dulje mountain pass during winter months is practically the only communication between Kosovo and Metohija because the road across Brezovica is often impassable because of heavy snow. There are a few isolated police points along the 20-kilometre long pass, while at the very top there is a combat unit of VJ. Should the UCK manage to significantly aggravate communication along this way during winter months, it would gain time and enable logistic preparations for bigger operations in spring. Only then it would be revelaed whether the intention had been to to conquer one of the cities of Kosovo or whether it was an attempt to spread armed activities around the whole territory of the province.

Whatever may be the case, it is a tactical operation. Kidnapping of eight soldiers, though, has strategic significance. The UCK is not trying to conceal that through negotiations on their release it is trying to achieve formal recognition as a warring party. Should this be given - even through the side door - to this organization, consequences would be far-reaching. It would mean not only marginalzation of the politicians gathered around Ibrahim Rugova, president of the Democratic League of Kosovo, but most probably, UCK would impose itself as the only authentic representative of Kosovo Albanians. In that case, all the attempts made so far to find a peacefil solution for the crisis of Kosovo - although very feeble - would come to nothing. As the UCK is refusing to give up on full independence of Kosovo, it is quite realistic to expect that the province would lapse into violence again next spring.

In order to achieve this goal, the UCK will do its best to make the most of the crisis with the kidnapped soldiers. Many claim that its commanders believe that the Army of Yugoslavia and the police of Serbia will not dare start an operation of freeing the soldiers by force because of last year's NATO threats. On the other hand, the wish is spreading among Serbian public that the UCK be finally "taken off the agenda" by a new offensive, along with the belief that the current situation is humiliating to both the army and the state. It is insisted that it must be clear to the international community by now that activities of armed Albanians are unbearable. Kosovo Serbs especially stress that after withdrawal of a part of the police and army, they have come in a completely intolerable situation.

In any case, the current stale-mate position has its time limit. By bidding conditions for release of the kidnapped soldiers, the UCK may overdo it and enable Belgrade to get approval for intensive armed action from the international community. Serbian regime may also wrongly interpret reproaches of the UCK arriving from the world, and set out not only in the operation of liberating members of the army by force, but even start an offensive which would make the country directly threatened by NATO strikes. One thing is certain - the drama of kidnapped soldiers has acquired enormous significance. Their destiny - however cruel it may sound - can easily determine the destiny of war and peace in Kosovo.

Philip Schwarm

(AIM)