<nettime> IWPR: BALKAN ANXIETIES OVER AMERICAN TRAGEDY

["geert" <geert@Desk.nl>]

Date: 17 September 2001 22:58
From: Institute for War & Peace Reporting <info@iwpr.net>

WELCOME TO IWPR'S BALKAN CRISIS REPORT, No. 280, September 17, 2001

BALKAN ANXIETIES OVER AMERICAN TRAGEDY.  People in former Yugoslavia,
whether friends or foes of America, fear the possible fall-out from the
hijack attacks on Washington and New York.  By Tanya Domi in New York and
Janez Kovac in Sarajevo.

BALKAN ANXIETIES OVER AMERICAN TRAGEDY

People in former Yugoslavia, whether friends or foes of America, fear the
possible fall-out from the hijack attacks on Washington and New York.

By Tanya Domi in New York and Janez Kovac in Sarajevo.

As horror ripped through New York and Washington, people in the Balkans
watched the developing drama with mixed feelings. Depending on whether
ally or foe of the US, a few celebrated, many grieved openly, but all
feared possible consequences of the terror in America.

"After yesterday, the world is not the same, politically, economically or
psychologically," said Serbian Premier Zoran Djindjic.

Djindjic warned that the US and other Western countries could now move
toward "psychological isolationism".  He cautioned the West against
sacrificing the efforts to find political solutions to the world's
problems in favour of an unachievable goal of seeking total security
through military means.

The Bosnian premier, Zlatko Lagumdzija, repeated these words almost to the
letter and offered assistance not only in protecting US citizens in Bosnia
but also in tackling international terrorism.

"Today is a new day in history," Lagumdzija said. He warned Bosnians that
they may have to adjust themselves to possible changes in US foreign
policy, as other concerns take precedence over the Balkans.

These fears appear justified, since throughout the past decade Balkans has
been heavily dependent on the US, and a major change in priorities in
Washington could have a huge impact in the region.

While all Western military, diplomatic and aid efforts have been
multinational, Washington has been far and away the dominant player,
forging an essential link between the US and the Balkans. The strength of
the relationship was called into question during the US presidential
election when the Bush campaign raised the possibility of withdrawing US
troops.  As president, however, George W. Bush has reconfirmed US
engagement, although troops and funding are being gradually reduced.

But many in the region fear that after the terrorist attack, US
involvement may be substantially cut or even ended.

Patrik Volf, a spokesman for the international community's high
representative in Bosnia, sought to deflect concerns over US involvement.
"The United States has made a firm commitment to Bosnia and Herzegovina,"
he said. "We're confident that the US will live up to this commitment."

Bosnia has a particular tie with the US, as the peace agreement and many
other crucial steps in bringing its war to a close were driven by
Americans.

Other Balkan countries have different relationships with Washington, and
thus have particular reasons for concern.

Only a couple of years ago, Serbia was at war with America and other NATO
countries, which bombed targets across Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in
an attempt to stop Serb atrocities in Kosovo.

Yugoslavia has been expecting its first serious financial aid and is now
anxious that US may use the persistence of anti-American sentiment among
sections of the Belgrade administration to backtrack on funding.

Many Serbs are shocked and in grieving over the events in New York and
Washington.  But many others in Yugoslavia still obviously harbour
anti-American sentiments, which will hardly ingratiate the country with a
wounded and angry America.

"I am still celebrating together with Palestinians," a Serb who identified
himself only as a refugee from Bosnia and Herzegovina, said on Wednesday
in a live radio programme in Montenegro.

Ethnic Macedonians have harshly criticised the US involvement in their
country, accusing Washington of supporting "Albanian terrorists". Yet
while the peace agreement there remains fragile, for the moment any such
awkward language was put aside and Macedonian political leaders joined
with the visiting NATO chief Lord Robertson in observing the Europe-wide
three minute of silence, held mid-day on September 14.

Kosovo and Bosnia share one specific cause for concern: during their own
wars, some extremist Muslim elements maintained links with the prime
suspect behind the US hijack attacks, Osama bin Laden.

Although there is no evidence that bin Laden himself was ever present in
the Balkans, some of his followers may have used the chaos of the wars in
Bosnia and Kosovo to infiltrate the region.  Indeed, leaders in both
Bosnia and Kosovo welcomed any help they could get while fighting against
Serbs and thus accepted the support of a number of radical Islamic
fighters.

Some of these fighters, known as mujahidin, joined in the war in Bosnia,
and some even took up Bosnian passports. The main motivation for others,
however, was to establish a training ground for terrorist attacks against
the West and to participate in the lucrative business of weapon and drug
trafficking.

While most were forced to flee after the wars ended, some stayed, marrying
Bosnian women.  On September 17 1999, Turkish secret police arrested
30-year-old Algerian Mehrez Aldouni, who was on Interpol's red list of
most wanted terrorist suspects and reportedly an associate of bin Laden.  
He was carrying a Bosnian passport.

Those Bosnian Muslims (Bosniaks) who do actively practice religion follow
a very moderate form of Islam, and there is no question of extreme Islam
in the country.  Nevertheless, Bosnia, and to a degree Kosovo, are
concerned that reports about terrorist connections, or more generally the
growing anti-Muslim sentiment in the US, on their territory could damage
relations with the West.

Political concerns aside, many people throughout the region expressed
simple solidarity with the victims. The day after the attack on the World
Trade Centre, more than 1,000 Kosovo Albanians gathered spontaneously on
the streets of Pristina in a silent commemoration. Hundreds of candles
were left in silence on the doorsteps of American Liaison Centre. People
in Sarajevo laid flowers in front of the closed US embassy, and most of
the countries in the region observed the September 14 day of mourning for
the victims.

When news of the attack first broke, streets of many towns throughout the
region looked ghostly, abandoned as people ran home from work to watch the
American agony broadcast live on most of the local radio and television
stations. From their own experience throughout the recent Balkan wars,
many of them understood too well what Americans were going through.

Tanya Domi, a former OSCE spokesperson in Bosnia, is pursuing
post-graduate studies at Columbia University in New York. Janez Kovac is a
regular IWPR contributor. Gordana Igric in London, Saso Ordanoski in
Skopje and Nehat Islami in Pristina also contributed to this report.



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