Retired American General Wesley Clark has warned NATO that Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić “will do what Putin wants him to do when the time comes.”
Clark, who served as the Supreme Allied Commander Europe for NATO, warned of the risk of a new war in the old continent, specifically in the Balkans, in an interview with CNN last night, saying that leaders like Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti “must confront it.”
“The hand of Russia is felt in the Balkans, Serbia is the hand of Russia in the Balkans. Serbia serves Russia’s interests. Vučić is clever, he wants to appear as if he is playing both sides, but when the time comes he will do what Putin wants him to do. What he wants from Putin is certainly the authority to use his forces in Kosovo, at least to take half of the northern part of Kosovo and maybe more, and they certainly want the partition of Bosnia and to take the Republika Srpska and make a ‘Greater Serbia’. All this is for ethnic cleansing in the Balkans. We have seen a lot of violence, killings in the last 30 years and we thought NATO had stopped it, but if there are problems in Ukraine that problem will come to the Balkans and leaders like Prime Minister Kurti must confront it,” Clark said.
Thus, he warned that the region is seriously at risk if Russia is not stopped in Ukraine. Clark said Serbia serves Russia’s interests and seeks its support to expand its territory.
Clark stated that NATO needs to “double down on its determination” and get involved in liberating Ukraine, just as it did with Kosovo in 1999.
“Putin knows we do not want a provocation that leads to nuclear confrontation and he continues to warn us with nuclear drills… I remember when NATO was concerned about bombing a state, whether we should stop, pause, there was fear but still we insisted, NATO insisted because the U.S. as the leader insisted and Britain was also a big part as was Albright and Clinton. We did not back down. This is the time when NATO needs to double down on its determination that Putin will not win and we need to do more than just offer arms. NATO needs to do more. Look at the example of Kosovo today, 25 years of democracy, a free state, I was there, everyone has a horror story as Prime Minister [Albin Kurti] recalled and everyone is thankful to NATO. It should be the same for Ukraine, we need to save Ukraine. It is our duty as NATO,” Clark said.
“NATO needs to do more. Look at the example of Kosovo today, 25 years of democracy, a free state. This is how it should be for Ukraine as well, we can save Ukraine if we stand up and do it [intervene]. This is our duty,” said Clark.
Clark said that the best path is bringing Ukraine into NATO.
Source: Botasot
