Former Kosovo President Hashim Thaçi was a Western-backed figure who helped lead Kosovo toward independence.
If he was one of the key figures with whom the United States and its allies worked on the path toward independence, does the Hague verdict now require the West to reassess that period as well?
Charles Kupchan, a former U.S. National Security Council official and professor at Georgetown University, does not think so.
“…because Thaçi made that transition, right? From a wartime leader, now convicted of atrocities, he became a civilian leader who helped Kosovo move toward independence and build its relations with the United States, European powers and others. So, I don’t think that will change,” Kupchan told Radio Free Europe.
In his view, the verdict may be a short-term shock, but not one that will alter Kosovo’s international position.
He does not expect countries to withdraw their recognition of Kosovo, damage to its partnerships with the West, or disruption of its Euro-Atlantic path. According to him, the normalization process with Serbia is not called into question either.
In the longer term, he even sees the possibility of a positive effect if the proceedings are viewed as evidence that justice is applied equally to everyone.
“Kosovo was fighting to defend itself against ethnic cleansing and, for that reason, the struggle for independence was a just cause. However, a just cause does not justify war crimes. One injustice cannot be justified by another injustice. If Thaçi and other members of the KLA committed war crimes — even though the cause they were fighting for was just — then I think the court did what it was supposed to do,” Kupchan said.
Asked which image of Thaçi will carry more weight decades from now — the man who helped lead Kosovo toward independence or the man convicted of war crimes — Kupchan does not choose between the two.
“As with other leaders who have done courageous and valuable things but have also been accused of criminal acts, including war crimes, there are both sides in Thaçi’s case as well. It is a complicated legacy. Thaçi will be remembered for the role he played in leading Kosovo toward independence. But at the same time, his legacy will now also be linked to this verdict,” Kupchan said.
The two moments are separated by just over 18 years.
Which of them will carry greater weight in shaping how Thaçi is remembered remains a question for the years ahead.
