Vulin and Zakharova with propaganda for NATO intervention in Kosovo

On the occasion of the 26th anniversary of the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, acting Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin and Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova repeated the usual propaganda narrative about the Alliance’s alleged impunity and responsibility for the conflicts of the 21st century.

What Zakharova and Vulin said:

“NATO will never be able to ‘wash away’ the shame of its war crimes in Yugoslavia in 1999. By attacking a sovereign country, the US and its satellites violated international law, undermined the foundations of security in Europe and caused a crisis in interstate relations that has not been overcome to this day,” Zakharova said.

“The 20th century ended with the last serious and unpunished crime – NATO’s aggression against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. All wars since 1999 were a direct consequence of the killing of Serbian children by NATO and violations of international law,” said Vulin.

Analysis:

The bombing of the former Yugoslavia was preceded by years of massive human rights violations by Serbian forces in Kosovo.

International reports, including from the UN and human rights organizations, document killings, expulsions and systematic violence against the Albanian population. According to the Hague Tribunal and other international bodies, Yugoslav and Serbian forces were responsible for mass crimes in Kosovo, including forced displacement and ethnic cleansing.

NATO justified the military intervention with the need to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe after all diplomatic efforts, including negotiations in Rambouillet, had failed. Although the bombing was not ordered by the UN Security Council, the international community largely regarded it as an intervention to protect the civilian population./The Geopost/