Syria Strikes Win Support but Raise Concern in Balkans

The strikes on Saturday morning on suspected Syrian chemical weapons facilities by the US, Britain and France attracted support from political leaders in Kosovo, Albania and staunch NATO member Romania.

But in Serbia, the US-led attacks caused some to recall the NATO airstrikes on Yugoslavia in March to June 1999 during the Kosovo war.

Aleksandar Vucic, the president of Serbia, said a small country like his "should not interfere in the games of the big powers".

"Our policy of military neutrality, which the state of Serbia has established, is [because] we understand our place in the world, we are a small nation, we have to talk to everyone, to have partnerships with everyone, if possible [to have] friendly relations, to protect our country and avoid any possibility for this scenario to happen in our country, but also in the countries in the region," Vucic told Serbian public broadcaster RTS on Saturday.

He added that he and everyone over 18 was recalling the "painful period we went through" during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999.

Kosovo's Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj was among the first to show support for the White House decision to launch the air strikes, saying that his country "stands strongly with the US and our Euro-Atlantic allies". 

#Kosovo stands strongly with the #US and our Euro-Atlantic allies in military operations in #Syria.

— Ramush Haradinaj (@haradinajramush) April 14, 2018

Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci also backed the strikes against the "inhuman regime" of Bashar al Assad".

I support fully the strike by #US, #UK and #France against the inhuman regime of #Assad. @realDonaldTrump @EmmanuelMacron @theresa_may have the...

Continue reading on: