{"id":172617,"date":"2025-03-24T14:59:26","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T12:59:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/?p=172617"},"modified":"2025-03-24T14:59:27","modified_gmt":"2025-03-24T12:59:27","slug":"calls-on-serbs-to-react-renowned-canadian-professor-believes-now-is-the-ideal-time-to-demand-the-closure-of-the-bondsteel-military-base-in-kosovo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/calls-on-serbs-to-react-renowned-canadian-professor-believes-now-is-the-ideal-time-to-demand-the-closure-of-the-bondsteel-military-base-in-kosovo\/","title":{"rendered":"CALLS ON SERBS TO REACT: Renowned Canadian Professor believes now is the ideal time to demand the closure of the Bondsteel Military Base in Kosovo!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Professor of economics at the University of Ottawa and founder of the Centre for Research on Globalization, Michel Chossudovsky, on the occasion of the 26th anniversary of the beginning of NATO&#8217;s aggression against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, reminds that it was NATO\u2019s first official war against a sovereign country\u2014but not the last\u2014as this war agenda was later used in various conflicts, with media propaganda playing a significant role, which is still evident today in the case of Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He also believes that now is the opportunity, especially with Donald Trump at the helm of the United States, to raise the issue of closing the American Bondsteel base in the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;This is essentially a U.S. base. Trump wants to reduce military costs, and this is a large military base, expensive to maintain,&#8221; said Chossudovsky, author of numerous books, including <em>The U.S. and NATO Aggression Against Yugoslavia<\/em> and <em>The Globalization of Poverty<\/em>, which have been translated into Serbian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Regarding negotiations on Ukraine, Chossudovsky believes it would have been better if they had taken place in Belgrade, given that Serbia is a militarily neutral country. President Aleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107 could have played a mediating role since he maintains dialogue with the EU, Washington, and Moscow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chossudovsky emphasized to <strong>Tanjug<\/strong> that, in the case of the bombing of the FRY, the propaganda machine was well-organized, but that war was\u2014brutal and ruthless\u2014planned many years in advance, <em>&#8220;which is confirmed, among other things, by the construction of the American Bondsteel military base on occupied Kosovo,&#8221;<\/em> which, in his view, many see as a strategic pillar of the U.S. presence in this region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He added that he believes the world is <em>&#8220;in an era of insane politics,&#8221;<\/em> but at least not Serbia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;When you have U.S. President Donald Trump making certain statements about wanting to cut military spending by billions and billions of dollars, while also being reserved about NATO\u2019s role in American military bases\u2014as is the case with Bondsteel\u2014I think it would be appropriate for the Serbian government to politely send a note to Washington, citing Trump\u2019s concerns about military expenses,&#8221; said Chossudovsky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF;color:#d21414\" class=\"has-inline-color\">FIND OUT MORE: <\/mark><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fserbiantimes%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0rXKbvryqKifEYz83sym75FPjfssxuMGZjUDNJSkBifRpga8Rwc9fSDpZ7sBtz15Ml&#038;show_text=true&#038;width=500\" width=\"500\" height=\"671\" style=\"border:none;overflow:hidden\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p>According to him, the note should state that Bondsteel is a burden for Serbia, a burden for so-called Kosovo, and for Washington, and that <em>&#8220;we want to cooperate&#8221;<\/em> and <em>&#8220;we would like to see that base closed.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He added that this would be a position aligned with the rhetoric of the U.S. president, who has even stated that he would close military bases in Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;And here you have an opportunity,&#8221;<\/em> said Chossudovsky, noting that the relationship between the U.S. and NATO is complex, but that NATO does not actually decide anything, as all major decisions go through the Pentagon and highly complex command structures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Serbia, he stressed, must regain control over Kosovo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chossudovsky stated that, first and foremost, that territory is not a state but a province of Serbia, which was taken over by General Michael Jackson\u2014who had a criminal record in the United Kingdom\u2014and Hashim Tha\u00e7i, a man involved in drug trafficking, who was only sent to The Hague 20 years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to him, by remaining neutral in relations with both Russia and the U.S., Serbia has the potential to play a role in creating peace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That is why, he says, it would have been better if negotiations between Putin and Trump had taken place in Belgrade rather than in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;This is neutral territory, not in the way Switzerland is. They are very biased. Your president (Aleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107) is very perceptive in understanding geopolitics. We watched one of his earlier speeches, where he says that if we do not make certain decisions, it will lead to catastrophe. I think he is a powerful voice and perhaps should also play a role in peace operations, as he has dialogue with the EU, Washington, and Moscow,&#8221;<\/em> Chossudovsky assessed. He reminded that Serbia has always declared itself neutral, which, he adds, it inherited from the SFRY, which was non-aligned, making it <em>&#8220;strategically important for those seeking to build empires.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF;color:#d21414\" class=\"has-inline-color\">FIND OUT MORE: <\/mark><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fserbiantimes%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0R1JiAJp64B3WvVcMLhfaskzADu5t1V6fodhMWt5mnHupcypCxZyfc2oWEN9WW2mZl&#038;show_text=true&#038;width=500\" width=\"500\" height=\"576\" style=\"border:none;overflow:hidden\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p>Recalling March 24, 1999, Chossudovsky states that it was a war against truth, carried out in coordination with the criminal elements of the so-called Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), which collaborated with American and German intelligence services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;This was NATO\u2019s first war, but not its last, because all the elements of that war were stored in databases for future conquest plans in various countries. The war agenda from 1999 was used in different wars, adapted to different contexts and cultures, but ultimately, it always involved the coordination of military action with economic activities, regime change, and propaganda,&#8221;<\/em> said Chossudovsky, one of the first people to stand by Serbia during NATO\u2019s aggression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chossudovsky, who was awarded the Medal for Merit of the Republic of Serbia in 2014, considers the bombing of the FRY to have been an illegal and criminal act in which the media played a crucial role. He also noted that the situation is similar in Ukraine, <em>&#8220;because there are no newspapers in the Western world that would write that the Ukrainian government is neo-Nazi.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Western media, he added, are complicit, covering up crimes. He recalled the 1998 film <em>The Valley<\/em>, sponsored by NATO, which served as justification for the horrors of war in Kosovo and Metohija.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;There were fake images&#8230; They showed that Serbs were killing Albanians, and it was sponsored with KLA support. That documentary film was distributed mainly in Western countries. It was a way to show that Serbs were killing people&#8230; and so, the fabricated notion that the KLA was there to \u2018save\u2019 everyone from the Serbs gained legitimacy, despite the fact that they themselves were linked to organized crime and Al-Qaeda, with media support,&#8221;<\/em> Chossudovsky said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That film must be carefully analyzed, assessed Chossudovsky, who at the time wrote for <em>Le Monde Diplomatique<\/em> but ended his collaboration when the editorial board refused to publish an article presenting evidence that one of the key figures in Kosovo, Hashim Tha\u00e7i, had a criminal record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;They attacked Serbia, or rather, the FRY, under the pretext of a humanitarian intervention, with strong condemnation and demonization of President Slobodan Milo\u0161evi\u0107, as well as the entire Serbian people,&#8221;<\/em> said Chossudovsky, who claimed that he spoke with Milo\u0161evi\u0107 in The Hague and <em>&#8220;knew they were poisoning him in the Tribunal.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;People in Serbia need to understand that Milo\u0161evi\u0107 died for his people,&#8221;<\/em> said Chossudovsky, who began researching Yugoslavia within the broader economic events of the 1980s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He recalled that the peak of the economic crisis in Yugoslavia was in January 1990, which led to what was called a civil war, although, as he argues, it was not a civil war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;There were two key elements\u2014the Western media and how they lied and covered up crimes committed by NATO forces. The second element was the so-called left, the &#8216;progressive&#8217; parties in the U.S. and Western Europe. They even portrayed KLA members as &#8216;freedom fighters&#8217; and went so far as to cite Marx and Lenin in that context. They even acknowledged that the KLA was linked to organized crime but justified it as necessary for the revolution,&#8221;<\/em> he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He emphasized that Milo\u0161evi\u0107&#8217;s legacy is very important because, first and foremost, <em>&#8220;he did not play their game, acted on behalf of the Serbian people and his country, and understood the situation\u2014his actions also saved lives when they came to arrest him.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;It was clear where the crime originated from, and Milo\u0161evi\u0107 analyzed it and understood the role of Al-Qaeda. I reviewed one of his speeches in The Hague, which was very concrete,&#8221;<\/em> he stated, adding that <em>&#8220;everyone knows that the CIA financed Al-Qaeda,&#8221;<\/em> which was also linked to the KLA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Chossudovsky, it was crucial for Milo\u0161evi\u0107, but for the West, it was essential to discredit him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF;color:#d21414\" class=\"has-inline-color\">MORE TOPICS:<\/mark><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/vucic-on-the-hot-welcome-in-nis-i-am-to-blame-for-the-police-not-reacting-more-sharply-in-the-protests-we-will-respond-more-harshly\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">VU\u010cI\u0106 ON THE \u201cHOT WELCOME\u201d IN NI\u0160: I am to blame for the police not reacting more sharply in the protests, we will respond more harshly!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/novak-released-a-video-unlike-any-serbia-remembers-zlo-depicts-all-our-tragedies-from-war-to-the-canopy-video\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">NOVAK RELEASED A VIDEO UNLIKE ANY SERBIA REMEMBERS: \u201cZlo\u201d depicts all our tragedies, from war to the canopy! (VIDEO)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/the-topic-is-too-sensitive-belgian-festival-canceled-the-screening-of-the-film-about-the-jadar-project\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">\u201cTHE TOPIC IS TOO SENSITIVE\u201d: Belgian festival canceled the screening of the film about the Jadar project!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/today-we-celebrate-mladenci-many-beliefs-are-associated-with-the-day-of-the-holy-forty-martyrs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">TODAY WE CELEBRATE MLADENCI: Many beliefs are associated with the day of the Holy Forty Martyrs!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/a-hundred-years-before-vuk-this-manuscript-is-the-first-collection-of-serbian-folk-songs-and-a-german-wrote-them-down\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">A HUNDRED YEARS BEFORE VUK: This manuscript is the first collection of Serbian folk songs, and a German wrote them down!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/a-fate-more-tragic-than-drama-heres-what-the-real-kostana-of-bora-stankovics-work-looked-like-photo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">A FATE MORE TRAGIC THAN DRAMA: Here\u2019s what the real Ko\u0161tana of Bora Stankovi\u0107\u2019s work looked like! (PHOTO)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source<\/strong>: Politika, <strong>Foto<\/strong>: Printscreen\/YOutube<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Professor of economics at the University of Ottawa and founder of the Centre for Research on Globalization, Michel Chossudovsky, on the occasion of the 26th anniversary of the beginning of NATO&#8217;s aggression against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, reminds that it was NATO\u2019s first official war against a sovereign country\u2014but not the last\u2014as this war [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2169,"featured_media":172618,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[5757,24,501,1757,109,5758,77,3352],"class_list":["post-172617","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-america","tag-bondstil","tag-donald-tramp","tag-kanada","tag-kosmet","tag-kosovo-i-metohija","tag-mises-cosudovski","tag-nato","tag-vojna-baza","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Serbiantimes.info EN","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172617","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2169"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172617"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172617\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":172643,"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172617\/revisions\/172643"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172618"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172617"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172617"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172617"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}