Source: “Putin’s tentacles stretch over the Balkans”: the alarm goes off in the east of Italy – ilGiornale.it

” Putin ‘s tentacles stretch over the Balkans “: the alarm goes off in the east of Italy

21 March 2022 – 09:44

Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, explains why his country could be in danger due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and what the decisive role of Serbia can be

Alessandro Ferro

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The war between Russia and Ukraine, as we well know, is not an affair that concerns only Putin and Zelensky. Like wildfire, day after day, the conflict is spreading to countries and states that are more or less close from various points of view (food, gas, oil, relationships). That is why, after almost a month of the conflict, Kosovo is afraid both of Putin but also of his Serbian “counterpart”, President Aleksandar Vucic, considered a ” puppet of the Kremlin ” by Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti . In an interview with Repubblica , he points out that Vucic ” imitates Russia even though he is not “. Hence the concern that Putin may ” replicate the model“Ukraine also in the Balkans, being able to count on the fundamental support of the strongest nation.

Putin’s “plans”

The numerous war crimes committed by the Serbs during the Yugoslav wars forcefully return to the memory of Prime Minister Kurti, who makes a fitting comparison to the Italian newspaper: the former USSR has turned ” into an octopus with the Russian Federation at the center and its tentacles : Donbass, Crimea, Transnistria, South Ossetia … “. The former Yugoslavia, on the other hand, can be compared to a smaller octopus with ” Serbia at the center, the Serbian entity in Bosnia, a Serbian entity in Montenegro that does not recognize its independence and illegal structures in northern Kosovo “. In Putin’s plans, now, given the lack of “blitzkrieg” (lightning war) in Ukraine, there may be a desire to expand and “The Western Balkans is a region where you can try to do this. And it can use chemical weapons as it has already done in Syria “, stresses Kurti.

Serbia like Russia?

Kosovo is not part of NATO but mentally yes: it immediately condemned the Russian invasion but without being surprised. The country’s intention is to take a step forward towards partnership in the NATO Peace Program, which is considered “crucial” for the security of the area and ” we count on Italy’s help “. And now Serbia comes into play, the “little” Russia, which receives oil at a bargain price as long as it is in the hands of the Kremlin. Putin orders, Vucic executes. ” Last year Kosovo participated with 350 soldiers in the largest NATO exercise, Defender Europe 2021. Serbia, on the other hand, participated with Russia and Belarus in the ‘Slavic Shield ‘”, says the Prime Minister of Kosovo.and they can “predict” the future: Serbia spends 2.9% of GDP in the armed forces with a budget increased by 70% from 2015 to 2021; the Serbs, then, can count in the “gifts” of Belarus and Russia as many as 40 MiGs, Russian military aircraft as well as various tanks and armored vehicles and the Russian air defense system. If three clues prove it, here are many that show that Putin can always count on his Serbian counterpart in case of need.

“Why are we worried”

Kosovo is accused of treating the Serbian minority as the Ukrainians treated the pro-Russians in the Donbass. ” President Putin loves to mystify the NATO intervention to justify Russian hegemony “, said Albin Kurti, specifying that he had had elections in Kosovo and a referendum during the Serbian occupation ” but the referendums in Crimea and Donbass were very different: the ballot boxes were in the hands of armed Russian soldiers. Then there was the UN, and the International Court made it clear that independence does not violate international law “. Putin is not dealing with Zelensky but with Biden because he would like to recreate ” a new Yalta “, he adds.thinks he’s up to it. The war in Ukraine, where he is not achieving great results, will not be enough for him: he will have to expand it if he wants to deal with Biden. That’s why we’re worried , “he concludes.