Kosovo and the question of future U.S. military interference abroad

In 1999, NATO and the United Nations intervened and participated in major bombing campaigns during the Kosovo-Serbian conflict. Depending on the definition of national security, I think it can be argued Kosovo is of particular interest to the United States for several reasons, albeit indirectly effecting the U.S. public and homeland: human rights abuses such as ethnic cleansing, the spread of terrorism and guerilla factions in an unstable region on NATO’s doorstep, and maintaining economic ties to a developing region. The rise and fall of Kosovo will not lead to the total destruction of the U.S. However, a key national security strategy within DC since the end of WWII has been maintaining collective security and peace on the European continent. In 2020, U.S. President Donald Trump facilitated an economic normalization deal in order to better infrastructure and economic links between Kosovo and Serbia. This deal does not push Serbia closer to recognizing Kosovo’s sovereignty, but it is a step forward for these two countries with tumultuous recent history. 

That work may be undermined given the new indictments brought by the International Criminal Tribunal against the Kosovar President Thaci last week. Thaci has since resigned from his post as President and is currently in the Hague pleading not guilty to a variety of war crimes perpetuated by the Kosovo Liberation Army (PLA) during the Kosovo conflict in 1998-1999. The tribunal was set up in 2015 to handle cases relating to the war that led to Kosovo’s independence from Serbia a decade later in 2008. The court is governed by Kosovo law but staffed by international judges and prosecutors.

Thaci is cooperating with the international community in confronting these charges, but these proceedings and his resignation may lead to instability in the young Kosovo democracy. Additionally, the war crimes included in the indictment such as murder, torture, organ harvesting, etc. contradict the U.S. international image as a global police officer and advocate for human rights. The U.S. hailed Thaci as a hero during his time with the PLA battling the ethnic cleansing inflicted by the former Serbian leader Milosevic. Therefore his implication in atrocious acts of violence by the International Criminal Tribunal could further erode the history’s analysis of U.S. military interference abroad. Kosovo, Georgia, and Iraq remain primary examples of U.S. interference without a “direct threat” to the U.S. justified through human rights and non-proliferation, Thus the U.S. justification for interference in Kosovo on the grounds of preventing ethnic cleansing of Kosovar Albanians, the U.S. could be seen as an unspoken collaborator in the war crimes committed by those it attempted and succeeded in propping up within the new Kosovo republic.

There isn’t yet a statement from the U.S. on this issue, but the U.S. may not be able to go without comment for long given the cooperation of the Council of Europe in bringing about these charges. Lastly, it is important to note Amnesty International and Serbia welcomed the charges for revealing the truth regarding actions during the conflict and bringing solace to those who encountered such violence. However, despite the International Criminal Tribunal being supported by Kosovar law, many in Kosovo disagree with the indictments putting Kosovo’s "liberators" on trial.