Balkans

[mt155]

A little more than 100 years ago this crossroads of the world was the starting place of the First World War. Once again it seems that there may be another storm brewing in that troubled area. It will be interesting to see how Kosovo independence plays out. It seems that the Cold War will be heating up. I know the Serb Parliament has said violence is not an option, but I wonder how long that will last.

Mike T.

[william42]

Hi Mike: Here's how informed I am on this area: I thought Kosovo was already independent. That's a very complicated area with the religious, territorial, nationalistic aspects all so close in that small region...just ripe for another clash. It's a lot like Northern Ireland in my opinion.

It is nice to see folks waving American flags instead of burning them. Pretty refreshing. My guess, and this is only a wild guess, is that Mr. Putin will wait until the US elections are over so he can see who his new counterpart will be. I don't see the Serbs taking any drastic measures aimed at Kosovo without Putin's ok, and any action he takes in favor of Serbia will only be after he has sized up the new US president.

[william42]

I'm not sure how long these articles will be accessible by the links.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/worl...yt&oref=slogin


http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/worl...endence&st=nyt

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/wo...endence&st=nyt