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    Missile Defense

Russian military leaders have expressed concern about US plans for a national missile defense system. Will defense technology be limited by possibilities for a strategic imbalance? Is this just SDI all over again?


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lunarchick - 03:44pm Apr 2, 2001 EST (#1916 of 1927)
lunarchick@www.com

The FRENCH have suggested a European defence and peace-keeping body. Presumably to 'stop' the USA from having the 'right' to pick on a Euro State and call it 'rogue'. Wouldn't the French concept include all States that wanted to join on the European land mass?

almarst-2001 - 04:22pm Apr 2, 2001 EST (#1917 of 1927)

"The United States had set a March 31 deadline for Belgrade to show it was cooperating with the UN war crimes tribunal, which has indicted Milosevic, in return for releasing $US50 million ($103.41 million) in aid and supporting International Monetary Fund and World Bank programs for Belgrade. "

while I believe the Milosovic should be tried, it must be done first in Yugoslavia. The Yugoslavian court offered full cooperation with UN war crimes tribunal which could present any evidence of war crimes to the court. If they have enough of such evidence.

In my view, the American's pressure is counterproductive and can only cause the backlash by the Sebian people. Unless that exactly the intention.

almarst-2001 - 04:28pm Apr 2, 2001 EST (#1918 of 1927)

almarst-2001 4/2/01 4:22pm

Untill ALL facts of Balkan war are properly investigated, including the role of certain secret services arming and organising the terrorists, the motives of the diplomatic actions and the NATO leader's motives and responsibility, no justice would be seen as complete.

rshowalter - 04:38pm Apr 2, 2001 EST (#1919 of 1927) Delete Message
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

That's surely true. But complete justice can be hard to come by.

Getting the facts of the Balkan war properly investigated, including the role of certain secret services arming and organising the terrorists, is important.

Investigating the motives of the diplomatic actions and the NATO leader's motives and responsibility, is also important.

Setting out these facts, so that they are understood, and can be evaluated on the merits, would be quite important, whether they involve trials or not.

Even so, the ideal of a War Crimes tribunal seems to me worth supporting.

almarst-2001 - 04:43pm Apr 2, 2001 EST (#1920 of 1927)

rshowalter 4/2/01 4:38pm

"the ideal of a War Crimes tribunal seems to me worth supporting"

Ony if seen as impartial. The current one receives the paychecks from the NATO countries and refuses even to consider the NATO investigation. No investigation of KLA was announced either.

rshowalter - 04:47pm Apr 2, 2001 EST (#1921 of 1927) Delete Message
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

If outsiders from CIA or anywhere else are stirring up wars, to make money for a few corporations, or for a small clique of people -- that's a very important thing to show -- and many people will listen carefully. They won't want to believe it for a while.

But if it is true -- it is important to show -- it would surely explain a lot of things.

To show such a thing, it will be necessary to get -- closure.

A marshalling of evidence.

There aren't too many American soldiers who would want to fight for such a clique.

  • ***

    If Russia and Serbia want to unite in important ways -- that may be very good, and historically reasonable. But in no case does that justify some of the things that some of the Serbians did.

    rshowalter - 05:07pm Apr 2, 2001 EST (#1922 of 1927) Delete Message
    Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

    almarst-2001 4/2/01 4:43pm Now almost NO war crimes are tried and punished --- we can't say "all have to be tried, or none."

    We need precidents! One on rape in war got set a while back, and it was a good thing.

    That does not detract from your basic point. 2 kinds of "impartiality" --

    1. Is the specific case, specifically tried, being tried fairly? ........ we need to insist that it is, and the evidence is fairly open, so that seeing miscarriages ought not to be too difficult to see. ---- I think the Hague war crimes tribunal passes this test.

    2. Are the cases being tried being chosen on a selective and biased bases?

    The answer to this second question may be "yes" -- but if that is true, that argument can be and should be pursued, without abandoning war crimes trials that set good precident in individual, focused cases.

    But the fact that war crimes occurred on one side ought not to invalidate the case for that side on other grounds, because war crimes are common in war - on all sides. We need to set precedents to discourage war crimes, and must start somewhere -- even though, in the beginning, selections can't be just in every way.

    rshowalter - 05:50pm Apr 2, 2001 EST (#1923 of 1927) Delete Message
    Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

    http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/02/world/02CND-YUGO.html a sensible Yugoslav case is being presented here.

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