Will the Germans Open Fire on the Russians over Kosovo?

[Ambiorix]

Will the Germans Open Fire on the Russians over Kosovo?
From the desk of The Brussels Journal on Wed, 2008-02-20 11:35
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/2996#comment-23760
A quote from Prof. Stephen Bainbridge at his blog, 18 February 2008

If Russia decided to oppose Kosovan independence with armed force, could it? A look at a map shows that the demise of the Warsaw Pact and the breakup of the Soviet Union leaves Russia with no obvious land route by which its troops could intervene. With the Russian Air Force’s sizeable inventory of AN-124s, however, one may assume that Russia could airlift some forces into Serbia. […]

An article by George Friedman [...] reminds us that:
[...] [In 1999] The United States prevailed on the Russians to initiate diplomatic contacts [to end the war in Kosovo] and persuade the Serbs that their position was isolated and hopeless. The carrot was that the United States agreed that Russian peacekeeping troops would participate in Kosovo. […] This ended the war, but the Russians were never permitted — let alone encouraged — to take their role in Serbia. The Russians were excluded from the Kosovo Force (KFOR) decision-making process and were isolated from NATO’s main force. When Russian troops took control of the airport in Pristina in Kosovo at the end of the war, they were surrounded by NATO troops.

Friedman argues that this seemingly minor incident had major consequences that continue to reverberate to this day:
The degree to which Yeltsin’s humiliation in Kosovo led to the rise of Vladimir Putin is not fully understood. Putin represented a faction in the intelligence-military community that regarded Kosovo as the last straw. […] If Kosovo is granted independence outside the context of the United Nations, where Russia has veto power, [Putin] will be facing the same crisis Yeltsin did. If he repeats Yeltsin’s capitulation, he will face substantial consequences. […] It is not so much what Putin wants as the consequences for Putin if he does not act. He cannot afford to acquiesce. He will create a crisis.

What sort of crisis? Friedman explores a couple of options, including this scenario:
Assume that Putin would send a battalion or two of troops by air to Belgrade, load them onto trucks and send them toward Pristina, claiming this as Russia’s right under agreements made in 1999. Assume a squadron of Russian aircraft would be sent to Belgrade as well. A Russian naval squadron, including the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, already is headed to the Mediterranean. Obviously, this is not a force that could impose anything on NATO. But would the Germans, for example, be prepared to open fire on these troops?
 
If that happened, there are other areas of interest to Russia and the West where Russia could exert decisive military power, such as the Baltic states. If Russian troops were to enter the Baltics, would NATO rush reinforcements there to fight them? The Russian light military threat in Kosovo is that any action there could lead to a Russian reaction elsewhere.

KFOR currently has about 15,000 troops from a whopping 34 nations. Eyeballing the national components, however, suggests that only the US, UK, German, French, and Italian components are likely to have any serious combat capabilities.

So suppose a couple of Russian air deployable battalions fly into Belgrade and then deploy into Northern Kosovo to protect the Serbian enclaves in that area, occupying the bridges over the River Ibar in towns like Mitrovica. How might NATO respond?

One problem is that the USA and UK are already facing serious problems of imperial overstretch. […] US news reports suggest that the US contingent in KFOR consists mainly of National Guard troops. Many of the USA’s active combat units are tied down in Iraq or Afghanistan, preparing to deploy, or recovering from a deployment. If things go south in Kosovo, who goes?

[Ludi Milojko]

Don't think it will go that far....Hopefully 

[newman]

Germany is so nicked in the head after the last war they'll never, ever, ever start another fight. They'll try to destroy Jews by  diplomatic means but they'll NEVER innitiate a firefight with any country lager than Monaco ever again.

[Scriabin]

Germany will do nothing.

They're has-beens, like the rest of Europe.

[Ambiorix]

Germany is so nicked in the head after the last war they'll never, ever, ever start another fight. They'll try to destroy Jews by  diplomatic means but they'll NEVER innitiate a firefight with any country lager than Monaco ever again.

I don't think so. Under NATO-command they'll do whatever the orders are.

[syyuge]

Before the Pandora Box really opens up with immense possibilities, it is best for NATO to accept the friendship of Serbia and agree to the Serbian sovereignty over Kosovo. 

Now devoid of its great leader Yeltsin, if Russia somehow feels and acts like defending Serbia in-spite of its own poor conditions, then NATO may not be able to withstand for long and especially not in the long run.

If NATO has to muster enough forces and resources on this front, then the democratic forces may suffer weaknesses against Slamic terrorism in Iraq and Afghan. Taliban may be in a stronger position at Southern Afghan and Wiziristan. Deffense of Iraq may be in jeopardy. Kurd-Turkish question may resurface. Iran and Arab may like to reassert themselves under changing circumstances in their own ways.

In nutshell, giving so-called freedom to a Slamic Terrorist group at Kosovo, may result in to loss of freedom to a lot of worlds in unimaginable ways.

We should not even think of such a scenario, where any new or old superpower  has to intervene. Situations have changed a lot since the last Serbian War. Now Serbia itself is a democracy.

[DALMACIJA]

If their would be a other military confrontation between Germany and Russia. Germany would disappear from the world and the map of Europe.

The Russians faced many losses from German actions.
During the next confrontation with Russia, Russia will once and for all solve the problems with the neo Nazi Germany.

The Germans gave also Kosovo to the Albanians during WW2.
This what is happening today is the continue of the same fascist works which were started by Hitler in 1941. A. Hitler gave Kosovo to Nazi Albania in 1941 and from that moment an exodus took place against the domestic nation of Kosovo.

the population of Kosovo started to change in 1941. Later the communist of Mason Tito started to continue the exile of Serbs from Kosovo.

[Ambiorix]

If their would be a other military confrontation between Germany and Russia. Germany would disappear from the world and the map of Europe.

The Russians faced many losses from German actions.
During the next confrontation with Russia, Russia will once and for all solve the problems with the neo Nazi Germany.

The Germans gave also Kosovo to the Albanians during WW2.
This what is happening today is the continue of the same fascist works which were started by Hitler in 1941. A. Hitler gave Kosovo to Nazi Albania in 1941 and from that moment an exodus took place against the domestic nation of Kosovo.

the population of Kosovo started to change in 1941. Later the communist of Mason Tito started to continue the exile of Serbs from Kosovo.

Russians I know consider countries such as Poland, Germany, France, Kazakstan, the Baltic states, as dwarf-countries,
and actually never talk about these countries in another way than stating they are "very small countries", and then laugh about it.

[KansasJew]

As of April 2007, about 1,426,700 people are on active duty in the military with an additional 1,458,500 people in the seven reserve components

With the current sizes of military components around the world
 
Not including Djibouti, there are about 2,400 American troops stationed in Africa
The US military has about 97,000 troops in Asia

US military has about 90,000 personnel in Europe

Not counting Iraq and Afghanistan, there at least 2,500 US military personnel in the Middle East.

Not counting the US and its territories, there are about 1,500 troops in the Western Hemisphere


135,000 American troops in Iraq
10,000 American Troops in Afgan

Total Military Deployment currently is

338,400 active duty troops out of a possible deployment force of
2,885,200 We are not as bad off as the media says we are...

[Ambiorix]

then why is the US-mexico border almost left unguarded?

[KansasJew]

That is a policy issue we have enough Federal Police, State and Military to place a guard every 5 feet or less.

[Ambiorix]

We need an iron curtain over there.

[JR-Obilic]

I hope Russia bombs the nazis off the face of the earth.

[Electra]

Germany would not dare do anything to the Russians, as Russians could not even have to bother with the mmilitary operations.

Germany seems to forget who supplies it with gas.

[newman]

Germany would not dare do anything to the Russians, as Russians could not even have to bother with the mmilitary operations.

Germany seems to forget who supplies it with gas.

And we all know how much the germans love gas!

[Ambiorix]

Germany would not dare do anything to the Russians, as Russians could not even have to bother with the mmilitary operations.

Germany seems to forget who supplies it with gas.

And we all know how much the germans love gas!

The idea of War-gasses was of a German Jew: Fritz Haber.