The eastern question unresolved
| DOI | 10.1177/002070200506000116 |
| Published date | 01 March 2005 |
| Date | 01 March 2005 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
THE
LESSONS
OF
HISTORY
MATTHEW
Z. MAYER
The
eastern
question
unresolved
Europe,
the
US,
andthe
western
Balkans
ON
17
MARCH
2004,
VIOLENCE
ERUPTED
between Kosovar Serbs
and
Albanians in Mitrovica, a flashpoint in Kosovo
and
amicrocosm
of
the province's many difficulties. Over the next three days, the trou-
ble spread throughout the
UN
protectorate; most incidents involved
ethnic Albanian mobs targeting minority residents (Serbs were
the
main victims,
but
Roma
and
Bosnians were also affected).
NATO
troops, assisted by local
and
international police forces, eventually
restored order,
but
not
before another bloody chapter was added to the
region's history: over 20 dead, hundreds
of
injured, thousands
of
dis-
placed people, in addition to hundreds
of
destroyed houses
and
the
destruction or damage
of
Serbian religious sites.
In the days following the violence, key officials from the interna-
tional
community
openly confessed their surprise
that
such acts
could, once again, occur in the Balkans, especiallywith the continued
presence
of
nearly 20,000
NATO
(or Kosovo force,
KFOR)
troops
and
Matthew
Mayer
holds
a PhDin
history
from
the
University
of
Cambridge
and
has
previously
taught
at
McGill
University.
Heis
currently
a
political
analyst
withthe
Department
of
Foreign
Affairs
in
Ottawa
anda
lecturer
in
contemporary
European
history
at
Carleton
University.
He
has
travelled
widely
in
east-central
Europe
and
spent
three
months
in the
Balkans
in 2003.
The
views
expressed
in this
article
are
his
ownand
do
not,
in any
~9'
reflect
the
policies
of
the
Canadian
government
orthe
Department
of
Foreign
Affairs.
INTERNATIONAL
JOURNAL
Winrer2004-2005
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