Newspaper Article

A look back in anguish; One year after the Nato raids, Herald writers take contrasting views on state of Serbia

Geopolitics Editor Ian Bruce

2000

Overview

SERBIA'S air defences should have been suppressed within three days of Nato's air assault last year. A full 78 days and more than 10,000 bombing missions later, they were still largely intact. When they finally fell back in good fighting order, it was because Russia had pulled the psychological rug from under their feet. Moscow's withdrawal of support, both physical and moral, turned the military tables and forced Slobodan Milosevic to rethink his strategic options. The bottom line, a year on, is that the centre of gravity for continuing mayhem in the Balkans remains with Belgrade. Despite the disingenuous triumphalism of the UK's former Defence Secretary George Robertson, now Nato's Secretary General, the alliance campaign was a dismal and expensive failure in military terms.

• Publisher: Gannett Media Corp