The Difference a Decade Makes

I spent a fascinating day in Kosovo last week, visiting as the NATO Commander just a few days before Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived to represent ongoing US support for Kosovo.  In a phrase: What a difference a decade makes.

I met with the clergy at Zociste Monastery in Southern Kosovo.

While not in the headlines in the United States for several years, the situation in the late 1990s in Kosovo was truly terrible, which prompted NATO to take action.  A brutal campaign of "ethnic cleansing" caused at least 50,000 civilian deaths and led to a NATO intervention.  Over 1,500,000 civilians were displaced and became refugees.

NATO has been helping to guarantee a safe and secure environment for ALL citizens for the past 11 years.  

At its height, there were nearly 50,000 NATO and coalition troops in Kosovo.

During my 16 months as SACEUR, we've reduced troop levels from 15,000 to 9,000 and, pending direction from the North Atlantic Council, are moving to draw down even further -- a testimony to the success of the mission. The NATO mission in Kosovo has been well supported by Alliance nations along with 7 non-NATO troop contributing nations today.

In addition to helping provide the broad security required to ensure a secure and stable environment, NATO has protected key religious sites and trained the new Kosovo Security Force.  We have "unfixed" from 2 of 9 of these religious sites this year (which is "NATO speak" meaning that NATO troops no longer directly protect the sites), and the Kosovo Police have performed flawlessly since taking full responsibility for the first 2 "unfixed" sites.  The "unfixing" of a third site is scheduled for completion in early November.

Major General Erhard Bühler, Commander KFOR (f.l.t.r.), Brigadier General Stephan Thomas, Commander MNBG South, and I visit an Observation Point near Zociste Monastery.

During my visit, I spent time at a Serbian Orthodox Monastery, one of 7 sensitive sites in Kosovo still protected by NATO troops today.  The Serbian Monks are dedicated men protecting a religious site that dates from the 13th century.

Overall, I came away with a sense that this kind of peace support mission undertaken by NATO and our partners can succeed, despite turbulent conditions, ethnic and religious tension, and environmental challenges.

Adm. James Stavridis
Commander, U.S. European Command and
Supreme Allied Commander, Europe