I and thou and death
The “Two State Solution” is a slogan not a solution. By David B. Kanin Washington has defaulted to the tried and failed idea... Read More
After Banjska
This second miscalculation gives Aleksandar Vucic a lot of work to do. By David B. Kanin Milan Radoicic’s botched raid against Kosovo was... Read More
Kosovo and the lesson from Nagorno-Karabakh
The Quint powers that enabled Kosovo independence must now face the reality that it won’t work until Serbian security returns to the north and it... Read More
Serbia and three Germanies
The West deals with Serbia by straddling victors’ policies toward Germany in 1918 and 1945. It also punishes Serbia for crimes of the 1990s after... Read More
Serbia must play fair too
As the U.S. and its fellow EU members of the Quint pressure Pristina to offer solutions, they must either pressure or entice Vucic to allow... Read More
NATO’s two choices in Kosovo
NATO now has two choices under its UN mandate, to escort those forces back south of the River or to open the border and allow Serbian... Read More
What agreement?
Once again the West struggles to enforce a deal of questionable value on unwilling Balkan participants. By David B. Kanin The old saying... Read More
Kosovo: not up to NATO
The U.S., EU and now NATO have long acted in Kosovo as if they had the authority to act for the United Nations. Belgrade would... Read More
Kosovo: should/could Serbia intervene unilaterally?
Should Belgrade send forces into the north to lance this boil? It may be the only way to force the hand of the U.S., EU... Read More
Kosovo – lancing the Boil?
NATO would be well within its UN mandate to allow some Serbian forces to return to Kosovo. Perhaps this is the way to lance the... Read More
Please, no more Western Balkan summits
The EU engages in empty diplomatic theater while Balkan disputes fester and the war in Ukraine highlights “Europe’s” limits. By David B. Kanin... Read More
Congratulations, Serbia – leader and model!
The EU begins to adopt Belgrade’s two stool approach to Russia’s war against Ukraine (sort of). By David B. Kanin European notables owe... Read More
War crimes trials: appropriate but problematic
The clamor for retributive justice makes outright military success over Russian forces even more essential. By David B. Kanin The documented atrocities being... Read More
Can the UN General Assembly act on Ukraine?
This food crisis suggests the need to establish secure transportation zones in Ukraine and the Black Sea to allow food to be gathered and transported.... Read More
Orban and Vucic … and Tito
Skillful security managers can stand astride two stools indefinitely, as long as one of them does not collapse. By David B. Kanin The... Read More
Ukraine – towards a peace agreement, part #1
This essay sets out a process by which to initiate an agreement to bring Ukraine to peace, including considerations about a new federal constitution and... Read More
Ukraine: an essay on the economics of the refugee crisis
The Russian attack on Odessa will inevitably follow the encirclement of Nikolaev, which can be expected in the next few days. This will create a... Read More
If NATO cannot act, then individual EU countries should
It may be time for the EU – perhaps under its Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) – or individual European countries to consider placing... Read More
An essay on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Part #5: preventing another genocide
NATO now needs to use its collective strength to defend Europe once more and to prevent Ukraine from being reduced to another slaughterhouse. Russian ground... Read More
The Ukraine crisis and Great Power rivalry in the Balkans
War or not, current tensions underscore the region’s geopolitical marginality. The outcome regarding Ukraine will suggest which great power is more likely to bend Balkan... Read More
An Essay on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, part #4: understanding Russian intentions
The Russian opinion is that the current chaos in Ukraine is jeopardising Ukraine’s status as a buffer state between East and West so imperative to... Read More
An essay on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (#3): why is the diplomacy failing?
To avoid messy partition, Zelensky must go. This can be done neatly and easily, through the good will and practicalities of diplomats of all kinds... Read More
An essay on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, part #2: domestic political manouverings
Russia’s principal problem with Ukraine is that Kyiv’s current political leadership is seeking to strike out in a direction independent from Moscow’s foreign policy, causing... Read More
Ukraine, Russia and the Kosovo precedent
The Western role should be to help Kiev make the best deal possible with Moscow while there may still be one to make: a federal... Read More
An Essay on the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, Part #1
Russia has amassed in the region of 100,000 troops on the Ukrainian border and equivalent armour. The intention is therefore clearly for a ground war.... Read More
