Noam Chomsky About Serbia, Kosovo, Yugoslavia and NATO War 1

Summary

In this interview, Professor Noam Chomsky discusses the 7th anniversary of the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. He cites a high-level Clinton Administration official's assertion that the real motive for the war was Serbia's refusal to conform to US-led neoliberal reforms, rather than concern for the Albanian population. Chomsky criticizes the intellectual culture for adhering to a 'party line' that supports state power and violence, drawing parallels to the debate around the Iraq War and historical justifications for military interventions.

Takeaways

• 📺 Noam Chomsky is making his first TV appearance for Serbian media, discussing the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia.
• 💥 Chomsky suggests that the real reason for the NATO war in Yugoslavia, particularly by the United States, was not humanitarian but rather political and economic.
• 📚 He references a new authoritative statement from the Clinton Administration, specifically from Strobet Talbott, who was involved in the Pentagon and State Department's planning during the war.
• 📖 According to a book foreword by Talbott, the war's purpose was to force Serbia to adopt neoliberal economic reforms and align with US-run policies, not to protect Kosovar Albanians.
• 🧐 Chomsky argues that Serbia was the last part of Europe resisting US-dominated neoliberal economic policies, which is why it became a target for military intervention.
• ⚖️ He criticizes Western media and intellectuals for portraying critics of the NATO intervention as either sympathizers of Milosevic or indifferent to genocide.
• 📑 Chomsky notes that there is substantial documentation from multiple sources, including NATO, OSCE, and British Parliament, that the humanitarian narrative was overstated or misrepresented.
• 🔍 He points out that in Western intellectual culture, there is a tendency to conform to a dominant narrative that supports state power and violence, with limited room for broader criticism.
• 📜 He draws parallels between the Western media narrative on Yugoslavia and the Soviet and Japanese propaganda during the Afghanistan and Chinese conflicts, respectively, noting similarities in how state actions are justified.
• 🗣️ Chomsky highlights the importance of understanding the deeper motivations behind state actions and the role of intellectuals in either supporting or challenging these narratives.

Q & A

What was the 7th anniversary of the bombing of Yugoslavia about?

The 7th anniversary marked the time since the beginning of the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, which was a significant event in the region's history.

Why did the United States wage war on Yugoslavia according to the highest level of the Clinton Administration?

According to Strobe Talbott, who was in charge of the Pentagon, State Department, and U.S. intelligence during the affair, the real purpose of the war was not concern for the Kosovar Albanians but because Serbia had not subordinated itself to U.S.-led neoliberal programs.

What does 'subordinated to the U.S. run neoliberal programs' mean in this context?

In this context, it refers to Serbia not conforming to the economic and political policies promoted by the United States and its allies, which often involve liberalization and privatization of the economy.

What is the significance of Strobe Talbott's forward to John Norris's book?

Strobe Talbott's forward is significant because it provides an authoritative insight into the top-level thinking within the Clinton Administration regarding the rationale behind the war on Yugoslavia.

What does the transcript suggest about the intellectual opinion on the NATO intervention?

The transcript suggests that the intellectual opinion in the West was largely in favor of the NATO intervention, with critics often being labeled as either sympathizers of Slobodan Milošević or as...