June 6, 1999

Here are a few quotes from various participants in the Yugoslav tragedy. They all come directly from The New York Times.

"But we knew that when the Russians came in with this plan, that was it."
-- An unnamed official close to Mr. Milosevic and his wife, Mirjana Markovic. (June 5, 1999, page A5)

"We knew it from the beginning. We knew that the carpet bombing of Belgrade would start the next day after we refused, so what was the choice?"
-- ibid.

"The alternative to acceptance was not a humane one. We couldn't be reckless and risk elimination of the state, the army and the people for the sake of rhetoric, and without any substantial support in the world."
-- ibid.

"And the West must deny Mr. Milosovic wiggle room. There can be no negotiations with a mass murderer. He must be kept isolated. No hand-shakes, no concessions. Sanctions must remain on Serbia. The Serbian people will suffer, but so they must for the tyranny they have repeatedly endorsed."
-- Anthony Lewis (Op-Ed, June 5, 1999, page A25)

"In a way, I'm grateful to the Americans. They make it clear that the world is ruled by force. I'm almost sorry I don't live in North Korea, with a nuclear weapon. Because then they wouldn't dare to have done this to us."
-- A prominent Serbian journalist, according to The New York Times (June 6, 1999, page 11)

"Romano Prodi, the new President of the 15-nation European Union's Executive Commission, has estimated the costs of reconstructing and supporting the two million people of Kosovo at about $6 billion a year for at least five years."
-- June 6, 1999, page 10)

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