Family Ties

Political diagnosis made by poets, should, in principle, be regarded with scepticism. Academician Matija Beckovic (DEPOS) however, made a precise assessment in an interview to the Belgrade daily BORBA on Monday, March 22: "The opposition is often being accused of not being patriotic and of criticizing the authorities when abroad. The authorities on the other hand, are daily bringing over deputies from Russia with just this purpose in mind, and all expenses paid... Through them they assure us that they will go to war with the whole world because of Serbia. I find it understandable that we love Russia, but it must be understood that Russia cares about those she loves. America is her pair, and our love is taken for granted... There is a lot of proof that the authorities believe that opposition parties are a temporary evil, and that this country's future lies in turning back to the past, with Russia's help... The whole world fears chaos in Russia, while we seem to wish it."

Now, when two unpopular authorities are fighting for power in Russia, of which Yeltsin seems to be the less unpopular, it is obvious that the authorities in Belgrade have warmed up some old expectations. In March 1993, Milosevic told PRAVDA: "We cannot expect Russia to take part in the genocidal measures against the Serbian people, and we cannot understand why Russia is participating in the sanctions to which Serbia and Montenegro have been subjected." "I will say it openly - this is a shameful act for Russia!" After this, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said, of course, that the Russian government "will not tolerate insults," and that "the international community introduced sanctions against Serbia after numerous warnings to all sides to see reason," and that "until the introduction of sanctions Russia had cautioned the Serbian leadership headed by Slobodan Milosevic, but that this had not yielded results." Not only did he reject the good offices of the Russian government, but Milosevic publicly insulted and humiliated Vitaly Churkin who had been given the same mediatory status in the Balkans as American Reginald Bartholomew in mid February.

Milosevic has met with Ryzhkov, the former Soviet Union Prime Minister under Gorbachev, and others who are opposed to Yeltsin. In this way he has joined those trying to topple Yeltsin.

In the meantime, there were many gestures which showed that the Serbian and Yugoslav leadership (with the exception of Milan Panic) were relying greatly on the Communist nomenclature in Russia and the black-red national Communist alliance which had grown out of it, and were openly rooting against pro-European forces in Russia. This authority and its old-new idealogues do not want a European Russia, but an Asian one.

The attempted August 1991 putsch in Moscow, was greeted with the opening of bottles in military circles in Belgrade. Academician Mihajlo Markovic (the Socialist Party of Serbia main ideologue) said at the time that the putsch in Moscow suited the Serbs. After the putsch failed, Milosevic was silent, according to a Russian politician with a long memory. Recently Mihajlo Markovic made a statement practically identical to the one at the time of the putsch against Gorbachev -explaining that the Russian President had not fulfilled promises, that he had not been given the financial aid promised by the West, and, that Western governments were supporting him as their man. "He is their man, just as Milan Panic here was their man!" said Markovic, revealing the authorities' anti-American paranoia. Markovic recently accused Congresswoman Helen Delic-Bentley of influencing the Holy Synod, the University, students etc in the summer of 1992 in opposing Milosevic, in favor of an exponent of U.S. interests.

The Serbian regime, is in fact, repeating one idiocy after another, and is continuing its usual practice of deceiving the public at home, with stories of how the world is on the verge of learning the truth. When Italian Fascists were guests of the Serbian Assembly two years ago, many regarded this as an embarrassing affair, while others saw it as the legalization of the fascist option in Belgrade.

The Russian emigre writer Eduard Limonov was a guest of Milosevic and Radovan Karadzic. He is the man who fired a machine-gun on Sarajevo, and later lied that he had fired at some fields. He gave countless statements saying that the Russian government was "pro-Western" and therefore "anti-Serbian." He said he would write a book on Yugoslavia, and so help "the Russian and Serbian intelligentsia overcome passivity." Limonov claims that a writer's place is in war, and citing Lord Byron as an example, said that this was the reason he visited Krajina. Limonov was allowed to exchange dinars for hard currency in a Belgrade bank, at a much more favorable rate than the street one - but then, this is just an earthly detail in a celestial story.

All the motives in this story are not, of course, ideological. With its back up against the wall, Milosevic's government has reached for its Russian links out of solid economic reasons, since it is forced, publicly or secretly, constitutionally or unconstitutionally, to retain its presence on the Russian market to which it is very closely tied. The deputy - managerial class in Russia is sufficiently independent to get involved in the grey economy; many of them are old partners of Yugoslav firms, so that logically, future partners are being sized up.

The point of departure of the authorities in Belgrade is the fact that after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Russia has taken a pro-Western stand and in its foreign policy is pro-American, which is not to the liking of the establishment here. This policy is attributed to Boris Yeltsin and Andrei Kozyrev, whom Russian centrists and radical nationalists call "Mister Yes," which is contrary to former Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko's image, who earned the nickname Mister Nyet in the West.

The Radicals and Socialists in Belgrade are rooting for Russia to start the kind of war they are wholeheartedly trying to avoid at home. The loss of ten million Russian lives or 2-3 million Serbian ones is not of great importance. In fact, some groups in Belgrade and Bosnia, both civilian and military, are making moves of "the worse, the better," kind.

Be as it may, in this game of Russian roulette, Milosevic's team has placed all the chips on the black.