From the very moment that Perez de Cuellar retired from his post as United Nations Secretary General at the end of 1991, Bosnia has been a U.N. catastrophe. We said from the start that Boutros Boutros-Ghali jumped the gun. He did. Boutros-Ghali was blinded by vignettes of George Bush and Perez de Cuellar reveling in their 1991 Gulf War success. He saw himself making his own personal mark in the former Yugoslavia.
But the man was fooled by an illusion. The Gulf War was in clear fact a NATO triumph, not a U.N. achievement. NATO ran the Gulf War, not from Brussels but from Washington. Boutros-Ghali's grandiose vision was an Egyptian heat mirage.
The U.N. was not ready by ten years for what UNPROFOR pretended to be, and every single day of 1992, 1993 and 1994 have proven that to be true.
One might argue things would be worse without UNPROFOR. It's a stabilizing element some say. Wrong, we say. It has no authority nor credibility. It has failed everything it attempted. It has no effect save delaying the inevitable. The same events would have occurred in less time and less blood would have been spilled had UNPROFOR and the U.N.'s lopsided sanctions never happened in the first place. The Serbs would have achieved same or similar territorial conquests at a quicker pace. The U.N. with its humanitarian aid units could have assisted war refugees, PoWs, etcetera. But under the pretext of being a protection force (ha!) in the wake of its off-centre arms embargo, the U.N. has done nothing to stop the advances of the Serbs, nor the atrocities committed by everyone. The under-sized, white-painted, ill-equipped and misdirected UNPROFOR has merely drawn out the timing of events.
By moving into the former Yugoslav republics two years ago, the United Nations relieved Europe of its collective responsibility to fix its problem. (Yes, it was a European problem from the time of its incipient stage the day after Tito's death.) By staking out Yugoslavia as a U.N. concern, Boutros-Ghali obviated every other possible solution.
Volume 8, Number 12 April 20, 1994
Comment:
It seems the world is awakening to the real crux of the Bosnia catastrophe. You know our repeated view on UNPROFOR. The ultimate advice to Ottawa has to be, GET OUT.
Since UNPROFOR (United Nations Protection Force) entered Bosnia, the Bosnian Serbs have shown absolute contempt for this weakling instrument of the international community. They have flagrantly violated all humanitarian concerns. Their territorial advances have been unhindered. They have broken every promise and violated countless ceasefires. Their word is worth nothing. Their honour is non-existent. Their resolve was to vanquish Bosnia-Hercegovina's Muslim population and they have almost fully realized that goal.
The siege of Gorazde is but one more illustration: UNPROFOR protects nothing. UNPROFOR fooled people into believing it would protect them. It merely oversees their slaughter.
Future historians will scoff at a weak U.N. "protection force" that virtually stood by and watched as countless thousands of Bosnian Muslims were displaced from their homes, imprisoned, or slaughtered. No matter how blame is apportioned, this U.N mission, based on results alone, has not worked out and Canada should not further condone it by acquiescing to its abysmal failure.