by Vietnam Vets Against the War Anti-Imperialist, Mar 24, 1999

News of brutal ethnic cleansing, mass rapes, artillery bombing of civilians, and massacres have pained people's hearts everywhere. There is a feeling of "somebody has to do something." But is that somebody the U.S.? Can their brand of violence stop violence?

Well answer this question: How can the same people who justify their sanctions against Iraq as "worth " the deaths of 1 million children expect us to believe that they care about the people of Kosovo and want peace? *

As veterans of this country's invasions and wars, we know a little something about the "help" that this country brings to the peoples of the world. In Vietnam, our help included agent orange, napalm and saturation bombings. In Panama, it consisted on bombing civilians and covering them up in mass graves. In the Persian Gulf, our help resulted in the road to Basra and an environment poisoned by chemical weapons and depleted uranium. So we know that the last thing the U.S. is bringing to Kosovo is help.

The real purpose behind the bombings is to force Kosovo and Serbia to accept the U.S. brokered RAMBOuillet agreement which includes a NATO occupying force of 28,000 (4,000 U.S.) troops. The agreement, basically, sets up a much harsher version of the Haiti occupation. The bulk of it is a "democratic" constitution that renders the Kosovars and Yugoslavs powerless to do anything not approved by the proposed occupiers. The NATO occupiers can do anything they want without restraint or legal liability and the local authorities are required to assist them on demand. With a blueprint like this, it's clear that the only interests served by U.S. involvement in the Balkans will be their own.

No U.S. Troops Anywhere/Anytime!

The Only Troops We Support Are The Troops Who Refuse To Fight!

* When asked on "60 Minutes" in May of 1996 about the deaths of half a million children, more than died in Hiroshima, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright responded, "We think the price is worth it."