Wrote: Fatbardh Dema
Former Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia, Aleksandar Vullin, has claimed that the arming of the Kosovo Army by the West is being done with a single purpose, which according to him is the war against the Serbs.
Vullin made this claim in an interview with the Russian state news agency, "RIA Novosti".
There he uses a metaphor referring to a well-known literary principle of the Russian writer Anton Chekhov, who formulated the idea that if a weapon appears in a story or theatrical performance (e.g. hanging on a wall), then it must definitely be used later. Otherwise, according to him, there is no reason for the weapon to be there.
What's wrong with his claim?
Vullin's claim that the arming of the Kosovo Security Force by the West is being done for the sole purpose - the war against the Serbs, is unfounded.
What he actually said, according to Spurtnikportal.com (here, here/Archive, Archive)?
"Vullin: The West is militarizing the so-called Kosovo – this weapon will eventually fire"
The militarization of Kosovo by the West's efforts is the so-called "Chekhov's gun" that will definitely go off, the founder of the Movement of Socialists party and former Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia, Aleksandar Vullin, told RIA Novosti.
"Chekhov said that if a pistol is hung on the wall in the first act of a play, it will definitely go off in the third act. If you give the Shiptars, which is the term for Kosovo Albanians, guns in the first act, they will definitely go off in the third act," Vullin said.
"According to Vullin, the threat to Serbia does not come only from the militarization of Kosovo – the country is surrounded by hostile NATO member states. In this regard, Serbia's position is similar to that of Russia, whose "containment" has been talked about several times within the North Atlantic Alliance."
"In Kosovo and Metohija there can be no other army than KFOR, except for the UN or NATO forces. That's it. Currently there is the so-called Kosovo Security Force. This is an army. The army that is armed by the West and is armed for only one purpose — war against the Serbs and nothing else," Vullin concluded.
Why doesn't his claim stand?
This narrative from political exponents in Serbia is ongoing. (hibrid.info has previously covered such claims by Serbian politicians. here, here, here), since the establishment of the Kosovo Army, on December 14, 2018, when the Kosovo Assembly approved three laws for the transformation of the KSF into a professional military force.
However, Kosovo's state leaders have consistently emphasized that the KSF is not an offensive army, but a defensive force.
The Prime Minister of Kosovo at the time, Ramush Haradinaj, himself declared that the army was not being formed to attack its own people.
"We will not develop a defensive doctrine and we will not act so that the army never turns against its own people. Those who live around us know how respected the communities are by Albanians."
"The Kosovo Army will never turn against anyone, not even its own people. Serbs, both in the south and in the north, are people of this country, the army is theirs, tomorrow they will have to serve in this army, and not only them, but everyone who lives in Kosovo.", Haradinaj declared at a ceremony where the Kosovo Security Force was presented, held at the "Adem Jashari" barracks in Pristina (here).
At the same ceremony, the president of the time, Hashim Thaçi, also said that "The Kosovo Security Force has become the most trusted and respected institution in the Republic of Kosovo." As he had expressed, "Coexistence, solidarity, dedication and professionalism are values of the KSF and the entire society in Kosovo"system. (here)
The then Speaker of the Parliament, Kadri Veseli, also stated that the Kosovo Army is not being created to attack anyone.
"We are members of a nation that, throughout its entire existence, has never attacked anyone, never harbored ambitions to the detriment of others, never harbored hatred for others in our hearts, never had ideologies against others in our political decisions, even though in many cases we were victims of these ideologies ourselves - all we wanted was to defend ourselves, our homeland, our dignity and our freedom," Veseli has expressed. (here)
Even the (currently incumbent) Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, has underlined that any purchase of military equipment is made to strengthen the state's defense capacities and to ensure peace and stability for the citizens of Kosovo. (see here)
Analyze:
Former Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia, Aleksandar Vullin, has stated that the militarization of the Kosovo Army by the West has only one purpose, and that is the war against the Serbs.
This claim of his is unfounded, since since the Kosovo Army was established on December 14, 2018, the heads of the country's institutions have consistently stated that this force has a defensive, not offensive, mission.
In fact, there have never been any reports in the international media, or statements by Western heads of state, that the Kosovo Security Force has undermined stability in the country or region.
Consequently, based on the working methodology, hibrid.info evaluates Vullin's statement as a "conspiracy theory".
Reasoning:
"Conspiracy theories" are considered to be informational content that contains a false or unverifiable description of a phenomenon, event or person, presenting it as part or the result of a secret plan ("conspiracy"). The characteristic of these contents is that they present a series of claims, presented as facts, between which cause-effect relationships are established, without providing any reliable evidence.