False Unity is the Main Danger for Europe,

"Your Excellency, what made Greece take a special stand with regard to the Kosovo conflict, which is different from the position of most NATO members?"

"Greece is the only EU country which is simultaneously a NATO and Balkan country. Thus, on the one hand, we feel our belonging to the Western community, and on the other hand, our historical relations with the Serbs, like with other Balkan peoples, are measured not in centuries but in millennia. Most Balkan peoples have the same faith, Orthodoxy. And every people, not only the Balkan people, should carefully study its history so that to be able to put right accents in the present. If on the other side of the Atlantic people have a rather vague idea of where Kosovo exactly is, they cannot picture what is actually going on there. Everybody thought the war was far away, but in fact it is at our door. Greece has found itself in a predicament. Naturally, we disapprove, one hundred percent, of what Milosevic is doing in Kosovo. But we cannot agree with how this problem is being solved.

"We are being told that there are 'smart' bombs which are different from the usual stupid bombs. But we will never agree that besides bad bombs there are also good ones. Children's smiles and tears are the same everywhere. Bad children just do not exist. And we very much hope that this war will soon be over.

"Greece takes the Kosovo crisis very hard: serious damage has been done to tourism, exports, and the very atmosphere in society has been poisoned. But the most concerns are caused by the environmental impact of the war: so-called smart bombs employ uranium elements which make it possible for them to hit targets deep in the earth. And those uranium particles remain in the air and water, and the rivers flowing to the south, like the Vardar, bring them into northern Greece. In addition, there is the old Kozlody nuclear power plant in Bulgaria which has Chornobyl-type reactors. It is difficult even to imagine what will happen if such a 'smart' bomb accidentally hit this facility.

"Of late, our Parliament discussed this issue. And all - the Communists, the Right, the Left - unanimously stood up against the policy now pursued with regard to Yugoslavia. We continuously have demonstrations and protest rallies. For instance, a journalists' protest  held recently has condemned the bombardment of the television center in Belgrade, when civilians and journalists were killed. Their CNN colleagues had vanished from there in advance - they knew about the bombardment but did not warn other journalists. Greece has a special psychological mood: all people are unanimous in advocating peace."

"The NATO Charter stipulates that all major decisions shall be made in consensus. Hence, Greece in principle could have blocked the decision to bomb Yugoslavia, just as Russia vetoed a UN Security Council on using force against Milosevic. But in your case this never happened. Moreover, a recent NATO summit in Washington adopted a very tough declaration on Kosovo in the spirit of 'war until victory.' And it was signed by the heads of state and governments of all NATO members, including Greece. Is there any contradiction here with what you have just said?"

"Greece is a small country and I do not think we could effectively prevent the beginning of the bombing. Greek recognize the fact that its security was assured by NATO since 1950. Our country had quite often addressed NATO with regard to its relations with Turkey. Incidentally, July 20, 1974, when the Turks invaded Cyprus, the NATO General Secretary Mr. Joseph Luns was on vacation. In addition, you should not forget that Milosevic had done a lot of things he should not have in any case.

At the same time, Greece is the only member (besides Portugal) of the Alliance, which is not taking part in the NATO military operation against Yugoslavia. We have stated that Greece will work actively in this field, but only after a peaceful settlement [of the crisis]. And NATO has recognized this specific position of Greece and taken it into consideration. But we do allow the transit of arms and military units of our NATO allies from the Greek port of Thessaloniki to the Former Yugoslavian Republic of  Macedonia, where NATO troops are stationed. However, not long ago a NATO truck convoy, instead of the highway leading to Skopie, found itself in the vegetable market in Thessaloniki, for some Greeks had changed the road signs."

"Well, that was real sabotage..."

"To a certain extent, yes, if you like the word. But sabotage with a smile. Two weeks ago Greece proposed its own peace plan and submitted it to the EU and NATO."

"World information agencies have virtually overlooked your proposals."

"Our plan stresses that all military actions in Kosovo by both parties should be stopped immediately without any preliminary conditions. And this should have been done not even yesterday, but the day before yesterday. This should be followed by a comprehensive settlement [of the crisis], employing only diplomatic means. Also, our plan puts much stress on the mechanism of rehabilitating the facilities ruined in the war, and possible ways of humanitarian aid. Incidentally, we provide it even today. The only non-government organization now giving humanitarian aid in Pristina is a team of Greek doctors. They offer help both to Serbs and Albanians regardless of the victims' ethnic origin."

"Recently we published the views of European intellectuals concerning the crisis in Yugoslavia. Most of them simply expressed joy that they live in NATO member countries and thus cannot be subject to bombardment. What is happening to Europe, its elite?"

"I think we live in a time, which can be called the time of "Blue jeans, Coca Cola, and CNN". Personally, I do not object to these three things, for I also use them. But let them be left to those who invented them. Because the history of mankind is not constant. Greece, just like Ukraine, is a country with a very long history. It is a country based on traditions. And because of that our countries cannot live according to the rhythm and models of other countries. The culture of a country, the culture of its relationships must progress. I am in no way anti-American, at least because for ten years I went to an American school. In Greece, of course. But I think the historical wealth that our countries, Ukraine and Greece, possess is something very few other countries in the world have.

"Do you think some European leaders belonging to the postwar generation treat the issues of war and peace rather thoughtlessly?"

"Well-known German General Klaus Naumann - Head of the Military Committee in NATO  said in Brussels that we had made a serious mistake, expecting that Milosevic would surrender within a few days. And I am very surprised that the Europeans, and especially the Germans, who have always persistently maintained their position, advocating the right of Europe to a European life, could so easily be misled. This could not have occurred when such titans as Helmut Kohl and Francois Mitterrand held power in their countries. One might get the impression that the new leaders did not properly read the history of World War II, at least the part dealing with partisans' movements in occupied Europe. This is the main source of danger, that of universal unity, of false unity."

"Once they used to say that each generation must have its war. Can we now say that each generation must have its own Balkan war?"

"Three new members have joined NATO, the euro has been introduced, and almost simultaneously military action in Yugoslavia began. It is not mere coincidence. This action was supposed to take place. If it had not occurred in the Balkans, then it would have somewhere else, for instance, in Liechtenstein."