Extraits d'une interview de M. Alain Richard, ministre de la défense, à CNN le 22 février 2000, sur les incidents de Mitrovica au Kosovo impliquant des soldats français et le rôle de protection de la minorité serbe de la KFOR, les relations entre la Franc
Date: 2000-02-22
Orateur: Alain Richard
Fonction: FRANCE. Ministre de la défense

Well, there are disputes and there are tensions about the different areas of housing in Mitrovica. You have to remember that the Serb population is now a small minority in Kosovo... About five, six percent of the populations and most of them have gathered in this area because they want to stay between themselves... They feel threatened by reactions of hatred and segregation from Albanian majority and we have to protect both the Serb little remaining minority because we have fought to have a multi-ethnic Kosovo and we don't want to have a smaller ethnic cleansing after the biggest ethnic cleansing against the Albanians. We have also to help Albanian speaking Kosovars to settle in this area where they have rights too... and that's the base of the tension. What I want to stress is that we had tensions in this area like in other places in Kosovo earlier after the operation in August or September of 1999. After that, with less media attention of course, we had better control and we had situation better at hand and also some first progress in political discussions... Some of the Albanian leaders have entered the interim executive in the UN auspices and even, in the recent weeks, some Serb leaders have accepted also to talk with this executive... so we interpret what is going on now as a last attempt of extremists to keep on with confrontational politics to have their role, rather than entering in democratic confrontations. It needs time... I've been in Bosnia last month. After one year in Bosnia no one was hoping us to be able to intermingle the communities. After five years we have achieved a lot and now Bosnia is heading towards something multi-ethnic. We need time to put the basis to pave the way for multiethnic coexistence in Kosovo. We are just eight months after a war. For some of them it's possible for positive reasons, because also it's their province, also for negative reasons because by experience all Serbian refugees in Serbia have not been welcomed at home. No, I'm very glad to observe that, we are agreeing on all basic issues and objectives. We are all faced with difficulties, it may happen that this North sector is under French responsibility but all the allies take part in dealing with those confrontations. And we have been, we have felt a real solidarity between the allies. Well this comes from very knowledgeable people who remember events from the First World War or World War Two, in present/contemporary politics in Europe. There is no special linkage between France and Serbia, and I may recall that in the strikes last year, France was the first European ally engaged/committed in the strikes. Well I think it's how we manage, all Europeans, to build up a stronger pillar of common defense in Europe, and to make it as harmonious and consistent as possible with NATO, with US contribution to European security, and I think it's a positive object of discussion. We are not discussing about misunderstandings or disagreements, we are discussing about the best ways to achieve something which is a progress and which has been desired by American administrations for thirty years. We are glad to have convinced some of our European friends to promote this idea now. Well, it's one of the concerns. It's one of the threats. We have others. They may have aggressive attitudes towards Montenegro which is wanting more independence within the Federation. They may support some provocation or aggression within the Serb minority in Kosovo. Our global assessment is that Serbia has been weakened and even if Milosevic is still in power he is deeply criticized for his handling of all those conflicts by his population. So he will be prevented to, he will be influenced not to act and if he wanted to act he will be prevented from winning anyway. (Source http://www.defense.gouv.fr, le 7 mars 2000)