The War in Kosovo

Abstract

The war in Kosovo was the most divisive foreign policy issue of the post-Cold War era. It was the second time that the United States had intervened to stop genocide committed by Slobodan Milosevic, the “Butcher of the Balkans”. Kosovo was more than a debate about whether the United States and its NATO allies should intervene in the affairs of a sovereign state to halt genocide. Kosovo demonstrated how myths and prejudices can be manipulated to inflame racial and ethnic hatred. The war in Kosovo was also about the legacy of the Cold War. Was the Cold War fought to defend a balance of power, or was it fought in defense of freedom and human rights, the same values that were defended during World War II? The war in Kosovo also determined how U.S. foreign policy would be defined during the post-Cold War era. Some felt that since the Cold War was over, there was no longer a need for extensive U.S. involvement overseas, while others felt that the United States needed to remain involved in international affairs to protect human rights and to help shape the post-Cold War world. The political alignments on this issue often did not correspond to a party affiliation or ideology.