Arbitrary diplomacy pays off
Arbitrariness pays off in diplomacy. At least so it would appear now that Moscow, invoking the relatively recent precedent of Kosovo, has decided to go ahead and recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia. But where will it all end, this phenomenon of mini-states seceding and borders of sovereign states changing? The question should have been considered carefully and answered once and for all by the United States and its allies before the intervention in Kosovo. It is a sad state of affairs when, in the year 2008, the global political stage is degenerating into ethnic clashes and unpredictable flare-ups that are more reminiscent of the early 20th century. Kosovo may have opened a veritable Pandora’s box. Those who try to analyze the problem from the comfort of their armchairs in Washington and London simply don’t understand it. We, who live in a region laden with history and suffering, are worried. Because we know that when arbitrariness ignores history and lacks any strategic goal, it is also dangerous.
