The folly of Montenegro’s ascension to NATO

The Federal City of Moscow has a population of over 12 million. New York City has just over 8.5 million. By contrast, the country of Montenegro has just over 600,000 people. The small state, in which many regret legally separating from Serbia in 2006, is currently ratifying the necessary documents to join NATO.

The move is entirely political as the country is simply too small to represent any meaningful military contribution to NATO.

Beyond this, it has deeply divided the small state. As the government ratified the necessary ascension agreements, the opposition Democratic Front protested in the streets, calling for a democratic referendum on NATO membership, a referendum that the government could likely lose.

America’s desire to bring Montenegro into NATO is less about a wish for Montenegro’s small army to contribute to the NATO war machine than it is about strategically isolating Serbia. America’s assistance to radicalised Albanians both inside the Albanian state and in other countries, including in Serbia, is America’s preferred method of putting pressure on The Republic of Serbia.

The end game for America is a weakened Serbia that will give away its territory to Albanian factions or otherwise lose those territories through a combination of occupation and annexation. Part of this plan includes the continued occupation of the Serbia province of Kosovo by NATO installed Albanian politicians.

To further achieve its goals, America seeks to surround Serbia with NATO members and failing to bring the small Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia into the alliance, the US intends to use Macedonia’s radical Albanian population to essentially break-up the state into Slavic and Albanian factions, something which has caused mass protests in Skopje in recent days and months.

READ MORE: Protesters storm the Macedonian Parliament as Albanian is elected Parliamentary President

Russia’s Foreign Ministry has issued a statement on Montenegro’s NATO membership expressing regret that the leadership in Montenegro and the US did not “…heed the voices of conscience and reason”.

The statement read,

“The adoption of fundamental acts, affecting the key issues of state security, by the vote of individual MPs on the basis of a formal majority without taking into account the opinion of the country’s people is a demonstrative act of violation of all democratic norms and principles”.

The statement continued,

“Those who voted in the Skupstina (Montenegrin Parliament) for joining NATO under the pretext of an imaginary Russian threat should take responsibility for the consequences of implementing the plans of external forces, seeking to deepen the division in Europe and the Balkans, drive a wedge into the historically rooted friendly relations of Montenegrins with Serbs and Russians”.

Russia acknowledged that NATO would not materially receive any “added value’ thanks to the inclusion of its 29th member”. However, Russia nevertheless stated,

“…Moscow can’t ignore the strategic consequences of this step. Therefore, we reserve the right to adopt such decisions that are aimed at protecting our interests and national security”.

Indeed, the only thing that many in NATO want more than to weaken Serbia’s position in the Balkans is to draw Russia into yet another Balkan war. This would ostensibly be accomplished by forcing Russia to intervene in a brewing conflict on Serbia’s side, as Russia had done throughout the 19th and early 20th century.

READ MORE: NATO is trying to draw Russia into a new Balkan war

Thus far, Russia has not been drawn into escalating the conflict. Instead,Russia is cautious and all too aware of NATO’s designs on the region, a region where most Slavic peoples across several states are wholly opposed to the NATO project of Albanian insurrection, annexation and insurgency.

READ MORE: Albanian PM threatens to annex part of Serbia if the EU doesn’t admit Albania