Kosovo

Giuseppe Ciulla and Vittorio Romano describe the country as they find it. Their impartiality may lead them to a somewhat naïve view, influenced by the unilateral perspective of the Italian media, which operates as NATO court rapporteurs. For example, Ciulla and Romano allege that Milošević expelled Kosovars. Albanians only wanted to flee from the NATO bombings; some went south to Albania, while others went north to Serbia, seeking the shortest route to safety, as people typically do when fleeing.

All interviewees have their personal viewpoints, often to defend their interests. We believe that the assessments of historical truth that resonate most with us are those that present contradictions and conflicts self-critically and without personal interest. For instance, Italian officials recognize, with self-criticism, that they may be in the wrong place in Kosovo. In the multi-ethnic state of Yugoslavia, different ethnic groups mostly lived peacefully together. Of course, a Serb might make rough jokes about an Albanian and vice versa, just as a Bavarian might joke about a Prussian. A Croat traveled without issues to Montenegro, and a Bosnian to Novi Sad. I traveled from Ljubljana through Zagreb, Belgrade, and Skopje to Greece. I worked for a US company in Zagreb, Belgrade, Dubrovnik, and Sarajevo, where we planned the Winter Olympics. We collaborated peacefully with Croatians, Slovenes, Kosovars, Serbs, and others, all proud that their country, Yugoslavia, could host the Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. There was no hatred or spite—just a crude joke from a Catholic Croat about a Muslim in Sarajevo, or a light-hearted comment from a Bosnian about a Serbian priest. But war and genocide—who could have ever imagined that?.