Two violations of the international law, the bombing of the former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the unilaterally declared independence of the so-called Kosovo, have created precedents, the consequences of which are evident to this day, estimated members of the Bundestag from The Left and members from the right-wing Alternative For Germany (AFD) during a debate about extending the mandate of German soldiers in the KFOR mission held at yesterday’s Bundestag session.

Markus Frohnmaier, Member of the Bundestag from AFD, stated that the KFOR mission has been active for too long — 23 years, and that the arguments presented for its extension could be used as a justification of a permanent stay.

“If a single mission is a bottomless pit, then eventually we have to realize when the end must come. Germany has already given 464 million euro in aid, and pledged a further 72 million euro,” he added, reported Novosti.

Frohnmaier pointed out that, according to him, the former President of the so-called Kosovo Hashim Thaçi maintained close relations with organized crime, and he is now being suspected of war crimes in court.

He pointed out that the KFOR mission was established in order to prevent the Serbs and the Albanians from massacring each other.

Frohnmaier pointed out that two events posed a turning point — the first massacre of Serbs in 2004, when KFOR stood by and watched while the Albanians attempted an ethnic cleansing, and the second event is the unilateral declaration of independence.

He reminded that the United Nations Security Council Resolution No. 1244 guaranteeing the territorial integrity of Serbia still exists, but it was breached when a country was created on the Serbian territory.

Since then, the KFOR has not acted as a peacekeeping force, but as a protection detail of the corrupt government. They have turned from being a peacekeeping force into a government force,” stressed Frohnmaier.

He estimated that the bombing of Serbia without a United Nations mandate had been a catastrophic mistake which opened a Pandora’s box, and everyone that has been violating the international law since then has invoked this precedent by the NATO.

“Let us close that box and end the KFOR mission,” he urged.

Member of the Bundestag Gregor Gysi from The Left party stressed that the secession of Kosovo* is contrary to the international law.

The Resolution No. 1244 clearly states that the territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, as Serbia was called then, is guaranteed, and that Kosovo* must receive substantial autonomy within Serbia. The NATO justified the secession by saying that there had been no agreement on substantial autonomy, but the resolution is still valid to this day,” he pointed out.

Gysi emphasized that Serbia had not attacked any countries, which is why the NATO bombing was a clear violation of the international law, reported Tanjug.

The rationale was that the Serbian army had engaged the armed Kosovo Liberation Army. And who was it that armed them, Gysi asked, and pointed out:

“Any country would engage an armed force which sought to separate a territory. It created a precedent that was used by Russia for the annexation of Crimea, and it is now waging a war and justifying it by calling it a war against the fascists, who, by the way, are all over the place, including our country, but Russia as well. That is not a reason to go to war. The other justification being used by Moscow is that the Ukrainian army is engaging the Donbas forces, which are separatist in the same way that the Kosovo Liberation Army was.

Gysi said that the parties that accepted the earlier NATO arguments can hardly reject the reasons given by Russia now.

The representatives of the leading parties, as well as those from the CDU/CSU, have spoken in favor of extending the mandate, however, some of them could be heard saying that the so-called Kosovo is a corrupt state.