Mr Right
09-23-2003, 03:38 PM
Sunday July 15, 2001
The Observer
In the summer of 1999, in the closing hours of the Kosovo war, an angry exchange took place in Macedonia's capital, Skopje, between Nato's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, General Wesley Clark and Mike Jackson, the British general given the job of leading Nato's troops into Kosovo.
A planeload of Russian soldiers, earmarked for the peacekeeping force for Kosovo, KFor, had landed at Pristina's airport even before the first Nato troops had crossed the border stealing an embarrassing march on Nato.
Clark was furious and ordered Jackson to take the airfield, by force if necessary, and block the runway to prevent the Russians rnforcing with any extra troops.
Jackson, Clark recalls in his memoirs, called him aside and told him: 'I am not taking orders from Washington.' As Clark tried to prevail by reminding Jackson of his senior rank, Jackson cut him short.
'Sir,' he added with cold fury: 'I am not starting World War Three for you!'
The Observer
In the summer of 1999, in the closing hours of the Kosovo war, an angry exchange took place in Macedonia's capital, Skopje, between Nato's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, General Wesley Clark and Mike Jackson, the British general given the job of leading Nato's troops into Kosovo.
A planeload of Russian soldiers, earmarked for the peacekeeping force for Kosovo, KFor, had landed at Pristina's airport even before the first Nato troops had crossed the border stealing an embarrassing march on Nato.
Clark was furious and ordered Jackson to take the airfield, by force if necessary, and block the runway to prevent the Russians rnforcing with any extra troops.
Jackson, Clark recalls in his memoirs, called him aside and told him: 'I am not taking orders from Washington.' As Clark tried to prevail by reminding Jackson of his senior rank, Jackson cut him short.
'Sir,' he added with cold fury: 'I am not starting World War Three for you!'