Operation Kinetic : Stabilizing Kosovo

In the late 1990s, NATO led the Kosovo Force (KFOR), charged with stabilizing Kosovo and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia after genocide and other atrocities were carried out in the Balkan region. Operation Kinetic is not only a history of the origins and operations of the Kosovo Force but also a history of the vital operations conducted by the Canadian Army units and their allies assigned to KFOR during the crucial early days and months after entry into the province in 1999 and through 2000. Operating alongside American, British, French, Norwegian, Finnish, and Swedish forces, these surveillance and response units were instrumental in preventing violence in numerous areas before it could escalate and draw in the Serbian Army, which could have led to further genocide or war in the region. Sean M. Maloney, a Canadian military historian with extensive field experience in the Balkans, draws on numerous interviews and firsthand accounts of an operation that would later serve as a model in preparing for similar efforts in Afghanistan and provide a blueprint for stabilizing operations around the world. In the late 1990s, NATO led the Kosovo Force (KFOR), charged with stabilizing Kosovo and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia after genocide and other atrocities were carried out in the Balkan region. Operation Kineticis not only a history of the origins and operations of the Kosovo Force but also a history of the vital operations conducted by the Canadian Army units and their allies assigned to KFOR during the crucial early days and months after entry into the province in 1999 and through 2000. Operating alongside American, British, French, Norwegian, Finnish, and Swedish forces, these surveillance and response units were instrumental in preventing violence in numerous areas before it could escalate and draw in the Serbian Army, which could have led to further genocide or war in the region. Sean M. Maloney, a Canadian military historian with extensive field experience in the Balkans, draws on numerous interviews and firsthand accounts of an operation that would later serve as a model in preparing for similar efforts in Afghanistan and provide a blueprint for stabilizing operations around the world.-- Provided by Publisher In the late 1990s, NATO led the Kosovo Force (KFOR), charged with stabilizing Kosovo and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia after genocide and other atrocities were carried out in the Balkan region.__Operation Kinetic__is not only a history of the origins and operations of the Kosovo Force but also a history of the vital operations conducted by the Canadian Army units and their allies assigned to KFOR during the crucial early days and months after entry into the province in 1999 and through 2000.Operating alongside American, British, French, Norwegian, Finnish, and Swedish forces, these surveillance and response units were instrumental in preventing violence in numerous areas before it could escalate and draw in the Serbian Army, which could have led to further genocide or war in the region.Sean M. Maloney, a Canadian military historian with extensive field experience in the Balkans, draws on numerous interviews and firsthand accounts of an operation that would later serve as a model in preparing for similar efforts in Afghanistan and provide a blueprint for stabilizing operations around the world. In the late 1990s, NATO initiated KFOR, the militarized peacekeeping force charged with stabilizing Kosovo and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia for displaced persons and refugees after the genocide and other numerous atrocities carried out during the Balkan conflicts. Operation KINETIC is a not only a history of the origins and operations of the Kosovo Force, it is also a history of the vital Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) and Civil-Military Cooperation operations conducted by the Canadian Army units assigned to KFOR during the crucial early days and months after entry into the province in 1999-2000 Cover -1 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Contents 8 List of Illustrations 9 List of Figures 10 Foreword 12 Acknowledgments 16 Introduction 20 List of Abbreviations 26 Part 1 32 1. The Balkans 34 2. Kosovo 55 Part 2 78 3. Clash of the Damned 80 4. In NATO’s Vanguard 104 5. Into the Breach, Dear Friends 133 Part 3 160 6. Warrior Politics 162 7. The Coyote Howls 185 8. As the KRWAU Flies 248 9. Finger on the Pulse 296 10. Come On Feel the Noise 375 11. Wait for the Wagon, Jimmy 445 Epilogue 460 Notes 466 Bibliography 498 Index 504 In the 1990s, Russia’s involvement in Kosovo escalated an already heated political situation. The threat of nuclear forces prompted the Canadian Army to step in with Operation KINETIC, part of NATO's Kosovo Force (KFOR), to help establish a stable environment that would keep foreign threats at bay.