State Guard unit details mission in Kosovo

Q: Describe the situation.

A: "The atmosphere in northern Kosovo (mostly Serbian) was on the opposite side of the spectrum from how the mostly Albanian population was celebrating in southern Kosovo. Our engagements with the local Serbian population went from being moderately friendly prior to (the declaration of independence) to getting the cold shoulder and their refusal to cooperate with KFOR (U.N. Kosovo Force) after (independence).

The company dealt with a few tense situations over the course of the rotation at Camp Nothing Hill; the most intense being the demonstration at Gate 1. We responded to the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK's) request to search and secure Gate 1 after it had been burned to the ground. I commanded an element comprised of U.S. soldiers from my company and soldiers from a French mechanized infantry company. On the third day we were assisting UNMIK and the Kosovo Police Service (KPS) with securing the gate when large busses filled with students from Belgrade were attempting to cross the border enroute to Mitrovica. There were regularly scheduled demonstrations in Mitrovica (which separates the Serb majority north from the ethnic Albanian south) so we had anticipated this type of response. At one point we had nearly 700 Serbian protesters demonstrating against Kosovo's independence."

Q: Were there limitations in the force allowed for response?

A: "KFOR has the ability to respond to any situation at any time. We are flexible and able to shift forces appropriately across the country. The forces on the ground were proportionate to what was needed to accomplish the mission. We were outnumbered, but we train hard for events and situations like this. My soldiers performed extremely well and were in complete control."

Q: How difficult was it to maintain discipline about response?

A: "My soldiers are disciplined; they are passionate about their duties, responsibilities and the mission in Kosovo. They are all trained to maintain their composure under the most stressful circumstances. It is difficult to stand your ground and not retaliate when people are throwing rocks and other hard objects at you, but the soldiers of Alpha Company prevailed and kept the situation from getting out of hand."

Q: How did your training affect your ability to do your job?

A: "We are trained so our actions are second nature. We conduct rehearsals and battle drills to prepare for any number of situations. We can't talk about our specific Rules of Engagement, but we follow them."

Q: For those in the unit with previous deployments to Kosovo, did this appear to be the same sort of disturbance as the March riots of 2004 or was there something different about it?

A: "We are unbiased and impartial in our mission, some feel that the previous deployment was more about protecting Serbs from Albanians, after (independence), the focus has shifted the other direction."

Q: Was it anyone's sense that the protests were coordinated from Serbia or elsewhere?

A: "That's not our place to speculate. The locals across Kosovo appear to communicate effectively so I don't believe this is out of the question."

Q: What was the response of any other international peacekeeping forces? How well was that coordinated? (In previous situations, there has been criticism that other U.N. forces backed down from confrontations with rioters).

A: "We were under the operational control of a French battalion headquarters. The multi-national units we dealt with while in northern Kosovo were professional and committed to the KFOR mission. Soldiers in Alpha Company conducted multiple missions with other international peacekeeping forces and each experience was positive. The experience of working with our multinational counterparts continues to build trust and confidence in each other's abilities to accomplish the mission. Operations on the ground were effectively coordinated and that definitely aided in our mission success."

Mark Brunswick • 651-222-1636