NATO said at the 20th anniversary of the bombing of Yugoslavia: Here's why we bombed you

NATO, and after 20 years, believes that the use of force in Yugoslavia without the approval of the UN Security Council was necessary and legitimate and that the bombing had reached its goal, the Alliance press said for Sputnik.

The saddest story about the youngest Serbian hero: Spomenko had a father, who gave up on him, and today, he is getting a pension in the name of his dead son (VIDEO)

Recommended

Sputnik's interlocutor said that NATO started the operation in March 1999 "with the aim of stopping the humanitarian disaster that took place in Kosovo at that time."

- This decision was made after more than a year of fighting in Kosovo and the failure of international diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict. The NATO operation came after more than a year of intense efforts by the UN and the contact group, whose member was Russia, to reach a peace settlement - the official said.

In his words, the UN Security Council has "repeatedly characterized the violation of human rights in Kosovo and the increase in the number of refugees expelled from their homes as a threat to international peace and security." According to the Alliance, by the end of 1998, more than 300,000 people from Kosovo left their homes.

Foto: Tanjug/Jaroslav Pap

- Cease-fire agreements were violated, while negotiations broke into a dead end. Taking into account the rise in the crisis, the application of the NATO force was necessary and legitimate - said the interlocutor.

The Alliance also considers that the goal of the operation was to "put the stop on all war actions and repression against civilians in Kosovo, to ensure the return of refugees and allow access to humane organizations."

- The air campaign has achieved its goal. In June 1999, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia agreed to withdraw its forces from Kosovo. Violence was interrupted and refugees could return home - the Alliance official said.

In his opinion, the international contingent of KFOR later "helped to ensure security in Kosovo and in the region as a whole".

Video: Serbian war heroes reveal details of NATO bombing 

(Telegraf.co.uk / Sputnjik)