ABSTRACT
Some aspects of the 1998-99 conflict over Kosovo call for further discussion. Why was it so important for Serbians to hold on to what they considered part of their territory? There appeared to be something fundamentally irrational about the way the Serb government hung on to Kosovo, a tiny and relatively poor area, primarily occupied by Albanians, even under the threat of a disastrous confrontation with a powerful international military force. This chapter will attempt to cast light on the conflicts over Kosovo with reference to the existence of a Serbian national myth, which helped to make an alleged Albanian demographic takeover of Kosovo problematic in the first place and then helped to legitimize armed conflict and even acts of genocide.
