PUTIN: POLICY OF FORCE BEGAN WITH NATO ATTACK ON YUGOSLAVIA

MOSCOW, OCTOBER 2 /SRNA - RIA Novosti/ - Russian President Vladimir Putin said that NATO's 1999 military campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia normalized the use of force and helped make it a dominant feature of global politics.

"How did it all begin? With NATO's attack on Yugoslavia. Yes, there was a serious internal conflict. But was it absolutely necessary to launch a military operation on the territory of an independent state in the heart of Europe without UN Security Council authorization? Was it necessary to bomb the capital, Belgrade?" Putin asked.

Speaking at the plenary session of the 23rd annual meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club, Putin said that each subsequent move by the West had increasingly reflected a policy of force, leading many countries to view the UN as ineffective and not take it seriously.

"Every subsequent step took the form of pressure - whether military, economic or financial. All of this amounts to dialogue from a position of strength," Putin said, referring to what he described as the long-term consequences of NATO's bombing of Yugoslavia.