Great-power patrons pushed their kin governments toward restraint in the Yugoslav wars

Evidence

While this situation may lead to a suspension of war between the nuclear powers (or so we all must hope), it scarcely prevents them from engaging in military adventures outside their own territorial domains. The two superpowers in particular engage in what might be called “orchestrated wars” in peripheral areas of military strength. By these I mean military encounters, with the governments of other states or with guerilla movements or both, in which the troops of the superpower are not necessarily even engaged at all, but where that power is a prime organising influence. — Anthony Giddens, The Consequences of Modernity, 187 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Austria and Italy promptly moved to recognize the two new states, and very quickly the other Western countries, including the United States, followed. The Vatican also played a central role. The Pope declared Croatia to be the “rampart of [Western] Christianity,” and rushed to extend diplomatic recognition to the two states before the European Union did. The Vatican thus became a partisan in the conflict, which had its consequences in 1994 when the Pope planned visits to the three republics. Opposition by the Serbian Orthodox Church prevented his going to Belgrade, and Serb unwillingness to guarantee his security led to the cancellation of his visit to Sarajevo. He did go to Zagreb, however, where he honored Cardinal Alojzieje Septinac, who was associated with the fascist Croatian regime in World War II that persecuted and slaughtered Serbs, Gypsies, and Jews. — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 778 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: The Orthodox world rallied nearly unanimously behind Serbia during the Yugoslav wars; External great powers aligned with different faiths in the Yugoslav wars. — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 336; Milosevic’s embargo on Serb forces hindered them in the Bosnian war — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 794 (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Superpowers wage wars abroad through proxies rather than their own troops #complicates (0.72) — Anthony Giddens, The Consequences of Modernity, 187
• The Vatican acted as a partisan in the Yugoslav conflict, not a neutral arbiter #complicates (0.70) — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 778