Peace Is Table Talk as Serbs Host Americans

In an effort to ensure that Bosnian Serb soldiers in the sensitive Posavina Corridor understand the terms of the peace treaty, American officers on Friday hammered home some details of the accord as they shared a meal of roast pig with their counterparts from the Bosnian Serb army.

In their newly minted role as peacekeepers in a country long divided by war, U.S. Army 1st Cavalry officers unrolled elaborate maps and spelled out exactly how territory in this area will be divided.

The unusual six-hour meeting, held just yards away from the so-called zone of separation meant to keep the once-warring parties apart in this narrow strip of eastern Bosnia-Herzegovina, began with stiff, uneasy greetings. But it ended with numerous glasses of plum brandy, samplings of cooked pig brain, ribald jokes and pledges of cooperation.

“We agreed about our initial jobs,” said Col. Miodrag Suvajac, brigade commander in this area, adding that the Bosnian Serbs will try to ensure that American soldiers “go back safe and healthy to their homes” once their one-year stint as peacekeepers ends.

For the Americans, the gathering was an important step toward what they hope will be a nonviolent enforcement of the peace treaty forged in Dayton, Ohio. It was also an example of the new type of diplomacy that they find themselves administering to the formerly warring Serbs, Croats and Muslims.

The Americans also pressed their agenda, officers said, in a closed-door portion of the meeting, requesting that the Serbs begin removing their own mines in a land estimated to be pitted with as many as 8 million mines. (A similar request is being made to the other factions.)

They also explained how they would deploy American forces in the region and the position of current and future checkpoints.

The Serbs, in turn, expressed concerns about the protection of Serbian citizens when the rebel army retreats by a deadline later this month, asking that the Americans operate extensive checkpoints on every cleared route--an action not considered likely because of the sheer number of soldiers that would be needed.

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Even though not all issues were resolved Friday, the Americans and Serbs were inching toward intimacy by the end of the day.

“We can make it hard, or we can make it better,” said Lt. Col. Greg Stone, commanding officer of the 1st Squadron, 1st Calvary. “This was a wonderful symbol of cooperation.”

The meeting, hosted by Suvajac, lurched forward at noon in a Serbian army headquarters, with Stone’s officers apologizing because their leader was an hour late. The tension increased when the American officers presented their business cards, with their names and titles in English on one side and in Serbo-Croatian on the other. It was immediately pointed out to the beleaguered-looking officers that the foreign-language side employed military titles used by “the enemy.”

“You don’t have to be ashamed,” Suvajac told the Americans through a U.S. Army interpreter. “You should just know if you continue using those, it will boomerang.”

After offering to translate the titles more palatably, Suvajac added: “It is very difficult to judge who is a real friend.”

In the smoke-filled room, as about 20 American and Bosnian Serb officers sipped Turkish coffee, conversation ricocheted from subject to subject. After telling the Americans about the beheading of several of his soldiers during the war, Suvajac interrupted himself, saying, “But let’s talk about nicer topics. What’s your impression of Serbian women?”

After several hours, the plum brandy was flowing freely, with the Bosnian Serbs insisting that their guests partake of the potent homemade brew.

“When you are with the Serbs, you must drink until you can drink no more,” one Serbian officer told Sgt. Major Robert Braggs, who unsuccessfully attempted to prevent his shot glass from being refilled.

The Serbs’ hospitality took many of the Americans by surprise.

“Never in a million years did I think I’d be in Bosnia, eating roast pig and drinking with Serbs,” Capt. Carlos Perez said.

After the meal, which in addition to roast pig included tomato soup, pickled cabbage and salad, the hosts carried away the platter--containing a pig’s head with an apple between its teeth--that had served as a centerpiece. Minutes later, they returned with the head cloven in two. It is a tradition on such occasions, Suvajac explained, to eat the pig’s brains.

Without blinking, Stone picked up a fork and dug in. After two mouthfuls, he passed the platter to the officer seated to his left, Capt. Michael Kasales, commander of the 1st Calvary’s B troop.

“It tastes like pate,” Stone said.

As the evening sky grew dark, Stone thanked Suvajac, presenting him with a bottle of Jim Beam.

“This is the first time any of us have ever done something like this,” Stone said. “Our training can prepare us for patrolling routes and clearing mines, but it cannot prepare us to meet the people, look into their eyes and do this.”