WI:Pristina Airport incident escalates?

What if during the Pristina Airport standoff in 1999, between NATO forces and Russian Kosovo forces escalated into a firefight? Would World War III have started? Would there be a peace talk?
 

Cook

Banned
General Jackson was adamant that he wasn’t going to use force against the Russian Paratroops to enter an airport that he didn’t need anyway.
 
Yeah, as I recall, didn't Mike Jackson basically tell Wesley Clark to shove it?

Maybe the POD would be having an American in Jackson's position?

WW3, though? I don't know. I don't think Clinton would have let it get that far, nor would the Russians. Both sides had too much to lose and too little to gain. If it did start, I'd have to assume that if it stayed conventional, the US/NATO would take Russia apart (not talking invading Russia, but defeating any attempting Russian invasion and simply taking them apart in the air and naval wars).
 
Yeah, as I recall, didn't Mike Jackson basically tell Wesley Clark to shove it?

Maybe the POD would be having an American in Jackson's position?

WW3, though? I don't know. I don't think Clinton would have let it get that far, nor would the Russians. Both sides had too much to lose and too little to gain. If it did start, I'd have to assume that if it stayed conventional, the US/NATO would take Russia apart (not talking invading Russia, but defeating any attempting Russian invasion and simply taking them apart in the air and naval wars).

What invasion?

Even in the worst case we are not talking about anything necessary for either side. If the firefight is quickly ended (whoever loses) you have a few months of VERY strained diplomatic relations before things return to the normal. If the firefight results in a stalemate, Russians will attempt to supply their forces by air, which gives time for cooler heads to prevail - and a bargaining chip for the hawks on the Western side. Nobody is crazy enough to allow the conflict to spill outside of Pristina.
 
I agree. That's why I said (well, implied) that I doubted WW3 would happen.

HAD IT HAPPENED, I can only see a NATO victory at that time, though.
 
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