NATO, West Skeptical of Yugoslavia
Thursday, 22 October 1998
P R I S T I N A , Y U G O S L A V I A (AP)
COUNTERING WESTERN demands that it do more to defuse the Kosovo
crisis, the government on Thursday repeated claims it has withdrawn all
special troops sent into the province to suppress ethnic Albanian
separatists.
Such a withdrawal is a key condition of the U.S.-brokered agreement to
achieve lasting peace in the embattled province.
The pro-government daily Vecernje Novosti quoted unidentified police
sources as saying that the only troops still in Kosovo were those that had
been there before the crackdown began eight months ago.
NATO and Western governments, however, have challenged such claims.
A senior U.S. envoy, Christopher Hill, told reporters in Pristina: "We are
not satisfied with the level of compliance."
In Paris, French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine said the departure of
government forces was "very advanced, but that is not enough."
There were further signs that tension remains high in the province, despite
the agreement reached Oct. 12 between Milosevic and U.S. envoy
Richard Holbrooke.
Laura Boldrini of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said ethnic
Albanians who returned two weeks ago to the village of Poklek fled again
this week because of intimidation by Serb police.
"It's a never-ending story," Boldrini said. "It's going ahead very slowly in
terms of (refugee) returns."
International observers in the field said they heard increased tank and
artillery fire in some areas, after three days of relative calm.
Also, the ethnic Albanian-run Kosovo Information Center said four
members of an ethnic Albanian family - three of them children - were killed
and two were wounded early Thursday when Yugoslav soldiers fired on
them near Djakovica on the Albanian border.
The center said the victims were trying to return to their homes from
Albania. There was no confirmation from government officials.
NATO has given Milosevic until Tuesday to comply with U.N. demands
or risk airstrikes. The demands include removing all special troops sent to
Kosovo during the crackdown and allowing tens of thousands of ethnic
Albanian refugees to return safely to their homes.
Milosevic also agreed to talks with ethnic Albanians on the future of the
province, which is part of Yugoslavia's largest republic, Serbia. About 90
percent of Kosovo's 2 million people are Albanian, and most want
independence or self-rule.
The rebel Kosovo Liberation Army has insisted it will not abandon its goal
of independence. The United States and the Europeans reject
independence but support some form of autonomy for Kosovo.
Despite the tension, international officials report some progress toward
normalcy. Convoys of relief supplies, for example, have traveled
unhindered in recent weeks. Two U.N. convoys totaling 16 trucks carried
baby food, flour, biscuits, mattresses and other supplies to Pec and
Djakovica in western Kosovo on Thursday.
Meanwhile, efforts to organize the 2,000-person team to verify compliance
with the peace deal appeared stalled because the nations that the people
would come from are concerned about safety and want the U.N. Security
Council to endorse the plan first.
"Obviously, the physical security of 2,000 people in a zone of turmoil, of
conflict, is of utmost importance," said the American head of the operation,
William G. Walker. |
