>>>Meanwhile, in Washington, senior US
officials said they might concede one
of the Russians' key demands - for
their own zone of control in Kosovo -
despite earlier insisting that this was
out of the question. Until now, Nato
has always resisted the Russian
demand because alliance chiefs fear it
would create a Kosovan "East
Germany" and lead to a de facto
partition of Kosovo. >>>>>
British troops liberate Kosovo
By Tim Butcher in Pristina and Andrew Gilligan
Briefing by Mr Doug
Henderson, Armed
Forces Minister, and
Admiral Sir Ian
Garnett, Chief of
Joint Operations [12
Jun '99] - Ministry of
Defence
Press conference by
Saceur, General
Wesley K Clark [12
Jun '99] - Nato
Russian troops enter
Pristina, show no
sign of leaving [12
Jun '99] - Russia
Today
Only sound of firing is from 'celebrating Kosovar Albanians'
British 'peace invasion' greeted by stark reminders of war
Race against time to prove war crimes
Warlords square up for power struggle
Nato opposes visit by US politicians
NATO'S smooth and almost trouble-free sweep into Kosovo faced a grave
challenge last night as Russian and Serb troops occupied the alliance's
intended headquarters near Pristina and refused to leave.
A tense stand-off developed at
Pristina airport, where Lt Gen Sir
Mike Jackson, Nato's land force
commander, had scheduled a victory
press conference yesterday. The
airport had been occupied by 200
Russian soldiers, who got to Pristina
hours before the first Nato troops,
costing the allies control of Kosovo's
most important strategic transport
asset.
Amid farcical scenes last night, Gen
Jackson's press conference lasted only
a few minutes after Russian troops
disrupted it by driving their armoured
vehicles around. Gen Jackson then
hurried off for private talks with
Russian officers.
Meanwhile, in Washington, senior US
officials said they might concede one
of the Russians' key demands - for
their own zone of control in Kosovo -
despite earlier insisting that this was
out of the question. Until now, Nato
has always resisted the Russian
demand because alliance chiefs fear it
would create a Kosovan "East
Germany" and lead to a de facto
partition of Kosovo.
President Clinton told a graduating ceremony at the University of Chicago:
"We look forward to working with Russia and others who may not have
agreed with our military campaign but do agree with the proposition that all
the people of that tiny land should be able to live in peace." He did not
mention the stand-off directly, however.
A deal to share the airport between Nato and Russia appeared to be taking
shape last night, but even this will cause major complications for Nato's plans.
The stand-off overshadowed what had been an extremely successful day for
the alliance, in which it had enjoyed almost unopposed passage into Kosovo.
That ended at 3pm local time when troops from Britain's Parachute Regiment
were refused access to the airport, regarded by allied commanders as a vital
base for the successful deployment of Nato's 51,000-strong KFOR liberation
force. The paras were later allowed in, but the Russians stayed too.
Last night, Britain had by far the largest contingent in Kosovo, with at least
5,000 soldiers in the province by evening. The French were making progress
towards their area of control in western Kosovo after being held up by mines.
German and Italian troops were not due to enter until today at the earliest.
The Americans sent in the first elements of their force at about 4pm local time,
at the rear of the British contingent.
Russian obstinacy at Pristina is linked to the difficult talks it is holding with the
US in Moscow to work out what its role should be in the KFOR command
structure. Russian participants at the talks yesterday accused the US delegate,
Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott, of taking a "rigid, unconstructive
position". Mr Talbott, looking strained, said he was still optimistic that
agreement could be reached.
More than 100 Russian soldiers and 60 vehicles moved from Bosnia to the
Yugoslav border last night, potential reinforcements for those in Kosovo.
Others were reported to be on standby inside Russia ready to be airlifted to
Pristina. The arrival of Russian troops may have given a new lease of life to
the Serb security forces after the humiliation last week when Belgrade agreed
to withdraw its troops from Kosovo and allow access to an international force
including Nato.
Under the agreement Serb forces are not
obliged to withdraw from the area around
Pristina until next week. But the presence
of a Russian force may encourage poor
adherence to the plan. Houses were seen
burning not far from the airport yesterday
in what was believed to be yet another
incident of Serb ethnic cleansing.
The attitude to Nato varied dramatically as its first units entered Kosovo
yesterday. In Serb villages men gestured rudely and the public tried to ignore
the arrivals. But in Albanian areas, crowds gathered on the roadside, smiling,
chanting "Nato" and giving the V for victory sign.
In a reversal of the recent humanitarian situation in Kosovo, a large column of
Serb refugees fleeing the Kosovo Liberation Army was seen entering Pristina
on farm vehicles. British troops spearheaded Nato's entry into Kosovo, with
paras and Gurkhas securing the main access road before tanks, armoured
troop carriers and heavy guns from the 4th Armoured Brigade began to move
in.
They moved slowly past scenes of destruction, with most houses burnt out,
some obviously within the last day, and no sign of civilian life for at least 20
miles into Kosovo.
To begin with, Serb co-operation with the Nato juggernaut - the biggest
military movement in Europe since 1945 - appeared better than anyone could
have dared hope. Few mines and booby- traps were found on the road.
Bridges and tunnels had been left mostly undisturbed.
Nato met no resistance from withdrawing Serbs, 10,000 of whom were
reported by a Nato spokesman to have already left the province with their
equipment. The spokesman added that 11 Serb MiG fighters had flown from
Pristina to Belgrade. Traffic jams proved the convoy's main problem.
The arrival of the Russians in Pristina early yesterday - several hours ahead of
Nato - was initially dismissed by Moscow as a mistake and by George
Robinson, the Defence Secretary, as insignificant. But as time wore on it
became clear that the deployment had high-level Russian approval - its
commander, Lt Gen Viktor Zavarzin, was promoted during the day by
President Yeltsin.
As darkness fell over Pristina yesterday, allied commanders faced the difficult
decision of whether to force the Russian issue. With overwhelming superiority
in numbers and firepower, the outcome of any showdown would not be in
doubt. But alliance leaders know that confrontation at this stage could derail
the entire peace process.
telegraph.co.uk |
