-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! West urges Macedonian restraint NATO, EU fear conflict could become full-scale Balkan war MSNBC STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS TETOVO, Macedonia, March 26 — After gaining ground against ethnic Albanian rebels surrounding the city of Tetovo, the Macedonian government came under pressure Monday from NATO and the European Union to show restraint in its crackdown, signaling new momentum for a political solution to end the six-week standoff. Western nations feared the conflict could develop into another full-scale Balkan war. Juliette Terzieff reports on the Macedonian army offensive. Terzieff on tension in the streets of Tetovo. U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE Colin Powell signaled Monday that he believed the conflict was far from over. Powell, speaking at a news conference with French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine, said Macedonian forces “had some success getting part way up that hill.” But he added, “I don’t think the battle is anywhere near over or that the crisis is yet resolved.” Newsweek’s Juliette Terzieff reported that sporadic firing continued Monday around Tetovo. More civilians took to the streets during the relative lull, but most businesses remained closed. Unrest in the Balkans With the battlegrounds quiet, NATO Secretary-General George Robertson and EU security affairs chief Javier Solana arrived in the former Yugoslav republic for talks. Referring to gains made by the Macedonian army in recent fighting, Robertson said on arriving: “They have taken the military high ground above Tetovo. Now is the time [for the government] to take the political high ground.” Similarly, Solana, who arrived later, told reporters: “Now is the moment for politics. Objectives cannot be met through violent acts.” Robertson and Solana both held talks with Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski. Advertisement SUCCESS FOR RAGTAG INFANTRY Macedonian forces dug in overnight after piercing rebel lines and retaking ground held by ethnic Albanian insurgents, and they vowed that their offensive would continue until the rebels were driven out of the country. The ragtag infantry punched through rebel positions in a day of fierce battle Sunday that raged in the hills just outside Macedonia’s second-largest city, spraying houses with bullets and forcing the guerrillas to pull back. Even while saying the time had come for a political effort, Solana and Robertson underlined NATO and EU support for the Skopje government’s action. NATO has worried that the rebel insurgency could widen ethnic divisions in Macedonia — where at least of the quarter of the population are ethnic Albanians living with a Slav majority — and open up a new Balkan war. “My message in Skopje is to keep the country united against its external enemy and to make sure the internal unity is safeguarded,” Robertson said. “No one wants to see another Balkan bloodbath.” “Macedonia enjoys the firm support of the international community to act against those who use the bullet rather than the ballot box,” he said. OPPOSITION BOYCOTT The guerrillas say they are fighting for greater rights for Macedonia’s ethnic Albanians, accusing the Skopje government of discrimination. The government, however, says they are separatists seeking ultimately to split away northern Macedonia to create an independent state with mostly ethnic Albanian Kosovo. An opposition ethnic Albanian party in Macedonia, the Democratic Prosperity Party, announced it was boycotting parliament beginning Monday. Party leader Imer Imeri demanded that Trajkovski end the army offensive and that the rebels lay down their arms. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Tony Blair promised to reinforce NATO-led peacekeepers in Kosovo, from which guerrillas are said to smuggle weapons and fighters across the border into Macedonia. Blair said a unit with an unmanned reconnaissance plane would deploy to Kosovo to provide peacekeepers with a clearer picture of activity in the border region. Robertson made a stopover in Rome, where Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini said Italy supported calls for restraint by the Macedonian government — but admitted that these “haven’t been successful so far.” Robertson said NATO would continue to strengthen its policing of Kosovo’s border with Macedonia to cut off the rebel’s military supplies but ruled out direct intervention in the conflict by international peacekeepers. Finland and Bulgaria also urged Macedonia to moderate its stance, urging it to stop using heavy weapons against the rebels. Finnish Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen said the government’s use of force was “legitimate,” but “it should be proportionate to the threat.” “I can’t see a military solution. It is absolutely essential to protect the multi-ethnic character of Macedonian society,” Lipponen said. Bulgarian Prime Minister Ivan Kostov said Macedonia’s politicians should focus on the political aspect of the conflict to prevent society from splitting along ethnic lines. “There is a real political hazard in Macedonia, and that is if the governing majority should fall apart,” Kostov said. “That’s why the search for a political solution must take central place.” Country: Macedonia, a former Yugoslav republic bordering on Greece, Albania, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, is a once-peaceful mosaic of Balkan ethnic groups, including Serbs, Albanians and Turks. Population: The ethnic groups that make up the population of just over 2 million people are Macedonian, 66.6 percent; Albanian, 22.7 percent; Turkish, 4 percent; Roma, 2.2 percent; Serb, 2.1 percent; other, 2.4 percent. Religions: Macedonian Orthodox, 67 percent; Muslim, 30 percent; other, 3 percent Languages: Macedonian, 70 percent; Albanian, 21 percent; Turkish, 3 percent; Serbo-Croatian, 3 percent; other, 3 percent *COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ] Want to be on our lists? Write at [EMAIL PROTECTED] for a menu of our lists! <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substancenot soap-boxingplease! 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