[PEN-L:7812] (Fwd) RUSSIAN MILITARY BLAME NATO FOR COLLAPSE OF KOSOVO PULLO

[ts99u-1.cc.umanitoba.ca [130.179.154.224]]

pen-l
pen-l
pen-l

------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
Date sent:              Mon, 07 Jun 1999 16:43:41 -0700
To:                     (Recipient list suppressed)
From:                   Sid Shniad <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject:                RUSSIAN MILITARY BLAME NATO FOR COLLAPSE OF KOSOVO PULLOUT
        TALKS - AFP

Agence France Presse                                            June 7, 1999
 
RUSSIAN MILITARY BLAME NATO FOR COLLAPSE OF KOSOVO PULLOUT TALKS

MOSCOW — The Russian military on Monday blamed NATO for 
the collapse of talks on securing a pullout of Yugoslav troops from 
Kosovo, and accused a senior British commander of exceeding his 
authority, Interfax news agency reported.
        A military official cited by Interfax accused NATO of seeking 
to dictate the terms of the withdrawal of Serb forces from the 
troubled province ahead of the deployment of an international peace 
force.
        "The UN Security Council has been left outside the framework 
of the talks, which violates the peace agreements reached during the 
Chernomyrdin-Ahtisaari-Talbott trilateral talks in Bonn," the 
official said.
        He was referring to Russia's Kosovo envoy Victor 
Chernomyrdin, his EU counterpart Martti Ahtisaari and US Deputy 
Secretary of State Strobe Talbott who devised a peace plan 
accepted by Belgrade on Thursday.
        Moscow insists peacekeepers can only be deployed in Kosovo 
under the auspices of the United Nations, as provided for under the 
peace plan.
        The Russian official accused NATO's chief negotiator at the 
pullout talks - Lt.-Gen. Michael Jackson -- of overreaching himself 
during two days of negotiations at the Yugoslav-Macedonian 
border.
        Jackson "has taken on too much responsibility. Decisions on 
any international presence in Kosovo are not made at his level," the 
military source said.
        The British general said Yugoslav proposals were "not 
consistent" with the agreed peace plan and "would not provide a 
safe return of the refugees and full withdrawal of Serb troops.
        "There is no alternative but to continue and intensify the 
bombardments until the Yugoslav side is prepared to implement 
their commitment," he said.
        Despite the hitch, the Russian military source said Moscow 
hoped negotiations would resume quickly: "It is certainly possible 
to get the talks back on track, and we are not inclined to dramatize 
the current situation."