LONDON, June 7 (Reuter) - Russian Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev said on Wednesday his country would not veto plans for a rapid-reaction force to protect U.N. peace-keepers in Bosnia.

Plans for the 10,000-strong unit of British, French and Dutch soldiers can go ahead so long as the troops do not stray from the existing peacekeeping mandate, he said.

"There is no question of a veto. Why? Where do you see a reason for a veto?" Kozyrev told reporters after meeting British Foreign Minister Douglas Hurd and Prime Minister John Major.

"The question misses the point."

Before coming to London, Kozyrev had expressed opposition to Western plans to send in reinforcements, raising fears Moscow might use its United Nations veto to block their deployment.

But Kozyrev pronounced himself reassured that Britain wanted only to protect its troops and not become an aggressor.

"We share the same objectives," said Kozyrev. "It's just an effort by a number of countries to reinforce UNPROFOR (the U.N. Protection Force) within its present mandate."

Yet the West has sent mixed signals over its latest troop plans and it remains unclear how the new rapid-reaction force will operate in tandem with existing peacekeepers.

Some say the U.N. force must be given the means to do the job of delivering aid. This carries an implicit threat of force. Still others insist no change in the original peacekeeping plan.

Both Kozyrev and Hurd were keen to put on a unified front in the crisis and welcomed the latest hostage release by Bosnian Serbs.

"It's progress -- but not yet enough progress," said Hurd, who warned the Bosnian Serbs that "the world will not be satisfied" until all the U.N. hostages go free.

Nor would Hurd rule out a withdrawal of U.N. forces should the Bosnia situation deteriorate still further. "Of course, it's a possibility. If the task of the U.N. force became impossible it would have to withdraw. It's not a wish," said Hurd.

Earlier, Kozyrev and Major agreed in their talks to exert maximum diplomatic pressure to secure a ceasefire and create conditions in which U.N. peacekeepers can fulfil their mandate.