Note: Place names rendered primarily in Serbian spelling
I. DISPLACED PERSONS/ATTACKS ON CIVILIANS/HUMAN RIGHTS
Associated Press reported Saturday that "hundreds of thousands of
ethnic
Albanian civilians remain terrified of the Serbs. Many are unable to return to
their damaged or destroyed homes; others refuse to go home because they are
convinced the Serbs will kill them." The Kosovo Diplomatic Observer Mission
(KDOM) reported November 18 that "UNHCR [United Nations High Commission for
Refugees], KDOM, and 45 NGOs met in Pristina today to discuss IDPs [internally
displaced persons]. Participants agreed that there are 385,000 IDPs in Kosovo,
none of whom remain in the open. Additionally, there are about 75,000 refugees
outside Kosovo."
Independent news service ARTA (Pristina) reported November 23 that "a
group of Serb soldiers intruded in the houses [in Kline] and threatened
[residents] with killing...about 70% of the population has returned to the
villages of Perceve, Leskoc, Shtupel, Kerrnice, while armed Serb civilians
backed by the Serb police do not allow the return of the Albanians in [those]
villages. While intruding these houses, Serb forces also threaten killing
present residents if they do not leave their houses."
The Mother Theresa Society [MTS -- Pristina] reported November 17 that
"one trend of note is the number of IDPs in the municipalities of Vucitrn and
Prizren. On November 2 it was reported to be 32,000 in Vucitrn and 17,000 in
Prizren but has since climbed to over 50,500 in Vucitrn and 42,000 in Prizren.
This can be attributed to continuing troubles and attacks in the towns and
villages in these municipalities."
In a November 18 statement to the Partnership for Peace Euro-Atlantic
Council, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Sadako Ogata
said: "Many displaced people have returned to find their homes destroyed and
with heavy damage to property...150 of 240 villages [UNHCR has] evaluated were
affected by destruction. Sixty percent of the houses in those villages were
either totally destroyed or suffered various degrees of damage...Return is
undoubtedly linked to security....governmental units maintain a strong presence
in certain localities. While some checkpoints have been dismantled, others
remain. In addition, roving police units have reportedly circulated in certain
areas of Kosovo, setting up additional road blocks perceived as additional
tools for intimidation and harassment of the local population."
Ogata also noted that "it is very important to ensure that land mines
and other unexploded devices are identified and removed before any other deaths
by these silent slayers occur. There are increased reports of the use of
anti-personnel and anti-tank mines in Kosovo, as well as explosive booby traps
in villages vacated by governmental authorities."
ARTA reported November 21 that the towns of Mitrovica and Prilep were
"besieged" by Serbian police.
ARTA noted November 16 that Kosovo Albanian representatives found out
from the local [village of Fashor] Serbian "commander" that "any time you want
to go back to the village, you first have to report to the police officer...who
is responsible of issuing entry permits..." ARTA also noted that "Yugoslav
military forces are posted in Qafa e Duhles and Birac, whereas in Duhel, Mohlan
and Restan, Serb police forces are controlling the passers by, which is largely
restricting the people's free movements in the direction of those zones. One of
the Luzhnice villagers pointed out that they have problems with the people's
free movements and the possibilities for them to get provided with basic items
for living."
ARTA reported November 14 that populations from the villages of
Dollove,
Drenoc, Dush and Jellovc are still being prevented from returning to their
homes. ARTA also reported new Serbian forces were placed in the village of
Kushice e Ulet and were preventing Albanian refugees from returning to their
homes, and that police and paramilitary forces are still present in villages
Caralluke, Smonice, Terpeze, Llazice, Balance and Mlecan [Malisevo
municipality]. The Mother Theresa Society reported November 18: "Residents
continue to report hearing gunfire on a nightly basis and government security
forces have passed through the area [the villages of Belanica, Temecin, Guncat,
Lladrovica and Senik] on a daily basis since last Friday's KLA [Kosovo
Liberation Army] ambush in nearby Duhel."
Reuters noted November 16 that ethnic Albanian schools in some areas of
Kosovo have opened , but noted a Kosovo Diplomatic Observer Mission (KDOM)
"orange-painted Land Rover stopped just outside [a] school fence for about a
half-hour but [which] was gone just before [a] Serbian police patrol passed
by."
The Daily Telegraph (London) reported Saturday that "hundreds of ethnic
Albanians accused by Serbian authorities of 'terrorist activities in Kosovo are
being convicted on often dubious evidence and subjected to beatings,'
international monitors said yesterday. One procedure used to obtain evidence
against some of the 1,800 accused is the 'paraffin glove,' a wax application to
detect gunpowder results." Following his extended negotiations with
Yugoslavia's
President Slobodan Milosevic, US Special Envoy Holbrooke said in a television
interview October 16 that "the paraffin test is over."
Agence France Presse said UN rapporteur Alexander Yakovlev told the
United Nations Committee against Torture that " 'information received by the
committee from non-governmental organizations shows incidents of brutality and
torture committed by the police, particularly in the provinces of Kosovo and
Sandjak.... Acts of torture have been perpetrated by the police and especially
by the special units. People have been beaten with fists, wooden and metal
clubs...leading to injuries and in certain cases death,' he said."
ARTA reported "during the raid that occurred in Ferizaj on November 23,
Serb forces arrested two Albanian residents." ARTA also said November 22 that a
publishing house director and a professor in high school were charged for
terrorism in the Municipal Court in Prizren.
ARTA November 21 reported that "the Serb Municipal Court in Prizren
sentenced three residents from Rahovec...to 30 days detention." ARTA said
November 17 that "three Albanians from Gjakove municipal village of Zhub,
charged for the crime of 'association for hostile activities and terrorism,'
were sentenced with 15 years imprisonment, in the Serb-run District Court in
Peje. Five other prisoners were sentenced with five years each, said the same
source." ARTA November 16 cited a defense attorney who represented several
accused Albanians saying that "six of them from Gjilan village were sentenced
with detention. They were accused of establishing terrorist groups during the
course of 1991 and of organizing military training."
ARTA also reported that investigation procedures in Gjilan have
continued and that "judge of the District Court in Gjilan, set the detention
term of one month to... six arrested Albanian villagers. Those accused,
according to the investigation record, formed a terrorist-diversionary group."
KDOM reported November 18 "in a recent meeting Mercy Corps
International
reported that the ethnic Albanian community's supply of livestock has been
seriously reduced over the past few months. They say losses include 50,000
cattle, 100,000 sheep and 50-60,000 chickens."
II. HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE
Mercy Corps International reported November 17 "the 'financial police'
recently approached two small NGOs requesting various details relating to
staff, residences, vehicles, radio equipment, etc. This appears to be the
first step in the government's attempt to collect taxes from local staff and
vendors. NGOs have been asked to report all such incidents to UNHCR."
Reuters reported that "the winter's first big snowfall on Friday
threw a
spanner into the massive international monitoring and aid effort aimed at
helping tens of thousands of ethnic Albanian refugees in Kosovo. Aid convoys
were delayed or diverted...Fernando del Mundo, spokesman for the UNHCR said
convoys destined for the western towns of Prizren, Klina and Djakovica 'were
diverted because of the weather' and re-directed to main distribution points in
Podujevo and...Pristina. Beatrice Weber, Kosovo coordinator for the
International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) said teams went into the field
'but there were fewer than over the last couple of days...and some did not get
as far as they wished.' "
Associated Press reported Friday del Mundo "said the snow would be a
major problem, especially in mountain areas. 'Even in the towns and cities,
people are sharing food with displaced persons sheltering there...until the
next harvest, they will need support.' " KDOM reported November 18 that heavy
snows in parts of Kosovo underlined "the urgent need for firewood, stoves,
blankets, building materials and other humanitarian supplies."
Mercy Corps International reported November 17 that in the village of
Jezerc, "out of a total number of 140 homes in the village, 110 have been
damaged or destroyed. People are accommodated in intact and damaged houses.
Electricity has note been available for over six months and residents collect
water from wells and use latrines. Jezerc last received humanitarian aid from a
convoy on October 13. The village is usually blocked by snow from the beginning
of winter until March or April. Residents have traditionally lived off of food
reserves, the majority of which were disrupted or destroyed this year making
villagers dependent upon humanitarian aid to sustain them through the winter.
One family of 22 reported having lost 2,800 kilograms of flour, one tractor,
their home and clothing in the offensive. Villagers do not feel secure
travelling to the clinic nearby in Nerodime e eperme..."
Reuters reported United Nations High Commissioner Ogata said at a
Friday
news conference in Geneva "I would say that a humanitarian disaster has been
averted, at least for now."
III. FIGHTING/FORCE WITHDRAWALS/DEPLOYMENTS
US Secretary of State Albright said in a Friday press conference in
Washington with NATO Secretary General Javier Solana that "both sides continue
to commit acts that violate the ceasefire and harm the prospects for peace. The
Kosovo Liberation Army must refrain from reprisals and efforts to intimidate,
but its provocations do not justify failures by the Serb Government to meet its
obligations. President Milosevic is increasing, rather than decreasing, the
number of special police in Kosovo, and he is failing to insure proper police
behavior. He has to understand that Serb actions are being monitored, and that
NATO will insist on compliance." Albright also noted that "Milosevic, who
is the
basic reason for the problem, is thickening some of his MUP [Ministry of
Interior] forces, and that is contrary to the agreement that has been made."
The Washington Post reported Saturday that "US officials said there
is a
'chicken-and-egg' question in Kosovo as the KLA attacks Serb targets and the
Serb forces retaliate. But they said the US and NATO view is that the Serb
presence - in numbers greater than permitted under the cease-fire agreement -
provokes the rebel attacks. They said that Serbia never drew its forces down to
the levels stipulated in Milosevic's agreement with Holbrooke and that it has
sent back to Kosovo some of the forces that had been withdrawn."
ARTA cited the independent Pristina daily Koha Ditore November 21: "The
number of military forces in the [Yugoslavia-Albania border area] is in a
constant increase." Independent Radio 21 (Pristina) said November 18 that in
the morning "Serb military airplanes [flew over Djakovica and]...a strong
explosion was heard...."
ARTA noted November 20 "the town of Mitrovice is besieged by police
forces. It is stated that provocative shooting came from the local Serb's
positions. Also, Serb police and military forces besieged the village Prejlep,
Decan municipality." ARTA also reported that in Suhareke municipality, the
situation is getting more tense because of added Serb forces." ARTA November 19
reported that "new Serb forces loaded in two buses, one truck, and a terrain
vehicle, arrived in Mitrovice...these forces were installed in the barracks in
Mitrovice."
ARTA November 14 cited a "Koha Ditore"correspondent reporting that "a
convoy of Serb military vehicles and a truck loaded with policemen drove
through Gllogoc toward village of Terstenik." The same source also noted
military movements in the village of Lugu i Drinit.
ARTA reported on Saturday that "Serb police forces are now stationed in
all the streets of the town of Mitrovice."
Radio 21 November 16 cited ethnic Albanian sources in Podujevo saying
"20 Serb policemen equipped with a Landrover and an APC...started to stop and
check vehicles and people as they passed by. The same police expedition
crusaded through most of the villages in the Podujeve municipality and it has
stopped and maltreated many passers-by."
KDOM reported November 19 that "KDOM teams accompanied police patrols
along the Blace-Malisevo route and on the Orahovac-Malisevo road. Despite some
provocations, police showed restraint and these patrols came off without
incident.... KDOM believes it has now reached agreement with all local KLA
commanders in the Malisevo area concerning police patrols. KLA has agreed, with
some reservations, to avoid conflict with police so long as they (the police)
stay on the hard-surfaced roads."
The Washington Post reported November 18: "The [KLA's] rapid expansion
through new enlistments in the past few weeks has enabled its soldiers to move
again into areas where the government scored territorial gains in the summer
and early autumn in the central Drenica region, along the northeastern
provincial border, and in areas southeast of Prizren and north of Djakovica
both cities near the Albanian border. Although the Kosovo Liberation Army has
not reestablished checkpoints along major highways or set up roadblocks, it has
publicly warned that government security personnel enter "ethnically clean"
Albanian areas at the peril of losing their lives. Besides their new uniforms
and hitech sniping rifles, the rebels have more modern communications gear and
submachine guns; even soldiers at checkpoints know how to use satellite
telephones. Many wear lightweight body armor; nearly all have chest pockets
filled with hand grenades and ample ammunition. Some of their key outposts are
now protected by Chinesemade antiarmor mines imported from Albania. Their
newfound discipline, the Western officer said, is exemplified by their decision
to conduct repeated hitandrun attacks on pockets of government troops, largely
to undermine the morale of those deployed in Kosovo... Western officials say
the rebels' aim in regaining control of the area north and south of Malisevo is
vital to their goal of reestablishing a smooth pipeline to transfer arms and
ammunition into Drenica, the rebel heartland."
The Washington Post also noted "the group's core of serious fighters,
estimated at 1,000 to 2,000, has swelled in the past two months by as many as
4,000 to 5,000, mostly in their midtwenties and thirties, including some
returning from neighboring countries such as Albania and from Western Europe,
according to Western officials and ethnic Albanian sources....At the top of the
political structure, one official said, is a triumvirate: Hashim Thaqi, better
known in Kosovo by his nom de guerre of "Snake;" Rame Buja, a former political
prisoner and onetime supporter of Rugova's political party; and Jacup Krasniqi,
another former political prisoner who last summer became the group's chief
spokesman....The top political group is assisted by four other ethnic Albanians
considered to have equal rank, including Bashota, a resident of Switzerland
named Bardhyl Mahmuti, and a man who lives in Tirana, Albania, and plays a key
role in organizing arms transfers into Kosovo. Most are former political
activists who were jailed by the Yugoslav government or had relatives who were
jailed. "I have been through nine Serb jails and never changed my position,"
said Mahmuti, a math student who was incarcerated from 1981 to 1988."
The official Serbian Media Center (Pristina) reported yesterday that
"two policemen were killed, three were badly wounded, and one was lightly
wounded in an attack committed by Albanian extremists, this morning, at 6:45
AM, in Prilep village, Decane municipality. Zoran Vrbaski (1973) and Janos
Cizmadija (1953) are the policemen that were killed, both police members from
Kikinda. Aleksandar Stojanovic, Igor Bus and Goran Borovica are the policemen
badly wounded, Caba Pakai, the police conscript got light wounds. Wounded
policemen were transported to the Pristina Clinical - Hospital Center. The
Albanian extremists attacked the police vehicle, the policemen used to return
from their shift. A projectile had hit the vehicle from the antitank launcher,
and then, a fire was made from the assault rifles. The police have been
searching after the criminals."
The Serbian Media Center reported November 16 that "Albanian extremists
attacked the police patrol today at 11:30 AM in Donja Lapastica village,
Podujevo municipality. No casualties were reported among the policemen, while
several police vehicles were riddled with assault rifle bullets. The police
fired back.... Several sniper rifle bullets were fired at the Orahovac police
station today morning, the Orahovac municipal authorities confirmed to the
Media Center. No casualties were reported among the police. A bullet hit a
police vehicle, parked in the police yard.... Albanian extremists attacked the
police patrol with automatic weapons and bazookas today morning on the road
Dulje - Malisevo, near Belanica village."
Agence France Presse reported an Albanian physician was killed November
18 in Pec "by three masked attackers in an assault city officials blamed on the
KLA, saying the doctor had been loyal to Serb authorities. However, the Kosovo
Information Center said the doctor's attackers spoke Serb."
The Serbian Media Center reported November 14 that "Murat Hadjosa, a
member of the Prekoluka local security, Decane vicinity, was killed last night.
Hadjosa was killed from automatic weapon during attack of Albanian extremists
on his house. His son was wounded during the attack," Media Center was told by
the Decane municipal authorities. No casualties were reported among the police.
US State Department spokesman James Rubin said November 19 that "the
violence has not upticked dramatically. There have been tensions, and our
observers and the verifiers have been working assiduously to try to calm those
tensions. And we have made clear to the Kosovar Liberation that we do not look
kindly and we oppose strongly provocative actions that they have taken. So far,
the situation, although there have been incidents and significant incidents,
has not spun out of control."
IV. OSCE VERIFICATION MISSION/NATO RAPID REACTION FORCE
Associated Press noted Saturday that "for now, the OSCE mission doesn't
exist beyond a growing headquarters operation...the OSCE doesn't know what the
final number will be for the Kosovo mission. Sometimes [Mission Chief
Ambassador William] Walker mentions 1,500 monitors, sometimes he mentions
2,000. 'I would guess by the first of the year, mid-January, we will have a
serious percentage of those people in - as fast as humanly and bureaucratically
possible. And that 'bureaucratically' is the tricky part,' [Walker] said." The
United Nations Security Council issued a statement Thursday that "stressed the
importance of an early deployment of the OSCE Kosovo Verification Mission. In
this context they called on all parties involved to comply fully with the
Security Council resolutions, to cooperate with the Kosovo Verification
Mission, to honor their commitments and to provide for the security of KVM
personnel."
Agence France Presse reported Friday that "a coordination and
verification center has been set up at Kumanovo near Skopje
in...Macedonia...[which] became fully operational as of Thursday.... NATO
allies agreed to Russia being in the mission, a first in the high sensitive
area of intelligence."
Reuters reported that Yugoslavia on October 13 "summoned the Macedonian
envoy...to protest against its hosting NATO's rapid reaction units as a
'hostile act.' " Reuters cited a NATO source saying Friday " 'the notion that a
NATO force of less than 2,000 troops can threaten Yugoslavia's security is
ridiculous...We are concerned about these declarations...but we don't expect
such hiccups to be a real problem.' " The Washington Times Sunday quoted
France's special envoy Jacques Huntzinger saying that the "dispute between
Yugoslavia and Macedonia could delay the deployment of NATO rapid intervention
forces in Macedonia... 'everything should be done to avoid causing problems
between Yugoslavia and Macedonia because of the creation of these
[intervention] forces... Even if this brings a delay of several days in the
schedule, it is worth doing everything to smooth away the problems which might
occur.' "
Reuters reported that William Walker, head of the Kosovo Verification
Mission, said following a November 17 meeting with Milosevic "a KVM [Kosovo
Verification Mission] spokesman had gone beyond the known facts in describing
alleged intimidation of US monitors by Yugoslav sources... 'I think a few
statements were made that went a bit beyond our interpretation of what happened
involving a KDOM vehicle and a convoy of the VJ [Yugoslav Army]' ...Walker said
reports based on the briefing had said 'shots were fired and they were fired
over the head of our vehicle. 'That is beyond our knowledge...our people heard
noises and thought they saw flashes from muzzles. The implication of what we
released last night was that those flashes came out of the turret gun. That is
not correct...All we really know is from our side that the gun turret turned
and I think that in itself is unacceptable...we do not want weapons pointed at
our verifiers and our vehicles.' "
However, Reuters reported November 16 that "a Western official...in
Pristina said the incident could have been a mistake and that he hoped it would
blow over. But he cited the US observers as insisting: 'We had experienced
military personnel in that vehicle, we saw the muzzle flashes, we heard the
bullets going overhead'... The Western official said Sunday's incident followed
a series of intimidatory acts against the US KDOM. 'There have been a series of
incidents over the past few weeks where police and army vehicles have swerved
at US KDOM guys, where weapons have been trained, not to fire but just to
intimidate. ' "
A November 17 KDOM report said that "following up on the incident of
yesterday in which personnel in a passing VJ convoy fired shots in the
direction of a KDOM Humvee, the VJ demonstrated to KDOM how their vehicle
backfired, creating the misconception of gunfire. Notwithstanding the
demonstration, KDOM continues to believe the VJ fired one to three shots over
their vehicle."
Reuters reported Friday that "a majority of deputies in the
[Netherlands] 150-member lower house of parliament - including... junior
coalition partners - has indicated it opposes on safety grounds Dutch
participation in the monitoring process... Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister
Jozias van Aartsen told deputies in a letter on Friday the government would
give confidential briefings to the parliamentary committees for defense and
foreign affairs in a bid to reassure them about the measures taken to guarantee
observers' safety. The briefings, to be given by military experts, would be
supplemented with information by Van Aartsen after his upcoming meeting with US
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, the letter said."
Agence France Presse noted Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesman Vladimir
Rakhmanin told a Friday press briefing that "Moscow is ready 'in the fairly
near future to send an additional 60 or 70 observers' to accompany the 10
Russian observers already stationed in Kosovo to verify that Yugoslavia is
respecting international demands regarding troop withdrawal."
V. POLITICAL STATUS NEGOTIATIONS
Reuters reported today that US envoy Christopher Hill met Monday with
Yugoslavia's President Slobodan Milosevic, quoting a Hill spokesman saying
"meeting Milosevic was useful and indicates there is real engagement with the
Kosovo process." The report also noted a Belgrade based Western European envoy
saying "diplomats have to be optimistic especially when they are talking about
negotiations... But we do feel we will get somewhere by Christmas."
Associated Press reported "Serbia published its own peace proposal for
Kosovo on Saturday, envisioning a form of self-rule while keeping the province
firmly within Serbia." Agence France Presse yesterday reported that "Fehmi
Agani, leader of the Albanian negotiation team, rejected the plan as
'unacceptable'....The European Union envoy for Kosovo...Wolfgang Petrisch, also
rejected the Serbian proposal." Reuters noted Kosovo under Milutinovic's plan
"would remain firmly tied to Serbia, whereas [US envoy Christopher] Hill wanted
to link Kosovo to federal structures... The Milutinovic plan also envisages
local police remaining under the control of Serbian police... The arrangements
for sharing power between communities in Kosovo also appear to restrain the
ethnic Albanian community by granting equal political weight to all
minorities."
BETA notes today the plan was criticized as "late" by both the
opposition Democratic Party and the Democratic Party of Serbia; the Democratic
Party in a press release noted that "the biggest disadvantage of the plan is
that the proposed solution is not a permanent one, and in the future it may
jeopardize state interests in other parts of the country.... the regime is
using the plan to again buy time, and time is not working for Serbia at the
moment." BETA quoted Democratic Party of Serbia leader Vojislav Kostunica
saying
"the solutions offered by the plan presented by President Milutinovic are vague
and incomplete and are intended as a smokescreen to cover the serious and
numerous concessions the Serb side had to agree to in the Milosevic-Holbrooke
agreement."
The proposal followed a meeting Wednesday between Milutinovic and
representatives of Kosovo's Egyptian, Romany Turkish and Muslim communities,
Russian embassy officials and loyalist ethnic Albanians from the Djakovica
region. Reuters noted "key ethnic Albanian leaders, including the community's
elected president Ibrahim Rugova and members of the KLA stayed away. Also
missing were US envoy Chris Hill...and Austrian Ambassador [and EU envoy]
Wolfgang Petrisch..."
US State Department spokesman James Rubin said Wednesday: "We believe
that if there are going to be direct meetings between Serb and Albanian
representatives, in order to be productive they would have to be very well
prepared and the modalities would have to be agreed to by both sides
beforehand. It is my understanding that Serbian President Milutinovic met with
other national minorities in Kosovo because there were no Albanian
representatives at the meeting. So obviously, this was not well prepared and
the modalities were not agreed to in advance."
Independent news service BETA (Belgrade) reported today that "Serbian
President Milan Milutinovic had talks on Nov. 23, in Belgrade, with U.S.
ambassador to Macedonia Christopher Hill on the situation in Kosovo and on the
development of the process for a political solution of the problems in the
region. Milutinovic and Hill stated that 'wide self-rule, based on equality of
national communities is a main basis for the political solution and for
overcoming tensions and conflicts,' says the announcement from the Serbian
President's office. The announcement states that 'it was concluded that the
rising number of attacks by terrorist bands of Albanian separatists on innocent
citizens, policemen and soldiers should be stopped.' Milutinovic expressed hope
that the international community, and Ambassador Hill himself, will 'condemn
these terrorist acts and that it will stop further support to Albanian
terrorist bands from abroad by practical and visible measures.' Asked to
evaluate the Serbian President's proposal for the agreement on Kosovo, an
anonymous U.S. diplomat told BETA that the 'aim of negotiations is for the two
sides to propose their ideas during the process' and added that [Western
envoys] have 'a positive stand on all suggestions.' He said that Ambassador
Hill will continue his shuttle diplomacy until a solution is found on which
both sides can agree."
The Financial Times said November 19 the latest US-drafted version
of an
interim accord for Kosovo "goes some way to meeting the demands of ethnic
Albanian leaders by removing Serbia's authority and granting the province
substantial autonomy within the Yugoslav federation...Kosovo would be reserved
30 seats in the Yugoslav parliament and given places on the federal government
and judiciary. Previous proposals for Kosovo to hold seats in the Serbian
parliament have been dropped. 'There is no mention of Serbia in the latest
plan,' a Western diplomat said. Only defense, foreign affairs, customs, foreign
trade and monetary policy would be left to the Yugoslav federation...Kosovo
would have its own parliament but whether its leader would also be called
'president' is still open for debate. The federal army would remain within 10
km of Kosovo's international borders with Albania and Macedonia, but Serbia
would relinquish all control over Kosovo's police force. A new force would be
constituted in proportion to Kosovo's ethnic make-up and placed under an ethnic
Albanian interior minister with a Serb deputy."
The Financial Times also noted "reaction to the latest plan has been
cautious. Fehmi Agani, adviser to Ibrahim Rugova...said it was a step forward
but the exact status of Kosovo was still too vague." Associated Press noted
November 17 that "Fehmi Agani told The Associated Press his side had proposed
giving the largely ethnic Albanian province the same status as Yugoslavia's two
republics... 'A period of three to five years would be enough to see whether
such a union could function...if it could, we would want to stay in it. If not
I don't see why we should stay.' Agani called for a referendum to decide on the
final status of Kosovo at the end of the trial union. His comments were the
first time an ethnic Albanian leader has openly accepted the idea of autonomy,
though even he indicated peaceful coexistence probably wasn't possible."
Reuters reported November 20 that a Belgrade government source said
"the
Yugoslav government does not plan to issue a formal rejection of a US
authorized draft peace plan for Kosovo...the source said Belgrade considered
Kosovo an internal problem and reacting to the draft circulated by US envoy
Christopher Hill would mean accepting a role for outsiders in the
negotiations."
When asked about the Belgrade authorities' refusal to discuss the
proposal, Rubin also noted that the draft is "a rolling draft, as these drafts
tend to be.... The idea is that we would put down on paper a set of ideas that
we think might bridge the gaps, and then we receive comments from the sides,
and we try to do the best to meet the objectives of both sides; so that in the
case of the Kosovar Albanians that they are in a position to influence policies
that affect them through governmental structures, that they are in a position
to have greater autonomy, and that they are in a position to have the
democratic and human rights that they have been denied, returned to them."
Agence France Presse cited a Friday press release from the Austrian
Foreign Ministry that US envoy Hill and EU envoy Petrisch "agreed that talks
must advance rapidly while there is relative calm in Kosovo...and while the
cease-fire is maintained...Hill and Petrisch also agreed that the accord should
be accompanied by 'a program of economic reconstruction for Kosovo, the rapid
deployment of police and a public information campaign."
Agence France Presse reported that US envoy Hill met November 17 "with
representatives of the...KLA." Associated Press reported the same day that
"Jakup Krasniqi, a KLA official who attended the talks, said the guerrillas
voiced their complaints about the plan and would send their final response in
written form within 10 days." As reported in Kosovo Briefing #35, Reuters
reported that "Hill held rare talks Friday (November 6) with senior members of
the separatist Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) amid mounting pressure for a
settlement.... An editor of the leading Pristina daily said before the
meeting'Hill will probably speak harsh words now and we expect him to be pretty
explicit in explaining his position to the KLA- that is, they have not only to
obey the cease-fire but reconsider with extreme seriousness the draft itself
and try to see themselves in it.' "
VI. INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMACY
The North Atlantic Council issued a statement November 19 saying "NATO
is deeply concerned about the deteriorating security situation in Kosovo. Since
the beginning of November there has been a sharp increase in tension resulting
from incidents created in some cases by Serbian security forces and in other
cases by armed Kosovar elements such as the UCK. These incidents risk
creating a
dangerous cycle of provocation and response which, if continued, could
destabilize the cease-fire, reverse the recent improvement in the humanitarian
situation, and jeopardize the arrangements being put into place by NATO and
OSCE for verification of compliance with the relevant UN Security Council
resolutions. NATO is monitoring the situation closely and has made its concerns
clear to the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Kosovar
Albanians. NATO insists that all parties must comply fully with the relevant
UNSCRs and their other commitments; in particular by observing the cease-fire,
avoiding provocation, and moving promptly to negotiations on a political
settlement which alone can be the basis of a lasting peace in Kosovo."
Agence France Presse cited Yugoslavia's deputy Foreign Minister Zlatan
Kikic saying the "NATO Council statement carried 'inexact, arbitrary and
unacceptable' remarks.... Kikic described as 'unacceptable' that NATO addressed
Yugoslavia 'assuming the rights and competences of the United Nations Security
Council.' "
Agence France Presse reported that "French envoy Jacques Huntzinger had
talks Saturday with Ibrahim Rugova, leader of ethnic Albanian moderates in
Kosovo. Huntzinger gave no indication of the substance of the talks, saying
only that he had been sent on an 'information and evaluation mission' to
Yugoslavia by French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine."
Reuters reported NATO supreme commander and US General Wesley Clark
told
a security conference in Lisbon November 18 that "despite all our best efforts,
we probably have only a two-to-four month window of relative peace...both sides
are preparing for further confrontation on the ground." Reuters also noted that
NATO Secretary-General Solana said Friday " 'I do share that idea' expressed by
US Army General Wesley Clark that... 'we have to put all the pressure on the
political track so that a settlement can be reached as soon as possible.' "
The United Nations Security Council November 17 passed a resolution
"reiterating its call upon the authorities of the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia, the leaders of the Kosovo Albanian community and all others
concerned to cooperate fully with the Prosecutor in the investigation of all
possible violations within the jurisdiction of the Tribunal." The resolution
follows a refusal by Belgrade to grant visas to Louise Arbour, the Tribunal's
Chief Prosecutor, and Tribunal investigators for travel throughout Kosovo to
investigate what Arbour November 10 called "numerous allegations, specific and
credible enough to require further investigations, concerning willful killings
(including a number of summary executions), wanton destruction (including the
use of disproportionate force in attacking an area and devastation not
justified by military necessity after the attack has been successful), attacks
against civilians (including reprisals) and plunder."
Reuters noted November 18 that "diplomats said Russia watered down
language that would have explicitly said the UN court had jurisdiction over
Kosovo."
