Open Society Institute: SERBIA / KOSOVO WATCH #77

Serbia Watch is issued by the Open Society Institute (Washington Office).
Please communicate any questions or comments on Serbia Watch  to Jay Wise
at (202) 496-2401 or <jwise@osi-dc.org>.

A) News Summary (Compiled from news and wire reports): Contact Group reduces
demands on Belgrade, tries Belgrade-Pristina talks again; violence spreads further across
Kosovo, more refugees and civilian deaths reported; major new JNA deployments as
Defense Ministry threatens war in Kosovo and claims it killed scores of KLA fighters;
Monitors doubt Belgrade border clash accounts; political divisions growing among Kosovo
Albanians; rising Tirana-Belgrade tension; Serbian  referendum resultsquestioned;
Djukanovic slams Milosevic on Kosovo

B) Kosovo "sliding into war"
2. BELGRADE: Army denies mobilization
3. DECANI: Serbs send more arms to Kosovo
4. EREC: Serbs pouring into Kosovo as Albanian rebels prepare for war
5. DECAN, GJAKOVE: Fire on the border
6. WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, ARRAU:  Inside a rebellion ù  banking on war

C) Tirana-Belgrade relations worsening
7. TIRANA: Fatos Nano speech to Cabinet
8. BELGRADE: Who supports terrorism in Kosovo?

D) Hard-liners use crisis To consolidate power
9. BELGRADE: Serbia's strongman pumps up

E) Contact Group diplomacy
10. ROME: Contact Group statement on Kosovo
11. WASHINGTON: For Kosovo talks, US would let sanctions ebb
 12. WASHINGTON: Senior State Department official holds background briefing
on US policy in Kosovo

A) News Summary (Compiled from news and wire reports):

Kosovo was sliding into war yesterday...more casualties were reported on both sides, for
whom events on the ground are now a world away from the diplomatic niceties being
exchanged among Western diplomats...The Serbs no longer care about sanctions and are
fully prepared for the international opprobrium that would accompany a major offensive.
The Albanians, their supply lines apparently cut, are prepared to fight to the death with
whatever pathetic weaponry they have managed to smuggle in over the past months.
       Tom Walker in Erec, Kosovo
       The Times (London) ù April 28, 1998

1. Attempting once more  to jump-start negotiations between Belgrade and Pristina,
the six- nation Contact Group yesterday adopted a US-crafted "dialogue and stabilization
package" that retreated from several key demands made of Belgrade by the Contact
Group and the UN Security Council over the past two months. At the Rome meeting,
Milosevic was offered a way out of his political and economic isolation "towards Belgrade's
full integration in the international community, including  participation in the OSCE," if
progress on Kosovo is made. The Contact Group repeated its past threats to "take action
to put into effect" a freeze on the funds held abroad by the FRY and Serbian governments
if Belgrade blocks negotiations.
 The prospects for negotiations appeared dim in the face of sharply increased
deployments of Yugoslav National Army (JNA) forces backed by tanks, APCs, helicopter
gunships and heavy artillery across Kosovo; pitched battles with armed insurgents and
heavy civilian casualties throughout the region; rapidly escalating tensions between
Belgrade and Tirana; and fears that Kosovo may be "sliding" into outright war.
 Media reports indicate that much of the past week's violence, which independent
local independent and international journalists reported to have claimed the lives of
between 24 and 42 Kosovo Albanians, and an unknown number of Serbian security and
army casualties, has been directed at a crescent-shaped swath of towns some five to
seven miles inside the southern and western Kosovo- Albania border.  While the towns --
which include Decani, Gjakova, Pec and Prizren -- are at the outer edge  of Kosovo's
central Drenica region, reported to be largely controlled by the Kosovo Liberation Army,
they represent vital links to supply lines, roads and mountain passages.
 Most of the area has been engulfed by what one field observer called "a low level
war." Correspondents in Kosovo indicate at least three large-scale confrontations between
Serbian security/JNA forces and Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) insurgents in the past
week; entire villages and civilian populations under extended sieges by bombardment with
heavy artillery fire; sporadic border clashes; and widespread mix of snipers and
checkpoints.
 The New York Times described today a Kosovo "complete with masked
paramilitaries unleashed by the Serbian state and accountable to no one for their actions,
Serbian soldiers and policemen who surround villages with cannon and blast away with
cannon, leaving civilians dead, and a state-run media campaign seemingly intended to
whip up hatred."
 Opinion is divided on the strength of the Kosovo Liberation Army, which has been
described as a poorly armed and equipped "peasant farmer army" (The Times of London)
and on its ability to withstand concerted attacks by the JNA and Serbian security forces.
London's Daily Telegraph reported April 29 that "the armed ethnic Albanian villagers may
be on the verge of being crushed by the overwhelming firepower on display the past
week." Many independent accounts indicate that the KLA has grown rapidly in armament
and organization since Belgrade's initial attacks last month. On Tuesday, Agence France
Presse quoted a Western diplomat: "We are looking at the formation of a partisan
movement, it is not a guerilla organization any more." The KLA issued a defiant statement
from Kosovo yesterday, promising "thunderous counter-actions." The group warned that
Kosovo is already in "a state of war" and that the KLA "monitors all movements and
moves of the occupier's army."
 In the most recent clashes, the JNA reported it attacked a KLA "command center"
in the southwestern village of Glodjane, and killed eight Kosovo Albanians. Independent
media also reported that a Kosovo Albanian, charged by state media to be carrying a
weapon and dressed in "official KLA uniform," had been shot dead by Serbian security
forces during a mass funeral for 19 men who allegedly died in a border clash with JNA
forces. Both independent and state media reported that a Serbian policeman was killed by
mortar fire during an attack at a Serbian police station near Prizren on Wednesday night.
Wire services also reported Serbian officials as saying that the bodies of two Serbs
believed to have been kidnapped were found on a road near Decani.
 The Financial Times reported on Wednesday that villagers at a funeral for the
nineteen "insisted some of the dead had been arrested days before the border clashes." A
day earlier, Associated Press reported that a "member of the leading Albanian political
party" at Monday's funeral had "information that the men were killed at least 2.5 miles
inside Kosovo's borders, not at the border as the [Yugoslav] army said."
 Casualty reports are often unreliable and fluctuate from day to day in the Kosovo
conflict, and the areas which have suffered the worst violence are almost entirely sealed
off to local and international journalists. However, Serbian authorities now downplay and
deny reports of military or police casualties, in sharp contrast to their practice in recent
weeks, when the funerals of several policemen slain in clashes in Kosovo were televised
nationally. Independent media claimed that four soldiers were killed in fighting on April 27.
The independent Pristina news agency ARTA reported that one thousand refugees had
officially fled across the Albanian border, with greater numbers of non-declared refugees;
recent international reports have put the number of newly displaced persons "in the
thousands."
 Accounts from Tirana and Pristina of "police-military" sieges of villages more than
four miles inside the border have contrasted sharply with JNA reports of intense border
clashes against hundreds of terrorists coming over the Albanian border en masse. The
Democratic League of Kosovo accused the army of launching a massive artillery attack on
the village of Vokshe and killing as many as twelve civilians. The JNA claimed on Sunday
that  it had engaged in a firefight with 200 Kosovo Albanian "infiltrators" bringing "large
amounts of weapons" into Kosovo, and after announcing that "scores" of Kosovo
Albanians had been killed in the fighting, when journalists gained access to the area, the
JNA produced the bodies of 19 Kosovo Albanian men.
 The agreed statement issued after yesterday's Contact Group meeting in Rome
laid out the new U.S.- crafted "dialogue and stabilization package." The package, said to
be a compromise mix of "sticks and carrots," ignored several prior Contact Group
demands, watered down other demands, substantially reduced the cost for the FRY to
escape current and future sanctions, and further delayed meaningful action by the
international community against Belgrade.
 At its London meeting on March 9, the Contact Group announced eleven demands
to be met by Belgrade by March 19. Those demands were:
*  Cease action by security forces affecting the civilian population
* Withdrawal of special police units
*  Allow access to Kosovo for humanitarian groups, including the ICRC
* Personal acceptance of an internationally mediated dialogue with Pristina by
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic
*     Supporting the return of OSCE long-term missions to Kosovo, the Sandzak and
       Vojvodina
*     Support for the new EU/OSCE mission of Felipe Gonzalez with a special portfolio for
       Kosovo
*     Allow access to Kosovo by Contact Group representatives;
*     Implementation of the Sant' Egidio Education Agreement;
*     Cooperation with an International War Crimes Tribunal investigation into possible war
       crimes against civilians in Kosovo;
*     Allowing an independent team of forensic efforts to investigate possible war crimes
      and atrocities against civilians.
*     Accepting a mission to Kosovo by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

 The March 9 statement warned Milosevic by name that if these steps were not
taken, "the Contact Group will move to further international measures, specifically to
pursue a freeze on the funds held abroad by the FRY and Serbia."
 By March 25 when the Contact Group met again in Bonn, only one of these
demands had been partially met; the rest were either violated or rejected outright by
Belgrade.  The Contact Group thereupon extended the deadline, warning again that "if
Belgrade fails to meet the London benchmarks, and if the dialogue does not get underway
within the next four weeks...we shall take steps to apply further measures as warned in
London."
 As of the April 29 Rome meeting, only two of the original Contact Group demands
ù implementation of the education agreement and access to Kosovo by Contact Group
representatives ù had been even partially met. The other nine demands continue to be
violated or rejected outright by Belgrade.
 In sharp contrast to prior U.S., European Union, Contact Group, and UN Security
Council statements and resolutions, the April 29 Contact Group statement specifically
"recommends and urges" just four measures:

*     Belgrade agreement to a framework for dialogue that "provides for international
       involvement in facilitating substantive negotiations;"
*     re-opening of the OSCE missions in the FRY, including Kosovo;
*     "concrete inter-communal confidence building measures," including implementation
       of the Sant' Egidio education agreement;
*     "cessation of repression by the authorities in Belgrade, as specified in UN Security
       Council Resolution 1160 and strong condemnation of terrorism in Kosovo by the
        Kosovo Albanian leadership."

        However, UNSCR 1160 includes no specific definition of "repression." The Security
Council resolution did reiterate the March 9 Contact Group demands for Serbian security
forces to cease actions against civilians and for withdrawal of special police units, but the
April 29 Contact Group statement did not explicitly restate these earlier key demands, and
even the Rome statement's indirect references to them are as something less than
demands.
        The April 29 Contact Group statement noted that "crucial requirements set out in the
Contact Group statements of 9 March and 25 March have not yet been met...we have
therefore decided to take action to put into effect a freeze on the funds held abroad by the
FRY and Serbian governments."  However, the Rome meeting agreed that if Belgrade
only "takes the steps" specified to "bring about negotiations" -- but does not implement the
other three remaining "stabilization measures" [above] -- the Contact Group "will
immediately reverse" the assets freeze.  In a newly-stated threat, if Belgrade blocks
"dialogue" the Contact Group (with Russia already refusing to go along) will by May 9th
"take action to stop new investment in Serbia."
 In still further softening of the U.S. and the international community's position on
the outer wall of sanctions, the April 29 statement notes that "if the leadership in Belgrade
agrees to the framework for dialogue" and the [above] "stabilization measures . . . are
implemented, the Gonzalez mission is launched, and substantive talks begin, the Contact
Group will promote a clear and achievable path towards Belgrade's full integration in the
international community, including participation in the OSCE.  We want the FRY to reap
the benefits of membership in international financial and political institutions."
       Again in sharp contrast to the March 9 London Contact Group agreement (reaffirmed
by UN Security Council resolution 1160), the Rome meeting substantially watered down
the international community's stated position on both negotiations and Kosovo's status.
The March 9 Contact Group statement strongly supported "enhanced status for Kosovo
within the FRY which a substantially greater degree of autonomy would bring and
recognize that this must include meaningful self-administration."  The Rome Contact
Group statement agrees merely that "substantive talks begin" with "Belgrade authorities"
for new and threatened sanctions to be removed.
 Senior European officials voiced doubts over Belgrade's official accounts of the
fighting Reuters reported that OSCE Ambassador to Albania Daan Everts said Monday:
"there is a suggestion that militants crossed the border and the Serbs shot twenty-five of
them. No way. We do not think it happened...there is reason to be suspicious of this
reporting out of the area unless it is really documented properly."
 Similar JNA accounts of last week's border clash were labeled  "merely
propaganda" by the deputy head of the European Union observer mission in Albania: "It
seems these incidents produced only by the Serb official military machine will continue, at
least until the meeting of the Contact Group on April 29. Through them Belgrade seeks to
create the alibi of æAlbanian fault' in the conflict in Kosovo and justify ethnic cleansing
there."
 The Yugoslav National Army (JNA), which maintained in March it would not
become involved in Kosovo, is now deployed throughout the region in what the Times of
London called "unprecedented strength."
 According to a senior State Department official who briefed the media April 27,
"There was a dramatic escalation" of JNA troops in the interior of Kosovo since late last
week. "We estimate that a large number of these troops are now deployed around the
Decani area, including very large numbers of artillery mortars surrounding towns, which is
obviously a quite threatening action regarding these communities." The senior US official
voiced "significant concern" in response to the April 24 Yugoslav Ministry of Defense
statement that threatened war in Kosovo and made "extremely provocative statements"
against Albania.
 The JNA reported April 22 that it had killed three KLA insurgents and injured four
others in fighting near the town of Decan, about four miles from the Albanian border; the
official Belgrade news agency Tanjug reported the clash was a "terrorist
attack...synchronized with an attempt to smuggle new groups of terrorists and weapons
from Albania...The Yugoslav Army (VJ) did not cause the recent incidents and will not
cause any in the future. When the state border is threatened and the installations and VJ
members are attacked, VJ units will act in line with the combat requirements."
 On April 23, as the ARTA news agency reported "military-police" attacks "against
five villages of Decan" involving "artillery...APCs, tanks and soldiers of [army] units;" JNA
spokesmen claimed to have won a night-long firefight against 200 Kosovo Albanian
"infiltrators" entering Kosovo over the Albanian border.
 The JNA build-up has coincided with a well-orchestrated series of official leaks to
Belgrade state- run media alleging Albania's support for the KLA. An April 11 report from
the Belgrade daily "Dnevni Telegraf" quoted a "high ranking offer of the Yugoslav Army"
describing "terrorist training centres" in Albania: "Albanian terrorists from Kosovo were
trained by retired American and German officers and the training was conducted according
to the high standards of mixed military-police practice...[Albania's ex- President] Sali
Berisha recruited people for his own security from these ranks."
 Among the key demands dropped by the Contact Group at its Rome meeting was
the requirement that independent forensic experts be allowed to investigate allegations of
atrocities and possible war crimes against civilians in Kosovo. In a letter to the Contact
Group, on the eve of their meeting in Rome, The US-based NGO Physicians for Human
Rights (PHR) declared that Milosevic is violating international agreements by refusing to
grant visas to international forensic experts to investigate recent killings of ethnic Albanian
civilians by Serbian security forces reporting to President Milosevic. PHR appealed to the
Contact Group to "press Slobodan Milosevic" to allow the investigations on behalf of the
International War Crimes Tribunal.
 Highlighting the importance of war crimes trials in conflict areas, former
International War Crimes Tribunal Prosecutor Richard Goldstone urged the international
community to "find where responsibility should be laid" for "the circumstances in which
innocent civilians and particularly innocent women and children were slaughtered [in
Kosovo]." Recalling his early indictment of Serbian leader Milan Martic for the shelling of
Zagreb, Goldstone said that a similar move by the current Prosecutor "would have an
important effect, I have no doubt. It is that sort of deterrence that is important."
 Belgrade's official news agency Tanjug welcomed some elements of the Contact
Group agreement, while the Kosovo Albanian leadership voiced worry about the results it
would have on the ground in Kosovo. Tanjug especially welcomed the shift in
requirements for dialogue noted above: "First and foremost, it is phrased as an invitation
to dialogue, and not as a  threat, and makes no specific mention of individual Yugoslav
leaders who  have so far, mostly in similar statements, in an astounding ignoring of the
facts, been blamed for the situation in Kosovo and Metohija and had  peremptory
demands put to them on no grounds at all." Agence France Presse, however, quoted a
close advisor to Kosovo Democratic League President Ibrahim Rugova as saying,
"sanctions proposed by the Contact Group are unimportant...but they will not make
Serbian authorities accept a dialogue with international mediation."
 It has become clear that the Contact Group's diplomacy has no threat of force
behind it. National Public Radio reported yesterday that the Pentagon vetoed a recent
State Department proposal to send an American aircraft carrier to the Adriatic Sea as a
"military message" to President Milosevic, highlighting the administration's reluctance to
put greater political and military weight behind peace efforts in Kosovo. An column in
Thursday's Washington Post, citing unnamed official sources, charges that the Clinton
administration has "quietly pigeonholed" the Kosovo "christmas warning" threat of force
against Belgrade made by the Bush administration, and repeated early in the Clinton
administration. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has been left "without recourse to a
credible military option" on Kosovo policy within the Western alliance and vis-a-vis
Belgrade.
 Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott travelled across Europe in the run-up to
the Rome Contact Group meeting, soliciting support for Washington's compromise
"dialogue and stabilization package." While in Europe, Talbott visited capitals of the
Contact Group member states, as well as Tirana and Warsaw. An April 23 Reuters report
from Belgrade quoted extensively from unnamed diplomatic sources, revealing underlying
splits within the Contact Group on Kosovo:  " æIf the aim is to contain the crisis inside
Yugoslavia, the logic should be driving the Contact Group towards cooperation rather than
confrontation with Milosevic'...European countries have blamed the United States and its
animosity towards Milosevic for complicating the diplomatic process." However, the article
predicted indicated that the United States would be willing to begin dismantling the outer
wall of sanctions in order to secure foreign mediation of talks between Belgrade and
Pristina and said that Talbott's visit has "signaled a more even-handed approach aimed at
getting the Albanians to enter talks."
 While in Tirana on April 21, Talbott ruled out deploying US peacekeeping troops to
Kosovo, saying "the United States does not contemplate the deployment of troops in
Kosovo."  Four days earlier, an Italian Foreign Ministry statement released after a meeting
between Talbott and Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini stated that the two "stressed a
strong message...demanding... from the Kosovars that they explicitly give up pursuing
political objectives with the use of force."
 A split in the ruling Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) party and a recent
declaration by the Prime Minister of the Kosovo government-in-exile, Bujar Bukoshi,
highlighted growing political divisions in the Kosovo Albanian leadership. Hydajet Hyseni,
an influential former LDK vice president, announced April 14 he would "organize the New
LDK, giving it the character it lost, the character of a national movement." The split
emerged following the LDK's February party congress. Warning LDK leader Ibrahim
Rugova not to settle for autonomy rather than independence, Hyseni declared that the
new LDK "aims at raising the flag of Kosova's independence, if the flag is put down
because of some autonomy, special status or autonomous republic within the leftovers of
Yugoslavia." In an interview with the Belgrade independent daily, Nasa Borba, Bukoshi
warned that he would only accept "full independence" for Kosovo and that any agreement
providing for limited political autonomy would prove temporary: "when a child is born, it is
illogical to assume that this child will not grow up and get an education."
 Adem Demaci, head of the Parliamentary Party of Kosovo, the largest Kosovo
Albanian opposition party, last week refused to condemn the Kosovo Liberation Army. "I
do not have the right to condemn people who are defending their families," Demaci said,
calling the Kosovo Liberation Army "the consequence of the Serbian repression of the
Albanian people."
 Shouting "Freedom, Freedom," and "Drenica, Drenica," Kosovo Albanian
protesters took to the streets for the twenty-first straight day on April 30. ARTA news
agency reported that demonstrators in Pristina numbered in the "thousands," and
"addressed their message to the international factor, particularly to the Contact Group
gathered in Rome, requesting it to undertake adequate and urgent steps against
Belgrade's regime in order to stop the violence against the Kosova Albanian population."
 Countering the protest, however, Serbian demonstrators carrying Serbian flags and
singing nationalist songs, and joined by Serbian police using water cannons and armored
vehicles, successfully blocked the planned re-opening of three Pristina University of three
faculty buildings to ethnic Albanian students. The event was to be part of an
implementation deal recently agreed to by Pristina and Belgrade to put into practice the
Sant'Egidio agreement signed by Rugova and Milosevic in September, 1996.
 This week's declaration of support by Albania's Prime Minister Fatos Nano for "self-
defense" groups in Kosovo, and the build-up of JNA troops on the Yugoslav-Albanian
border underscored growing regional tensions between Belgrade and Tirana. Albania's
Prime Minister Nano formally called on NATO yesterday to police the Kosovo-Albanian
border, citing "the risk of armed conflict importation." Three days earlier, ex-President
Berisha called on NATO to establish a no-fly-zone over Kosovo.
 In a speech to his cabinet on April 28, Nano stressed that to condemn the armed
ethnic insurgency in Kosovo, saying that the crisis was an Albanian national responsibility.
"Serbian propaganda considers these actions as terrorist acts, but in reality they are the
actions of self-defense against Serbian pathological and traditional violence."  Defending
the armed insurgency in Kosovo,  Nano asserted that "This should be a priority for our
diplomacy and all the administration, the Ministry of Local Authorities, the Ministry of the
Interior, the Ministry of Defense, our specialized service of National Security, and so on."
This language represents a substantial shift in the Kosovo policy of Nano, who met with
Milosevic in an attempted warming of relations only a few months ago.
 The statement followed a Friday press conference at the United Nations by the
Yugoslav Ambassador to the UN, who charged that Albania was training and equipping
terrorists to go to Kosovo: "We expect from the United Nations...to hold Albania
accountable" for violations of international law. On April 28, Russian Foreign Mininster
Yvgeny Primakov echoed the charges, accusing Albania of harboring "camps for training
terrorists," and demanded that the Yugoslav-Albanian border be sealed.
 Casting doubts on the  apparently robust "no" vote in Thursday's referendum on
whether Serbia should accept foreign mediation in the Kosovo conflict, local media and
NGOs have alleged fraud in the conduct of the referendum. The referendum commission
secretary said that "all of Serbia" came out for the elections. Belgrade authorities declared
this weekend that 73% of the electorate voted, and that 94.7% of those who voted were
against foreign mediation. The Belgrade-based Center for Free Elections and Democracy,
however, has pointed out that each of the  Vojvodina, Sandzak and Kosovo minority
communities announced a boycott of the referendum, pointed out that the number of
voters claimed in the referendum far exceeded the number of ethnic Serbs in Serbia.
Rasim Ljajic, head of the Sandzak Coalition, accused the referendum leaders of
presenting "inflated and fabricated turnout percentages." The lead-up to the referendum
was marked by exhortations from ruling coalition members, including Serbian Renewal
Movement leader and one-time opposition member Vuk Draskovic, who according to a
report from the Belgrade-based official Serbian news service urged the voters to say no to
"demands from abroad." The referendum was criticized by representatives from the US,
UK, France, Germany, the OSCE and NATO among others, although Russia has refused
to criticize the measure, calling it "a sovereign right of Serbia."
 Despite the spreading violence in Kosovo, Belgrade continues to posture on
negotiations with Pristina over Kosovo's political status. In a letter to Rugova anticipating
"our forthcoming talks," Vice President of Serbia Ratko Markovic suggested "dialogue
without preconditions...any solution...should be in accordance with the principles of the UN
Charter, the OSCE Final Document and the standards of the Council of Europe...any
solution must guarantee equal civil and human rights of all." The letter went on to support
cooperation in "further implementation of the 1996 education accord." Both the Kosovo
Albanian continues to insist that any dialogue be held between Pristina and Yugoslav -- as
opposed to Serbian -- officials; both Pristina and the international community demand that
international mediators be present. Belgrade has vociferously opposed both demands.
 Representatives of ethnic minorities in Vojvodina, Sandzak and Sumadija tried to
take advantage of the positioning; the independent Belgrade news agency BETA reported
April 15 that the representatives offered to meet with Belgrade authorities "without any
domestic and foreign mediators" in order to discuss political autonomy arrangements in
those areas.
  For the past two weeks, Serbia's extreme nationalist Vice-Premier, Vojislav Seselj,
has sought to rally the Serbian people, calling war in Kosovo "not impossible." In a
television interview, Seselj, a former paramilitary chief who led ethnic cleansing operations
during the Croatian and Bosnian wars said that "some Western powers have constantly
been encouraging the Albanian separatists openly to start a war...[but the Albanians in
Kosovo]...know very well what is in store for them in a possible war." Seselj said that in a
war, the Kosovo Albanians would "have no chance whatsoever and may lose
everything...threatening to impose sanctions must not intimidate us to the degree that
would force us to sacrifice our territories ...We all fear sanctions, but we have to be
determined to endure them and organize ourselves much better than we did in 1992."
Seselj's campaign forms part of the blatant propaganda effort by state media to foment
popular anti-Albanian sentiment, as was done in Milosevic's past nationalist campaigns.
 Belgrade's crackdown in Kosovo again drew formal criticism from the international
community, including the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR), the
Council of Europe, the OSCE and the European Union. In an April 21 resolution on the
former Yugoslavia, UNHCR condemned "violent repression of non-violent expression of
political views in Kosovo, in particular the brutal police actions as well as the excessive use
of force against the civilian population," and called on FRY authorities "to comply with their
obligation to cooperate with the Tribunal, including with regard to events in Kosovo."
 Montenegrin President Milo Djukanovic, an outspoken foe of Milosevic's Kosovo
policy, visited Washington last week. Speaking at an April 22  press conference with US
Secretary of State Albright, Djukanovic, who had earlier denounced Milosevic's Kosovo
policy as a "failure," spoke out on the need for international mediation between Belgrade
and Pristina: "I believe that the dialogue cannot start at all without previous presence of a
third party." Belgrade has escalated its strident attacks on Djukanovic in anticipation of the
May 31 Montenegrin parliamentary elections, accusing him of treason and separatism.
Djukanovic Several other Montenegrin officials have also harshly criticized Milosevic for
his handling of Kosovo; Svetozar Markovic, Speaker of the Montenegrin parliament called
last week for the resignation of Serbia's Defense Minister for alleging that Tirnan was
actively aiding and equipping Kosovo terrorists. Djukanovic has come out in strong
opposition to proposals to elevate Kosovo to the status of a third republic within the FRY.
Two weeks ago, he released a plan calling for radical economic and political liberalization
across the FRY.

B) Kosovo "sliding into war"
 2. ARMY DENIES MOBILIZATION
B-92 News (Belgrade independent news agency) ù April 29, 1998

BELGRADE -- The Yugoslav Army has denied reports that  massive mobilisation of
reserve troops has begun in readiness for armed clashes in Kosovo.
 Belgrade daily Nasa Borba quotes the Army Information Centre as saying that
there is no mobilisation at all in progress, because there is no need for it. The army says it
is not involved in the internal conflicts in Kosovo, but merely securing the Yugoslav-
Albanian border.
 The head of the army security service, General Aleksandar Dimitrijevic, on
Tuesday briefed diplomats on recent border incidents. He also revealed details of what he
described as a huge quantity of weapons seized from terrorists at the border.
 The Albanian language daily Koha Ditore claims that four Yugoslav soldiers were
killed in conflicts on Tuesday. The report quotes and anonymous doctor from Djakovica
hospital, saying that the four had been killed in clashes near the village of Voks.

3. SERBS SEND MORE ARMS TO KOSOVO

Financial Times (London) ù April 28, 1998 (excerpt)
DECANI -- Belgrade sent fresh tanks, ammunition and military supplies to the troubled
Serbian province of Kosovo yesterday as preparations were made for another meeting to
discuss diplomatic options to bring peace to the southern Balkans.
 ...The Serbs used the lull to bring in extra supplies and reinforce scores of
checkpoints around Decani in south-west Kosovo.
 Meanwhile, Washington found itself increasingly isolated in calling for firm action
against Belgrade. The other five members of the international Contact Group are unlikely
to back a call from the United States for decisive action.
 Instead, diplomats from the six members meeting today in Rome are expected only
to agree on a more modest package of sanctions threatened at the London summit last
month.
 The package includes a threat to freeze Serb financial assets held abroad,
although most experts agree that Belgrade has had plenty of time to conceal them. At
Serb checkpoints, police warned journalists that they could become targets if tough
economic sanctions are imposed on Yugoslavia...

4. SERBS POURING INTO KOSOVO AS ALBANIAN REBELS PREPARE FOR
WAR

The Times (London) -- April 27, 1998
 EREC -- Kosovo was sliding into war yesterday, as Serbian police and Yugoslav Army
units flooded the province's western flank in unprecedented strength while rebel Albanian
fighters emerged from front-line trenches in broad daylight. More casualties were reported
on both sides, for whom events on the ground are now a world away from the diplomatic
niceties being exchanged among Western  governments singularly unable to get to grips
with Kosovo's intractable ethnic hatred.
     The Serbs no longer care about sanctions and are fully prepared for the international
opprobrium that would accompany a major offensive. The Albanians,  their supply lines
apparently cut, are prepared to fight to the death with what pathetic weaponry they have
managed to smuggle in over the past months.
     The battle for Kosovo has shifted from the province's central Drenica region to its
western Decani borderlands, separated from Albania by the "Cursed Mountain" range. The
territory is less hilly than Drenica, and ideal for the helicopters, tanks and armoured
vehicles now openly deployed by the Serbs in defiance of every international warning
Belgrade has had for the past two months.
     The propaganda machines of both sides were spewing misinformation at full tilt
yesterday, with figures and facts from the Serbs slightly more reliable. They admitted three
Albanian guerillas had been killed in overnight fighting west of Decani town in the border
foothills. The Albanians said that more than 20 of their fighters had died, overwhelmed by
what they described as between 20 and 60 army tanks and special units dropped by
helicopter in the small hours.
     No independent confirmation was possible because all roads leading west of the axial
Pec-Dakovica highway towards the border were closed by police. To the east of the road,
the Albanian resistance dug in for what promises to be a hopelessly one-sided fight.
     Dodging a group of horses while driving down a back track to check very dubious
Serbian reports that Albanians had blown up an Orthodox church near the village of Rznic,
journalists were suddenly looking down the barrels of well-worn shotguns. A peasant
farmer army, sporting anything from ancient pistols to Chinese submachine guns of the
1970s, metamorphosed from a network of bunkers and trenches dug around a ploughed
field.
     After months of speculation about a well-armed and uniformed resistance force, this
was apparently the real face of the Kosovo Liberation Army. The men, a group of about
twenty ranging in age from their 30s to their 60s, sons and grandfathers promising to
defend homes and families. They wore a ragged mixture  of denims, cotton checks and
leather, topped by nothing more protective than the odd baseball cap; some spoke only
Albanian, others German, and just a few, English...
     ...Searching our car at a checkpoint, police chuckled knowingly as we said we had
driven the road to Rznic, where they had abandoned their station last month  ago. A
cocky, aggressive young officer asked us for the scores of the American basketball
playoffs, and professed his love for full-contactkick-boxing. It was a typical checkpoint
conversation; on many posts we are now on first-name terms with officers who remind us
daily to tell the world of Serbia's unrewarded fight to save Europe from Islam.  They are
words that echo from the Bosnian war. No Albanian we have met has ever mentioned
anything about Islam, but few in Kosovo now talk of compromise.

5. FIRE ON THE BORDER
ARTA (Pristina independent news agency) ù selected news summaries

COMBAT CONTINUES - THE FRONT LINE REMAINS THE SAME
April 29, 1998
DECAN -  Sporadic shootings in Baballoç  were heard around 0400CET, as they turned
into serious shelling later on, "KOHA Ditore" sources from the ground claim. The same
sources inform that despite the attack, the police could not get close to the village. There is
strong resistance among the Albanian side, who are defending their homes.
     No information has been given on the killed or the wounded. The risk from snipers is
big, since they are settled in Suka e Baballoçit -- a very convenient strategic point targeting
every movement in Sukë and the surroundings. Large military forces are continuously
arriving along the border with Albania, Albanian sources inform.
     The police station in Deçan, received a large amount of weapons and ammunition. 15
military and police vehicles, including a transporter loaded with a tank on which a cannon
was installed, reached Deçan from the direction of Pejë, witnesses claim.
     The passers-by are continuously being maltreated. The stores are closed and the
provision with food is becoming very difficult.  The schools are also closed. The living
conditions are getting worse every day, thus the local subjects are appealing for urgent
interventions.
     The only happy news yesterday was that there were no new fleeing of the population
from the besieged area.

POLICE SHOOTING AT THE FUNERAL IN PRELJEP
April 29
DECAN - Police shot in the direction of the mass of people, who were on their way to
Prejlep to bury the three Albanians, killed during the Serb military attack in the villages of
Hulaj and Voksh, LDK's Information Commission branch in Deçan informs. For the time
being, there are no information on the killed or wounded.
     On the other hand, the news issued by some foreign news agencies and media, about
the death of 8 Albanians killed in Gllogjan by the special Serb units, was not confirmed by
the local sources in Deçan.
     According to Kosova Information Center (KIC), the Serb police claims to have taken an
action against the "operative headquarters" of the KLA in Glogjan, a couple of days ago.
Only one part of IDPs receive assistance. The number of IDPs from the new conflict area
surpasses 3500.

LOCAL POPULATION FEARS ANOTHER BLOODY POLICE OPERATION
April 28
MALISHEVE - Four military trucks that transported police up the forest on the right side of
the road in Llozicë, municipality of Malishevë, are stationed there since last Friday, local
sources inform.
     All schools are closed due to fear. Tens of trucks, loaded with policemen got stationed
yesterday, near the locality of "Javor", raising the Serbian national flag there.  The local
population fears another bloody police attack. The situation is very tense with high
probability of eruption.

MILITARY TROOPS CONTINUE TO ARRIVE IN KOSOVA FROM NIS
April 28
PODUJEVE - Military troop reinforcements are arriving and settling in Kosova. A military
convoy, made of APCs, trucks and buses loaded with soldiers, was seen coming in
Kosova today at 1130CET from the direction of Nis, CDHRF branch in Podujevë sources
state.
     Shootings were heard during last night in different parts of the town, starting from
2100CET, according to the same sources. There are no information on the authors or the
damages.
     A group of 30 policemen, observed the terrain from "¦uka e Shakovicës" as far as
"Kulinë" last night. The police stood there with APCs and cars. The habitual peaceful
protests of the Albanian citizens started today at 1200CET but lasted more than usual.
When the police saw that the protesters were not dispersing, while the shouting of over
30.000 protesters were getting louder, they called for help from the special police units,
who arrived ready to intervene. Then the mass started dispersing. Two protesters were
taken in by the police at that time. Nothing is known of them ever since.

EVERY 50 METERS, TWO POLICEMEN
April 27
MITROVICE - Large Serb police forces, settled today on both sides of the road Mitrovicë-
Skënderaj, local sources inform. They also confirm the presence of two policemen in every
50 meters, on both sides of the road.
     Sources claim that 20 different vehicles: four buses, three trucks, four jeeps, three land
rovers, one APC, two cars "Zastava 101" and one ambulance car loaded with policemen,
headed in the direction of Skënderaj at 0845CET.
     Another APC, one bus, two jeeps and one ambulance car, loaded with policemen,
escorted by the police, headed from Mitrovicë in the direction of Skënderaj.

6. INSIDE A REBELLION: BANKING ON WAR

The Christian Science Monitor -- April 15, 1998 (excerpts)
WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, ARRAU ù  ...Bardhyl Mahmuti, Jashar Shalihu, and Bilall
Sherifi have abandoned peaceful protest for armed struggle, one the United States and
other powers are scrambling to keep from erupting into a war that could engulf the region.
 The trio is helping run international fund-raising for the Kosovo Liberation Army
(KLA), funneling cash from Albanians in the US, Europe, and elsewhere to buy weapons
for rebels fighting for Kosovo's independence from the iron-fisted rule of Serbia, which with
Montenegro is all that remains of Yugoslavia.
 ...The KLA, they say, is buying arms in Serbia and Montenegro, flush with weapons
from the wars in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia. Arms are also known to flow in from
Albania.
 ..."The UCK has killed only members of the repressive state structure," said Mr.
Mahmuti, using the KLA's Albanian-language acronym. "One thing must be clear, the
repressive state structure is formed by officials in uniform ... and without uniform."
 ...He and his associates say they funnel to the KLA cash raised by sympathizers in
the large Albanian communities in Western Europe, the US, Turkey, and Australia.
Enraged by the slaughter of women and children in the Serbian assaults, these
communities are donating sums that Mr. Salihu puts at "tens of millions of dollars.
 ...Indeed, even senior US officials acknowledge that the Serbian crackdown has
brought fame and funds to the KLA, making it a serious threat to international efforts to
push Belgrade and moderate ethnic Albanian leaders into talks on restoring the province's
autonomy.
 The KLA fundraisers reject any accord short of independence for the province,
where ethnic Albanians, 90 percent of whom are Muslim, outnumber Christian Orthodox
Serbs 9-to-1. "The only legitimate negotiations can be to arrange the borders between
Kosovo and Serbia," declares Mahmuti. "Anything else signed will be good for nothing."
 ...The rebels, they say, do not intend to go head-to-head with the 20,000 Serbian
police and troops in Kosovo; instead, when ready, they will begin a guerrilla-style war that
will be so costly that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic will have to relinquish the
province.
 "Firstly, morale is on our side. The Albanians have nowhere else to go, while the
Serbs have to come from Belgrade to fight in Kosovo," explains Mahmuti, who appears to
be the group's ranking member. "Secondly, we are trying to equalize our differences. We
don't intend to buy tanks, but we have to have antitank weapons. We have no airplanes,
but we are trying to buy antiaircraft weapons."
 "When we have those weapons," he continues, "Serbia will sue for peace..."

C) Tirana-Belgrade relations worsening
7. FATOS NANO SPEECH TO NEW CABINET

Zeri i Popullit (Tirana pro-Government daily) -- April 26, 1998 (excerpts)
TIRANA -- The new cabinet will start its work with the highly exacerbated situation in
Kosovo, as Serb aggression continues and comes closer to our border.  The number of
Albanian victims of Serb terror grows daily, and this accounts for greater indignation and
hate among the Albanians toward Milosevic's terrorist policy.  As expected, the first actions
of armed resistance have started. Official Serb propaganda terms them terrorist acts,
though they are in fact actions taken in self-defense against pathological violence used on
the Albanian population in Kosovo.  The first refugees have started to arrive from the
Kosova villages.  Serbia in the meantime is keeping up its near-sighted policy devoid of
any perspective. A referendum took place yesterday in Serbia about international
mediation. It is understandable that Milosevic's "No" would win.  The Serb authorities are
appealing to the Serb diaspora across Europe to demonstrate in support of Yugoslav
policy toward Kosovo.
 Under these circumstances, the Albanian diaspora is quite right to become active
again with the usual maturity and patriotism that have constantly characterized it.  The
Contact Group will meet in Rome on 29 April.  In the meantime, the four-week deadline
that the Bonn meeting imposed on Milosevic expires precisely today. During this time, we
have kept in constant contact with the US and Western diplomats, and I have great hope
in the international support for Kosovo.  We should not forget, however, that this group is
not totally compact.
 Due to the critical situation that has been created, we are committed to following
developments very carefully and must take concrete measures, without disregarding a
single element that may be related to the Kosovo problem.  This should be a priority for
our diplomacy and all the administration, the Ministry of Local Authorities, the Ministry of
the Interior, the Ministry of Defense, our specialized service of National Security, and so
on. True, mature, and determined Albanian patriotism should stand out at these moments.
We should work without nationalist charges but with devotion, to accomplish our tasks in
defense of our national interests.  The Supreme Council of Defense met today to discuss
the security situation in the country following threatening moves by the Serb Army in the
vicinity of our state borders.  The meeting took the necessary measures to cope with this
situation. Considering the serious developments in Kosovo and in our border region, I wish
to emphasize that all the measures we have taken are in conformity with the already
published stands of the Albanian government toward the Kosovo problem, namely:
Condemn the aggressive Serb policy toward the Albanian people.  The Serb authorities
are responsible for the human tragedy that is occurring in Kosovo and the destabilizing
outcomes that the old nationalist and aggressive policy is producing in the Balkans.
Reiterate our demand to the international community to use all necessary means to
pressure the Yugoslav government and President Milosevic.
 Consider sanctions and an embargo against Yugoslavia as a means to resolve the
crisis. Reiterate our known stance that Albania is against changing borders by use of
violence, against terrorism and the arms trade. It is for the settlement of the Kosovo
question by peaceful means and dialogue.

8. WHO SUPPORTS TERRORISM IN KOSOVO?

Tanjug (Belgrade official news agency) ù April 26, 1998
BELGRADE -- Advocates of this option among ethnic Albanians are probably encouraged
not only by the open sponsoring of their terrorist actions  and banditism by the authorities
in Tirana, but also by some leading  western states in a more or less open manner.
 The latest in a series of serious border incidents which occurred four days ago at
the Yugoslav-Albanian border demonstrates that terrorist  gangs of ethnic Albanian
separatists are both armed and trained for their actions in Albania's territory.
 The incident in which the Yugoslav Army shattered a 200-strong terrorist group
clearly demonstrated the close links between Tirana and ethnic Albanian terrorist gangs in
Kosovo and Metohija.

D) Hard-liners use crisis To consolidate power
9. SERBIA'S STRONGMAN  PUMPS UP

Christian Science Monitor -- April 27, 1998 (excerpts)
     BELGRADE - ...According to some Western diplomats and local analysts, the 97
percent vote against foreign mediation represents a new mandate for Milosevic, confirming
his political recovery over the past year from the largest opposition street protests he has
ever faced.
     "Milosevic not only got people to say 'no' to the West," asserts independent  columnist
Stojan Cerovic.  "He got people to say 'yes' to him and his government."
     Beyond that, the referendum results will allow Milosevic to evade personal blame for
any new sanctions slapped on Yugoslavia by the Contact Group - the US, Russia, Italy,
Germany, France, and  Britain - for failing to pursue a political dialogue with ethnic
Albanian leaders. The group meets Wednesday in Rome to discuss such sanctions.
     Finally, Western diplomats and political experts say, the overwhelming vote - the
authenticity of which cannot be contested because of a lack of independent monitoring -
gives Milosevic new room in which to deal with Kosovo and Montenegro on his own terms,
not those dictated by the Clinton administration and its partners. Says political scientist
Aleksa Djilas, the son of the late Milovan Djilas, the  famed Yugoslav anti-communist: "If
Milosevic wants to be intransigent or difficult, he can say that the people support him. If he
wants to make concessions, he can do that, too."
 Many experts say Milosevic is in no hurry to resolve the Kosovo crisis. In fact, they
add, more bloodshed there may actually help him deal with his current difficulties, the most
immediate of which is actually the threat posed by President Milo Djukanovic of
Montenegro.
     "Kosovo is really capturing the attention of the international community, and who is
really paying attention to Milo Djukanovic and Montenegro right now and the institutional
challenge they represent to Milosevic?" asks a Western diplomat.
     Since defeating Milosevic's candidate in October, Mr. Djukanovic has become the
Yugoslav leader's greatest critic, blaming him for the Kosovo crisis and failing to implement
Western-style reforms. Some of Djukanovic's allies have suggested that Montenegro,
which has Yugoslavia's only seaport, might contemplate secession should Milosevic fail to
change his policies.  Djukanovic has further enraged Milosevic by lobbying Western
governments to exempt Montenegro from sanctions that have been maintained against
Yugoslavia since the end of the war in Bosnia. He was warmly welcomed last week in
Washington, where Secretary of State Madeleine Albright announced $ 6 million  in aid for
Montenegro, which accounts for just 5 percent of Yugoslavia's 12 million people.
     Milosevic has launched a counteroffensive against Djukanovic in which he is using
state-run Belgrade television and other media to accuse his foe of seeking to slice up
Yugoslavia by favoring an independent Montenegro.  More critically, the Milosevic-
controlled media is charging Djukanovic with backing the secession of Kosovo by
funneling arms and cash to ethnic Albanian rebels of the Kosovo Liberation Army. He has
been slammed for bringing ethnic Albanians into his government and pictured wearing
traditional ethnic Albanian headgear.
     The anti-Djukanovic propaganda is part of a strategy aimed at securing the pro-
Milosevic Socialist People's Party of Montenegro victory in May elections for the
Montenegrin assembly, analysts say. Should it succeed, the party could throw Montenegro
into political chaos and portend a recall drive against Djukanovic.  But if Djukanovic's
Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro and its allies  win, he could name deputies to
the upper house of the Yugoslav Parliament who could freeze proceedings there, including
the passage of constitutional reforms Milosevic must have to transform his office from a
largely ceremonial post into a strong presidency.
     "Montenegro is a very difficult problem that Milosevic is not sure how to solve," says
Vesna Pesic, one of Serbia's main opposition leaders. She says she worries that a
Djukanovic victory could spark violence in Montenegro between his government and
Milosevic's supporters.
 Because the anti-Djukanovic campaign depends on continued unrest in Kosovo,
analysts expect Milosevic to resist any moves to reduce tensions in the province at least
until after the Montenegrin elections. Even then, it remains to be seen how he will address
the bloodshed there. Some experts say that he could not survive politically by allowing the
secession of territory of such enormous symbolic importance to the Serb's history, culture,
and religion. They say that he will eventually seek an accommodation with ethnic Albanian
leaders that would confer considerable autonomy on Kosovo, perhaps elevating it  to the
status of a third republic of Yugoslavia, a solution favored by the Clinton administration.
     Other analysts disagree. They say Milosevic's rejection of foreign mediation indicates
he has already made up his mind to jettison Kosovo, where the 2 million ethnic Albanians
outnumber Serbs 9 to
1. But in order justify to his people a decision that many say would constitute their greatest
historical calamity, Milosevic will have to wait for the price of holding onto Kosovo to reach
an intolerable level. That means a lot more fighting, deaths, and refugees, and the
possible intervention of the US-led NATO alliance.
     Milosevic, warns a Western diplomat, "may have reached the decision that Kosovo
has to get worse before it gets better."

E) Contact Group diplomacy
10. CONTACT GROUP STATEMENT ON KOSOVO

Rome -- April 29,1998
 1. The Contact Group met in Rome on April 29 to decide on next Steps regarding
the increasingly dangerous situation in Kosovo, taking into account the report of the OSCE
Troika on developments since the Bonn Contact Group Ministerial.  They considered the
report an important and balanced contribution to the assessment of the situation.  The
Contact Group believes that the current situation is untenable.  The risk of an escalating
conflict requires immediate action,
 2. All members of the Contact Group are firmly opposed to independence for
Kosovo and to a continuation of the unacceptable status quo.  Immediate steps by the
parties to reduce tension and to begin an unconditional dialogue are indispensable, and
the only  way to reverse the deterioration in the situation and bring about a political
solution.
 3. The Contact Group condemns the increase in violence in recent days in Kosovo,
in particular the excessive use of force by the Yugoslav  Army, and the proliferation of
arms in the territory. The Contact Group rejects absolutely terrorism as a means of
bringing about political change as well as all other violence to suppress political dissent.
The Contact Group calls on political leaders in the FRY and in the countries of the region
to exercise maximum restraint, full respect for human rights, to prevent  the .introduction of
arms and of armed groups from outside, and to condemn terrorism.  It also calls on the
countries of the region to confirm the respect for territorial integrity and for the inviolability
of internationally recognized borders.
 4.   The Contact Group is not seeking to impose any particular outcome for the
resolution of the differences between Belgrade and Kosovo Albanian leadership.  It is for
the parties themselves to determine a solution to the political status of Kosovo through
negotiations.  The Contact Group notes that representatives of Belgrade and Pristina have
recently stated their general willingness to open unconditional dialogue.  But the two sides
have yet to agree with full authority on modalities for talks, particularly on the issue of
international participation.
 5. The Contact Group regards an appropriate international involvement as an
essential factor to establish confidence between the parties and to facilitate talks.
 6. To begin the urgent process of dialogue, the Contact Group recommends,
and urges both Belgrade and Kosovo Albanian leadership to adopt, a framework for
dialogue and a stabilisation package:
  a) The framework should be based on fundamental principles that the
parties must accept, such as rejection of violence for achieving political goals, no
preconditions, mutual respect, accordance with standards and principles of the OSCE and
of the UN Charter, mutually agreed modalities, and protection of all individuals and ethnic
groups.  There should be mutual assurances, which the Contact Group itself will support,
that the parties will not abandon nor seek to undermine an agreement once it is reached.
   The framework for dialogue must be formally endorsed by the top
leadership in Belgrade and the leadership of the Kosovo Albanians.  The respective
leaders must take -political responsibility for initiating good-faith talks.  The framework must
provide for international involvement in facilitating substantive negotiations.
  b) The stabilisation package must include, as the minimum:
      Cessation of repression by the Authorities in Belgrade, as specified
in UNSCR 1160, and a strong condemnation of terrorism by the Kosovo Albanian
leadership.
  * Reopening of the OSCE missions in the FRY,  including Kosovo.
    Concrete inter-communal confidence building measures, including
implementation of the education agreement according to the agreed timetable.  The
Contact Group appreciates and encourages the work of Sant' Egidio Community in this
field.
 7. The Contact Group attaches the highest priority to the immediate launching
of the Gonzalez mission which  is essential for substantial progress in the relationship
between  FRY and the international community. This  mission  is also meant to reduce
tension restore confidence and improve general prospects for dialogue, The top
leadership in Belgrade should therefore immediately  invite the Gonzalez mission to start
its work..  The Contact Group fully supports the OSCE, Chairman-in-Office in his efforts to
facilitate this mission.
  8. If the leadership in Belgrade agrees to the framework for dialogue, the
stabilisation measures listed in para. 6 are implemented, the Gonzalez mission is launched
and substantive talks begin,  the Contact Group will promote a clear and achievable path
towards Belgrade's full integration in the international community, including participation in
the OSCE.  We want the FRY to reap the benefits of membership in international financial
and political institutions.
 9. Crucial requirements set out in the Contact Group's statements of 9 and 25
March have not yet been met.  We have therefore decided to take action to put into effect
a freeze on the funds held abroad by the FRY and Serbian Governments.  If Belgrade
takes the steps in paragraph six to bring about negotiations, we will immediately reverse
this decision.  We have also decided that if dialogue is blocked because of Belgrade's
non-compliance we will by the 9th of May, take action to stop new investment in Serbia.
The Russian Federation does not associate itself with these measures.
 10. If unresolved, the situation in  Kosovo  threatens to spin over to other parts
of the region.  The Contact Group attaches  high priority to supporting the security interests
of the neighbouring States and to ensuring security of borders.  It is of particular
importance that developments in Kosovo should not disrupt progress in 'implementing the
Dayton/Paris peace agreement in Bosnia, to which the Government in Belgrade is
committed.  The Contact Group will contribute to the strict implementation of Res- 1 160,
working also with the U.N. and other relevant international fora.
 11.      The next meeting of the Contact Group will take place in Paris in May.

11. FOR KOSOVO TALKS, US WOULD LET SANCTIONS EBB

Los Angeles Times -- April 28, 1998 (excerpt)
WASHINGTON--The Clinton administration will suggest a gradual  lifting of remaining
sanctions against the rump Yugoslavia if President Slobodan Milosevic agrees to a
negotiated settlement  of the crisis in Kosovo, a senior official said Monday.
  In an effort to pressure Milosevic into unconditional negotiations with Kosovo's
ethnic Albanians, who make up 90% of the population of the Serbian province, U.S.
representatives will offer a package Wednesday of incentives and sanctions to the six-
nation Contact Group on the Balkans meeting in Rome, the official said.
 "If the Yugoslav government accepts--and implements--our framework for
negotiations, we are prepared to offer some fairly attractive incentives," the official told
reporters. But if Milosevic refuses to go along, he added, Washington wants new sanctions
to "kick in automatically."
 The official did not detail either the incentives or the sanctions, although he said the
rewards "are fairly obvious" and include an offer by the United States and its allies to try to
re-integrate Yugoslavia, consisting of Serbia and the much smaller Montenegro, into the
world economy.
 Another senior official said earlier that "the cupboard of additional sanctions is
almost bare but not entirely bare." He added: "It is very important that Rome offer some
incentives for good behavior in the future but not rewards for what has been pretty bad
behavior in the past."

12. SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL HOLDS BACKGROUND BRIEFING
ON U.S. POLICY IN KOSOVO

WASHINGTON -- APRIL 27, 1998 (excerpts)
 OFFICIAL: There was a dramatic escalation last week, in the latter part of last
week, on the part of the government of Yugoslavia as a result of their decision to send in a
significantly -- significant and very large number of VJ, which are the Yugoslav troops, into
Kosovo, primarily to fortify their border, which is, of course, theoretically the right of any
country -- but also to, at the same time, add significantly to their capabilities in the interior
of Kosovo.
 This raises the ante a great deal, because up until now, the Yugoslav army, the VJ,
has been used exclusively or virtually exclusively in Kosovo for border control purposes.
And as I say, every country certainly has the right to defend its own borders, even to field
(ph) its own borders if it wishes.
 But in addition to that, there has been significant concern in this government as a
result of the press statement issued by the Yugoslav Ministry of Defense on Friday in
which -- which I think was referred to certainly in one AP dispatch I saw from Belgrade, in
which they threatened the idea of a war in Kosovo and also make extremely provocative
statements about potential intentions regarding Albania -- basically, I think making
statements which could be interpreted very easily as threatening to invade Albania.
 But at the same time, it is balanced with an appropriate group of potential punitive
measures to add to it...
 QUESTION: When you talk about the need in the event of lack of agreement in the
Contact Group for a stronger U.S. role, you're not talking, are you, about a military
presence -- a U.S. military presence in Kosovo or in the -- on the Albanian border? And in
the same connection, when you're answering that rather odd question...
 OFFICIAL: I'm talking about diplomacy.
 QUESTION: Yes, OK. And could you also just tell us what is the status of the
Christmas warning?
 OFFICIAL: As we have said before, we don't rule anything out. We don't rule any
options out.  But what I'm talking about here for the Contact Group meeting really relates
to diplomatic, political, economic initiatives.
 We're talking about trying to establish the basis for a negotiation between the
Belgrade authorities under the direct and public responsibility of President Slobodan
Milosevic on the one hand and the Kosovo Albanians on the other.
 So far, Belgrade has tried to foreclose options and conclusions and prejudge
outcomes by (a)  establishing a negotiating team under the leadership of the Serbian
government as opposed to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia government. And we all
know it's President Milosevic who is the only one who makes decisions anyway. And (b)
they have consistently issued statements saying that they would be prepared to negotiate
on the basis of an agreement regarding the future of Kosovo inside Serbia.
 That, for us, prejudges outcomes or discards outcomes automatically.  Once again,
we don't have -- we don't have a preferred outcome. But we feel that the two limits of this
negotiation have to be no independence and no status quo, and everything else should be
open for discussion.