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Al-Ahram Weekly 15 - 21 April 1999 Issue No. 425 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 15 - 21 April 1999 Issue No. 425
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Profile Features Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Balkans plan
THE CONFLICT in the Balkans shifted to the diplomatic front yesterday, when an informal meeting of the European Union discussed a six-stage German plan for peace in Kosovo.The draft plan, submitted by German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, includes the engagement of Russia and a greater role for the United Nations in the peace efforts, and calls for a 24-hour suspension of NATO air strikes as soon as Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic starts to withdraw troops from Kosovo.
The plan proposes that the strikes be permanently suspended once the withdrawal is completed within an agreed time frame, and that a heavily armed UN military force move in while the withdrawal takes place.
The plan also stipulated a return of Kosovo refugees and for Kosovo to be put under UN administration until a permanent settlement is agreed. It also insists on a cease-fire by ethnic Albanian rebels, who would be disarmed by the international force at a later date.
The plan outlines three stages before implementation can take place: approval by the G-8 (the seven richest Western powers and Russia), endorsement by the Security Council, then presentation to the Yugoslav leadership. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan briefed the EU leaders on his efforts to restore peace in the Balkans.
In a concession to Russia, the draft does not insist on a NATO peace force although it calls for a "robust" contingent of international troops under a single commander. Meanwhile, Russian President Boris Yeltsin stepped up his diplomatic efforts by naming former Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin as his personal envoy to deal with the conflict.
Despite the bad weather yesterday, NATO planes hit targets in Yugoslavia, including a hydroelectric plant and a company building in Belgrade, and slightly damaged a bridge linking the capital to the Adriatic port of Bar in Montenegro, Reuters reported.
Analyses and opinion:
