Nato forces mobilise against Serbs

FACED WITH a brazen show of defiance by the Yugoslav President, Slobodan Milosevic, Nato stepped up preparations yesterday for a possible military confrontation with Serbia over its treatment of Kosovo.

Nato ambassadors ordered planners to proceed with what officials insisted were "precautionary" measures. They shortened the notice required for ordering air strikes from 96 to 48 hours, ordered naval units in the Mediterranean to the Italian port of Brindisi, opposite Yugoslavia, and directed troops with the US 6th Fleet and the US aircraft carrier Enterprise to move from the Aegean to the Adriatic.

Tony Blair also made clear yesterday that Britain has not ruled out sending ground troops into Kosovo to force President Milosevic to desist.

"We are ready to take whatever action is necessary," Mr Blair told the Commons. Milosevic "risks a rapid military response from Nato" if he does not comply with United Nations Security Council resolutions demanding an end to the latest onslaught and a reduction in the level of the Yugoslav army and special police forces based in Kosovo. "We have to move with the rest of our allies, but we remain ready to act," Mr Blair said.

The US Defense Secretary, William Cohen, said the credibility of Nato was now "on the line." He said that any alliance military action would be aimed at reducing Mr Milosevic's ability to threaten the region.

Yesterday's Nato decisions reflect the urgent need to convince Mr Milosevic that there is a credible threat of force if he fails to comply with a list of demands, including full co-operation with the International War Crimes Tribunal.

But the international community remains split on military intervention and Nato is now facing a dilemma only deepened by the empty-handed return from Belgrade of the alliance's two senior generals after seven hours of face-to-face talks with Mr Milosevic on Tuesday.

Despite their ultimatum, he remained stubborn and inflexible and made clear he had no intention of complying with UN demands on Kosovo. He defended the "anti-terrorist" operation that led to the killings of 45 ethnic Albanians villagers in Racak at the weekend. "Blunt and obdurate" was the assessment of General Wesley Clark, the Supreme Allied Commander for Europe.

With its credibility at stake Nato must now be seen to react to the Serb provocations of recent days, and the conclusion of its own generals that the October agreement on troop withdrawals from Kosovo have been all but torn up by Belgrade. Politically, however, there is less agreement than ever on a military response. A flurry of diplomatic activity is expected over the coming hours and days in a last-ditch attempt to force Mr Milosevic into compliance.

The political picture has been immensely complicated since October by the presence of over 700 potential Western hostages on the ground. These are the unarmed teams of verifiers sent in by the OSCE to monitor Serb troop withdrawals after the October peace deal. Air strikes are therefore not a realistic option unless the monitors can be evacuated safely first.

Nato's "extraction force" in neighbouring Macedonia is not yet equipped to do that and its commanders have admitted they would have to rely on SAS units to organise a high-risk rescue operation.

Transatlantic divisions have also resurfaced. The Americans are talking up the threat of air strikes, insisting that the Nato Activation Order agreed in October, authorising the first phase of an air campaign, remains in place. But among European governments the view is that a new UN Security Council resolution may be needed to authorise force.

n Britain doubled its contribution to the Nato contingent preparing for possible action in Kosovo. The Secretary of State for Defence, George Robertson, announced Britain was sending another four RAF Harrier ground attack aircraft to join the four already there. The British frigate HMS Iron Duke was preparing to head for the Adriatic from Gibraltar.

Allies cautious as Nato force gathers, page 13