Russians spurn Nato lead
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Your support makes all the difference.TENSION WAS mounting between Russia and Nato yesterday over the deployment of a peacekeeping force in Kosovo, as details of the peace deal continued to be thrashed out.
Boris Yeltsin and Igor Ivanov, the Russian Foreign Minister, met yesterday and demanded an immediate end to the bombing campaign. "Despite the reached accords, Nato's missile and bomb strikes are continuing," Mr Ivanov said, adding that this "continues seriously to worry us".
The Russians are also insisting that their troops sent to Kosovo should be under the control of a Russian, not Nato, general. A footnote to the G8 peace plan notes their requirement that the "Russian contingent will not be under Nato command".
However, Nato is adamant that there should be a single command and control structure, involving the Russians working alongside soldiers from other countries. Kosovo has been divided into five sectors, each to be occupied by a separate Nato force, led by the United States, Britain, France, Germany and Italy. Britain will occupy the central Pristina sector; the US will move into the eastern sector, bordering Macedonia. France will be in the west, Italy the north, and Germany in the south. Russia would be expected to operate in one of these. Jamie Shea, the Nato spokesman, said yesterday that Nato soldiers would be stationed "on every street corner".
Robin Cook, the Foreign Secretary, insisted yesterday that Russian troops would have to obey Nato orders. "There is not going to be an East German solution," he said. Russia "cannot operate independently and separately". The issue threatens to become a major sticking point of the implementation of the G8 proposals agreed by Slobodan Milosevic last week.
Yesterday, the Russian representative failed to turn up for talks on the withdrawal of Serb troops, a move interpreted as a sign of frustration. It would be possible for the Russians to veto a UN Security Council resolution on Kosovo if they are not satisfied. A draft resolution is now almost complete and will be considered by G8 foreign ministers tomorrow.
British government sources admitted that there were "difficulties" with the Russians. The document setting out the deal is contradictory, fudging the issue by saying both that the force should be under a "unified command and control structure" and noting the Russian demand for independence.
A possible compromise would be to deploy Russian troops in one of the five areas under effective Nato command, but with a Russian general at the force's headquarters. This would be similar to the situation in Bosnia, where Russian troops are stationed in the American zone.
It will be over a month before Nato's peacekeeping forces are fully deployed in Kosovo, according to US officials.
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