Panic to lift emergency in Kosovo
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.TIRANA (AFP) - Milan Panic, the Yugoslav Prime Minister, said yesterday after a visit to Albania that he would lift the two-year state of emergency in Serbia's province of Kosovo - where Albanians form the majority of the inhabitants. Mr Panic announced the decision aboard the aircraft taking him back to Belgrade from talks with his Albanian counterpart, Alexander Meksi, in Tirana.
Mr Meksi made clear that the normalisation of relations between Yugoslavia and Albania would depend on how Belgrade dealt with the situation in Kosovo, where 90 per cent of the estimated 1.5 million inhabitants is of Albanian origin. Mr Meksi said Belgrade must lift the state of emergency, withdraw troops, send in neutral observers and restore full rights to the province's Albanians 'including the right to self-determination'.
Mr Panic's aides said the discussions between the two leaders 'were not easy' because of the 'intransigence' of the Albanians. Mr Panic said he had gone to Tirana 'with an outstretched hand'. He promised to see that human rights were respected in Kosovo and in the rest of Yugoslavia.
The visit was the first by a Yugoslav leader to Tirana since 1948. Mr Panic told journalists that lifting the state of emergency in Kosovo was within his powers, adding: 'I will to do it next week.' However, he said he would not withdraw the troops because Serbs and Albanians would inevitably fight if they left.
Scrapping the state of emergency could trigger a crisis between Mr Panic and Serbia's ultra-nationalist President, Slobodan Milosevic who, in 1986, exploited the Albanian 'threat' in Kosovo to whip up Serbian nationalism and win support for a crackdown on pro-independence sentiment in the province. After abolishing Kosovo's autonomous status, Mr Milosevic imposed a state of emergency in 1990 and called in federal troops to back up the police.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments