This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/europe/7132233.stm
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Nato confirms Kosovo commitment | |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Nato has confirmed it will maintain its troop contingent in Kosovo to deter violence that may follow the collapse of talks on the Serb province's future. | |
| At a meeting in Brussels, Nato foreign ministers are also expected to give the alliance's 16,000 Kosovo troops more license to tackle possible unrest. | At a meeting in Brussels, Nato foreign ministers are also expected to give the alliance's 16,000 Kosovo troops more license to tackle possible unrest. |
| Nato was criticised after it failed to prevent riots by ethnic Albanians in 2004 in which Serbs were attacked. | Nato was criticised after it failed to prevent riots by ethnic Albanians in 2004 in which Serbs were attacked. |
| Kosovo's majority ethnic Albanians want independence, but Serbia opposes this. | Kosovo's majority ethnic Albanians want independence, but Serbia opposes this. |
| The UN set a 10 December deadline for internationally-brokered talks to deliver agreement on Kosovo - but the talks have already ended without a deal. | The UN set a 10 December deadline for internationally-brokered talks to deliver agreement on Kosovo - but the talks have already ended without a deal. |
| Ethnic Albanian leaders have warned they may declare independence unilaterally after the deadline lapses, prompting fears of a fresh outbreak of violence. | Ethnic Albanian leaders have warned they may declare independence unilaterally after the deadline lapses, prompting fears of a fresh outbreak of violence. |
| Nato Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said on Friday that Nato would "act resolutely against anyone who seeks to resort to violence". | Nato Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said on Friday that Nato would "act resolutely against anyone who seeks to resort to violence". |
| Fears of flare-up | Fears of flare-up |
| The EU's mediator on Kosovo on Thursday criticised comments by Aleksandar Simic, an aide to Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, who said war could be a "legal tool" to resolve the Kosovo issue if other methods failed. | The EU's mediator on Kosovo on Thursday criticised comments by Aleksandar Simic, an aide to Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, who said war could be a "legal tool" to resolve the Kosovo issue if other methods failed. |
| Kosovo's Albanian leaders want nothing less than independence | Kosovo's Albanian leaders want nothing less than independence |
| "I do hope this statement was not authorised. I expect it to be retracted," Wolfgang Ischinger said. | "I do hope this statement was not authorised. I expect it to be retracted," Wolfgang Ischinger said. |
| Nato ministers agreed to keep the K-For peacekeeping force at its current level of 16,000. | |
| Nato officials say they hope the commitment to keep the troops will have a calming influence. | Nato officials say they hope the commitment to keep the troops will have a calming influence. |
| The alliance and the UN were criticised over the handling of the 2004 riots that left 19 people dead and dozens of properties destroyed. | The alliance and the UN were criticised over the handling of the 2004 riots that left 19 people dead and dozens of properties destroyed. |
| Russian opposition | Russian opposition |
| Though technically part of Serbia, Kosovo has been administered by the UN for the last eight years. | Though technically part of Serbia, Kosovo has been administered by the UN for the last eight years. |
| Belgrade's security forces were driven out of Kosovo by a Nato bombing campaign in 1999, launched to stop a violent Serb crackdown on ethnic Albanians. | Belgrade's security forces were driven out of Kosovo by a Nato bombing campaign in 1999, launched to stop a violent Serb crackdown on ethnic Albanians. |
| Thousands of international peacekeepers have been deployed in the province to prevent a return to violence. | Thousands of international peacekeepers have been deployed in the province to prevent a return to violence. |
| Russia has supported Serbia's stance at the UN Security Council, arguing that independence for Kosovo could provide dangerous inspiration for separatists elsewhere. | Russia has supported Serbia's stance at the UN Security Council, arguing that independence for Kosovo could provide dangerous inspiration for separatists elsewhere. |
| Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is also attending Friday's talks in Brussels. | Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is also attending Friday's talks in Brussels. |
| Kosovo's independence ambitions have the broad backing of the US and several EU nations but it is unclear when they will allow a declaration of independence by the province's ethnic Albanian leaders. | Kosovo's independence ambitions have the broad backing of the US and several EU nations but it is unclear when they will allow a declaration of independence by the province's ethnic Albanian leaders. |