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| Nato troops close Kosovo border | Nato troops close Kosovo border |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| Nato troops have sealed the northern borders of Kosovo after Serbs angry at its weekend declaration of independence ransacked two crossings. | Nato troops have sealed the northern borders of Kosovo after Serbs angry at its weekend declaration of independence ransacked two crossings. |
| Hundreds of protesters torched customs and police posts at Jarinje and Brnjak, manned by UN and Kosovo police. | Hundreds of protesters torched customs and police posts at Jarinje and Brnjak, manned by UN and Kosovo police. |
| Closing the borders will infuriate both Kosovo Serbs and Serbia's government, says the BBC's Nick Thorpe in Kosovo. | Closing the borders will infuriate both Kosovo Serbs and Serbia's government, says the BBC's Nick Thorpe in Kosovo. |
| The move cuts Kosovo's mainly Serb north off from Serbia, the country to which they insist they still belong. | The move cuts Kosovo's mainly Serb north off from Serbia, the country to which they insist they still belong. |
| See a map of Kosovo's ethnic breakdown | See a map of Kosovo's ethnic breakdown |
| Nato said it was shutting the crossings, initially for a 24-hour period. | Nato said it was shutting the crossings, initially for a 24-hour period. |
| Bulldozers and explosives | Bulldozers and explosives |
| The protesters arrived in convoys of cars and buses in what our correspondent says was clearly a carefully planned and coordinated action. | The protesters arrived in convoys of cars and buses in what our correspondent says was clearly a carefully planned and coordinated action. |
| Kosovo police and UN customs officials were forced to withdraw to a nearby tunnel as the crowds used bulldozers and explosives to demolish the border posts, according to witnesses. | Kosovo police and UN customs officials were forced to withdraw to a nearby tunnel as the crowds used bulldozers and explosives to demolish the border posts, according to witnesses. |
| Nato-led peacekeepers from K-For were called in and US, Estonian and French troops sealed the two border crossings. | |
| Serbia's minister for Kosovo, Slobodan Samardzic, said his government intended to take control of the customs posts to establish what he called the fully authority of Serbian statehood. | Serbia's minister for Kosovo, Slobodan Samardzic, said his government intended to take control of the customs posts to establish what he called the fully authority of Serbian statehood. |
| 'Second Kosovo' | 'Second Kosovo' |
| The attacks on the crossings and the Nato response put the international community on a collision course with both Kosovo Serbs and the Serbian government, our correspondent says. KOSOVO PROFILE Population about two millionMajority ethnic Albanian; 10% SerbUnder UN control since Nato drove out Serb forces in 19992,000-strong EU staff to take over from UN after independenceNato to stay to provide security class="" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/markmardell/2008/02/kosovo_lights_up_the_eu.html">EU fired up by Kosovo class="" href="/1/hi/world/europe/7251895.stm">Anger mounts in Mitrovica class="" href="/1/hi/world/europe/7249677.stm">Full text: Kosovo declaration He says that what is emerging on the ground is a second Kosovo. | |
| Prevented by Nato from partitioning the territory, he adds that the Kosovo Serbs are making life increasingly difficult for UN staff in the north-western areas where Serbs are in the majority. | Prevented by Nato from partitioning the territory, he adds that the Kosovo Serbs are making life increasingly difficult for UN staff in the north-western areas where Serbs are in the majority. |
| A preparatory team from the European Union, as well as a number of UN personnel, have withdrawn from the area on safety grounds. | A preparatory team from the European Union, as well as a number of UN personnel, have withdrawn from the area on safety grounds. |
| In Pristina, Kosovan Prime Minister Hashim Thaci said an isolated incident would not be allowed to diminish the glory of Kosovan independence. | In Pristina, Kosovan Prime Minister Hashim Thaci said an isolated incident would not be allowed to diminish the glory of Kosovan independence. |
| Meanwhile, Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic made an impassioned speech saying that Kosovo would never be a sovereign nation and would remain part of Serbia forever. | Meanwhile, Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic made an impassioned speech saying that Kosovo would never be a sovereign nation and would remain part of Serbia forever. |
| "For us, Kosovo is the crucible of our identity, it is the essential link between our past and our future," he told the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Vienna on Tuesday. | "For us, Kosovo is the crucible of our identity, it is the essential link between our past and our future," he told the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Vienna on Tuesday. |
| 'Dangerous consequences' | 'Dangerous consequences' |
| Earlier in the day, the EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, became the first international statesman to visit Kosovo since its independence declaration. | Earlier in the day, the EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, became the first international statesman to visit Kosovo since its independence declaration. |
| STANCE ON RECOGNITION For: Germany, Italy, France, UK, Austria, US, Turkey, Albania, Afghanistan Against: Russia, Spain, Romania, Slovakia, Cyprus Send us your comments | STANCE ON RECOGNITION For: Germany, Italy, France, UK, Austria, US, Turkey, Albania, Afghanistan Against: Russia, Spain, Romania, Slovakia, Cyprus Send us your comments |
| The US, Britain, France, Germany and Italy have all recognised the new state, but others have not. | The US, Britain, France, Germany and Italy have all recognised the new state, but others have not. |
| On Tuesday, Russia said the declaration of independence endangered international stability. | On Tuesday, Russia said the declaration of independence endangered international stability. |
| The warning was made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in a telephone conversation with his US counterpart Condoleezza Rice. | The warning was made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in a telephone conversation with his US counterpart Condoleezza Rice. |
| "We underlined the dangerous consequences of such a step, which threatens the destruction of world order and international stability which have developed over decades," the foreign ministry in Moscow said in a statement, following talks between Mr Lavrov and Ms Rice. | "We underlined the dangerous consequences of such a step, which threatens the destruction of world order and international stability which have developed over decades," the foreign ministry in Moscow said in a statement, following talks between Mr Lavrov and Ms Rice. |
| China has also expressed its deep concern, urging Pristina to reopen dialogue with Belgrade. | China has also expressed its deep concern, urging Pristina to reopen dialogue with Belgrade. |
| The UN Security Council is divided over how to respond to Kosovo's move, and it has failed to agree on any action. | The UN Security Council is divided over how to respond to Kosovo's move, and it has failed to agree on any action. |
| Ambassadors recalled | Ambassadors recalled |
| The Russian warning came just hours after US President George W Bush said the US would soon establish full diplomatic relations with Kosovo. | The Russian warning came just hours after US President George W Bush said the US would soon establish full diplomatic relations with Kosovo. |
| In a letter to Kosovo's President Fatmir Sejdiu, Mr Bush said he supported "your embrace of multi-ethnicity as a principle of good governance". | In a letter to Kosovo's President Fatmir Sejdiu, Mr Bush said he supported "your embrace of multi-ethnicity as a principle of good governance". |
| On Monday, the Serbian parliament passed a resolution condemning Kosovo's declaration of independence. | On Monday, the Serbian parliament passed a resolution condemning Kosovo's declaration of independence. |
| The resolution also formally annulled the acts of the government in Pristina, saying Belgrade's sovereignty over Kosovo was guaranteed by the UN and international law. | The resolution also formally annulled the acts of the government in Pristina, saying Belgrade's sovereignty over Kosovo was guaranteed by the UN and international law. |
| In a separate move, Serbia has recalled its ambassadors to the US, France and Turkey because those countries had recognised Kosovo's independence. | In a separate move, Serbia has recalled its ambassadors to the US, France and Turkey because those countries had recognised Kosovo's independence. |
| EU member states set aside differences over the recognition of Kosovo earlier this week by stressing that it was not a precedent for separatists elsewhere. | EU member states set aside differences over the recognition of Kosovo earlier this week by stressing that it was not a precedent for separatists elsewhere. |
| Spain and several other member states have withheld recognition because of concerns about separatist movements within their own borders. | Spain and several other member states have withheld recognition because of concerns about separatist movements within their own borders. |
| Serbian security forces were driven out of Kosovo in 1999 after a Nato bombing campaign aimed at halting the violent repression of ethnic Albanian separatists. | Serbian security forces were driven out of Kosovo in 1999 after a Nato bombing campaign aimed at halting the violent repression of ethnic Albanian separatists. |
| The province has been under UN administration and Nato protection since then. | The province has been under UN administration and Nato protection since then. |
| Back to link | Back to link |