The Albanian parliament has passed a resolution calling for NATO forces to intervene in Kosovo to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe.

Last week the Albanian Prime Minister, Pandeli Majko, said only NATO could bring a rapid end to the Kosovo crisis and stop a wider, regional conflict.

Meanwhile the Russian Foreign Minister, Igor Ivanov, has blamed the ethnic Albanian rebel force, the KLA, for provoking the recent fighting in Kosovo.

Speaking to journalists in Moscow, Mr Ivanov urged both sides to support the current international peace effort.

Russia, which has consistently supported the Serbs since the break-up of communist Yugoslavia, says any peace deal must keep Kosovo within Yugoslavia.