BBC News Online: World: Europe

Moscow prepares for crisis talks

Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov has been meeting President Boris Yeltsin's special Balkans envoy Viktor Chernomyrdin to discuss a way ahead.

US President Bill Clinton's envoy, Deputy Secretary-of-State Strobe Talbott, arrived in Moscow on Monday. He is expected to underline Nato's view that Moscow has an important role to play in a final peace settlement in the Balkans.

(Click here to see a map of last night's Nato strikes)

A memorial service was held earlier on Monday in Belgrade for six of the dead, who were pulled from the ruins of Serbian television headquarters after a Nato missile strike on Friday.

And the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Cornelio Sommaruga, met three US servicemen who were captured by Serb forces in March.

Moscow's important role

Russian concern over the conflict in Kosovo has grown since the alliance announced plans for an oil blockade to intensify economic pressure on Serbian forces.

President Yeltsin and Mr Clinton spent more than an hour on the telephone on Sunday trying to overcome their differences.

But a Russia presidential spokesman said on Monday that none of the tasks Nato had set itself had been accomplished.

The Russian spokesman said a resolution was impossible without Russian involvement, and Mr Talbott would discuss that involvement, rather than joint initiatives.

Mr Talbott will meet Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, Mr Chernomyrdin, but the official said he was not expected to meet President Boris Yeltsin or Prime Minister Primakov.

Annan to appoint envoy

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who is on a visit to Germany, says he will appoint an envoy to work on a political solution to the crisis in Kosovo.

Mr Annan did not name the envoy, but reports say it is likely to be the former Austrian Chancellor, Franz Vranitzky, or the former Swedish Prime Minister, Carl Bildt.

In Luxembourg, European Union foreign ministers discussed tightening sanctions against Yugoslavia, including a ban on EU oil exports to it.

ICRC chief meets POWs

ICRC President Cornelio Sommaruga visited the three American soldiers who have been held as prisoners of war since 31 March.

A spokeswoman in Geneva said further details would be released later on Monday, after a meeting in Belgrade between the Mr Sommaruga and Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic.

The ICRC is trying to secure the return of Red Cross aid workers to Kosovo, to assist the hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people thought to be on the move in the territory.

The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says it is increasingly concerned about the fate of ethnic Albanians inside Kosovo, following repeated accounts of rape, murder and extortion.

Refugees reaching northern Albania from Kosovo say women and children are being held hostage at a Serb ammunition dump in the town of Prizren.

Nato attacks

Nato planes destroyed Serbia's last remaining bridge over the river Danube, in the northern Yugoslavian city of Novi Sad, after several direct hits during the night.

Hundreds of Yugoslav mourners in Belgrade attended the memorial ceremony for six employees at Serbian TV headquarters, after Nato missiles Friday struck it on Friday.

The attack collapsed two floors of the building, trapping employees inside. Yugoslav officials say 16 died in the attack.

The attack was criticised by, among others, the International Federation of Journalists. But Nato said it was a legitimate target because it spread propaganda.

Other top stories

• Milosevic rival attacks Serb 'lies
• Blair: Nato united
• KLA pleads for arms
• Montenegro warns of destabilisation
• A refugee diary

(click here to return)

Relevant Stories

Milosevic rival attacks Serb 'lies' (26 Apr 99 | Europe)
Nato tightens its grip (26 Apr 99 | Europe)
New refugee wave expected (26 Apr 99 | Europe)
Draskovic disputes claims of "victory" (26 Apr 99 | Monitoring)
Analysis: Nato sidesteps thorny issues (26 Apr 99 | World)
Clinton drops nuclear football (26 Apr 99 | Americas)
Montenegro warns of destabilisation (26 Apr 99 | Europe)
Nato seeks embargo solution (25 Apr 99 | Europe)
Life in the shadow of the strikes (25 Apr 99 | Europe)
A refugee diary (25 Apr 99 | From Our Own Correspondent)
KLA pleads for arms (25 Apr 99 | Europe)
Analysis: Keeping Russia on board (25 Apr 99 | Europe)
Nato pounds Serbs (25 Apr 99 | Europe)
First Kosovo refugees land in UK (25 Apr 99 | UK)
Nato: 'Leaner and meaner' (24 Apr 99 | World)
Refugees 'too scared to move' (24 Apr 99 | Europe)
Bombing threatens Serbs' environment (19 Apr 99 | Sci/Tech)

Internet Links

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