RUSSIA: YUGOSLAV PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC MEETS BORIS YELTSIN

(16 Jun 1998) Natural Sound

The Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic has agreed to negotiate a peace settlement with Kosovo separatists, the Russian President Boris Yeltsin is quoted as telling a Russian news agency.

The two leaders met in Moscow on Tuesday to discuss NATO demands that Serbs stop their violent aggression against ethnic Albanians in the province.

Although critical of NATO's show of strength exercises in Macedonia and Albania, the Russian President is echoing the pressure on Milosevic to end the violence in Kosovo.

On Friday, Moscow backed the calls of Western leaders for Milosevic to withdraw forces from the province, but still has not imposed sanctions on Yugoslavia.

The Interfax news agency quoted Yeltsin as saying that negotiations with the Yugoslav leader at the Kremlin had not been simple.

But both delegations are now working on agreements which emerged from the first round of talks.

Most significantly, Milosevic is said to be prepared to meet representatives of the ethnic Albanians who make up 90 per cent of
the province's population.

Since March, more than 300 people have been killed as Milosevic's army and police have cracked down on Kosovo province.

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