Wednesday, March 28, 2001

By Ron Jensen, Kosovo bureau

SKOPJE, Macedonia — The top official in NATO minced no words Monday night in describing the situation blazing in the hills of western Macedonia.

"I believe that there are two options for the people of this country," Secretary-General Lord George Robertson said. "It’s a united Macedonia or another Balkan bloodbath."

Robertson met for more than two hours Monday evening with Macedonian president Boris Trajkovski. They were joined by European Union security chief Javier Solana, a former NATO secretary-general.

Press reports and idle talk before the meeting suggested the two visitors would ask Trajkovski to cease his military actions against the ethnic Albanian rebels and negotiate an end to the fighting. If so, the two men left the Macedonian parliament building disappointed.

Trajkovski said he received support from both men for the territorial integrity of Macedonia and reaffirmed the partnership between the European Union, NATO and his country.

But he said nothing about ending hostilities. In fact, Trajkovski said he would continue his policy designed to isolate the rebels "both militarily and politically."

A NATO spokesman in Brussels on Tuesday said Robertson did not carry a request for Macedonia to end its military actions. He said the message was to continue "firm" action and to stress political means to end the situation.

"There is a military component to the situation, but it’s not the final answer," said the spokesman. NATO policy does not permit identification of its spokesmen.

Asked if Robertson’s words "Balkan bloodbath" indicated the alliance’s fear that the situation was nearly out of control, the spokesman said they did not.

"We’re emphasizing what we’d like to avoid," he said, "not how far or how close we might be to something."

Robertson and Trajkovski met in the lobby of the parliament building about 7:30 p.m. and disappeared upstairs to talk, joined shortly thereafter by Solana. An 8:30 p.m. press conference didn’t start until nearly 10 p.m.

All three spoke, but they declined to take questions. Robertson answered one shouted from the gaggle of journalists. Did he ask the Macedonian president for restraint, he was asked.

"The government of this country has acted with considerable restraint, but also with determined firmness," Robertson said. "They have said they will continue with that policy that has been so successful so far."

In a statement earlier, Robertson said the people of Macedonia should reject the violence of the rebels, who claim they seek greater prosperity for ethnic Albanians inside the country.

"The violent option is no future for anybody," he said. He said a constructive dialogue within democratic institutions was the only answer.

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