Russia insists on collecting arms in Kosovo

Russia insists on collecting arms in Kosovo, disbanding mobs
Itar-Tass - June 6, 2004 Sunday

By Yelena Volkova

MOSCOW, June 6 - Russia deems it necessary to take tough measures against masterminds of mass rioting and looting in Kosovo, said on Sunday Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko in connection with the killing on Saturday of a 17-year-old Serbian youth, Dimitrie Popovic, in Gracanice.

According to the diplomat, "the event is another crime, spearheaded against the Serbian community in Kosovo". "Resolutely denouncing acts of violence against Serbian population, we demand that the UN Mission and KFOR should take urgent and efficient actions to put things in order," Yakovenko stressed.

"The list of necessary moves is known. These are collection of weapons from population, disbanding organizations of gunmen and tough measures against masterminds and participants in looting of Serbian areas."

"We witnessed quite recently mass violence which resulted in an ethnic purge of the Serbian population in the province," the spokesman noted. "Russia resolutely denounced acts of terrorism and demanded that international missions and temporary bodies of Kosovo self-government take urgent measures to normalize the situation and to eradicate reasons for Albanian extremism. However, our called passed unheeded."

In Yakovenko's opinion, "it is very important now to prevent this case from turning into a new spiral of ethnic tensions in the province". "Responsibility for this will also rest with the leaders of the Albanian community in Kosovo," he underlined.

"The March events and the new tragic incident show how deep-rooted is ethnic intolerance in society, and many years will be needed to eradicate this intolerance," the diplomat claimed. "We are convinced that consistent and full implementation of UN Security Council resolution 1244 is the only way to establishing confidence in the province."

It is senseless to speak of any approach to high democratic standards, the more so, to fix periods of assessing their implementation as far as reasons for ethnic hatred persist in Kosovo and innocent people die of hands of armed extremists," Yakovenko stated.