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Milosevic, Slobodan

Slobodan Milosevic Accepts Peace Plan for Kosovo Conflict

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

President Slobodan Milosevic of Yugoslavia accepted a peace plan for the Kosovo conflict today, agreeing to withdraw all Yugoslav military and police forces from the province within seven days and allow a 50,000-strong international force to police the area. The plan, negotiated between NATO and Russia, also calls for the establishment of an interim international authority to supervise the running of Kosovo and the establishment of new democratic institutions and elections. The deal does not propose a referendum on Kosovo's sovereignty, a key demand of the Albanian side, but rather provides for "substantial autonomy" within Yugoslavia.

Key Takeaways:

  • President Slobodan Milosevic accepted a peace plan for the Kosovo conflict, agreeing to withdraw all Yugoslav military and police forces from the province within seven days.
  • The plan, negotiated between NATO and Russia, calls for the establishment of an interim international authority to supervise the running of Kosovo and the establishment of new democratic institutions and elections.
  • The deal does not propose a referendum on Kosovo's sovereignty, a key demand of the Albanian side, but rather provides for "substantial autonomy" within Yugoslavia.
  • Nearly one million ethnic Albanian refugees are expected to return to the province as part of the peace plan.
  • The international force to police the area will be 50,000-strong, with many troops coming from NATO countries under NATO command.
  • The Yugoslav government will not be allowed to re-enter Kosovo, except for a small number of Serbs to guard key border posts and Serbian holy sites.
  • The refugees will be able to return to their homes, but many thousands of Serbs are expected to flee the province once their army and police have withdrawn.
  • The job of reconstructing Kosovo will be enormous, with many thousands of ethnic Albanian shops and homes burned and looted, and basic services like road transport and water supplies destroyed or heavily damaged by the air war.

Statistics:

  • 2.2 million people lived in Kosovo a year ago, about 90 percent of them ethnic Albanian.
  • Nearly one million ethnic Albanian refugees are currently living abroad as refugees, and several hundred thousand more are displaced from their homes.
  • As many as 5,000 ethnic Albanians have been killed by the Serbs, according to NATO.
  • The job of reconstructing Kosovo is expected to cost billions of dollars.

Sources:

  • The New York Times
  • Associated Press
  • Stephen Crowley/The New York Times
  • Captions: President Slobodan Milosevic, above, at a meeting with mediators yesterday (Associated Press); President Clinton briefly assessed the developments (Stephen Crowley/The New York Times); President Slobodan Milosevic, left, in Belgrade yesterday with Viktor S. Chernomydin of Russia, directly opposite him, before Yugoslavia accepted the peace plan for the Kosovo conflict (Associated Press)

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