Robin Cook, "Kosovo people already reaping benefits of peace"
Lieutenant General Sir Michael Jackson, "agreement is a turning point"
British soldiers in Kosovo have suffered their first fatalities, with two Gurkha soldiers being killed in an explosion as they cleared bombs dropped by NATO. Two civilians were also killed in the blast at a school, and a third was in a stable condition in a military field hospital in the Kosovo capital, Pristina. President Bill Clinton has telephoned the British prime minister Tony Blair to offer his condolences.
Earlier today, the British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, said that the people of Kosovo are already reaping the benefits of peace. Speaking via a live link from Luxembourg to the last daily war briefing at the British Ministry of Defence in London, Mr. Cook said that the Serbian province was returning to normality.
President Clinton has telephond the commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army to thank him for signing the deal to give up all weapons to NATO. The KLA signed the deal after Serb military met the NATO deadline of midnight last night to withdraw all its forces from Kosovo. The accord says that the KLA must follow a strict 90-day timetable for placing weapons in storage depots, taking down roadblocks and stopping its fighters from wearing military uniform.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Pristina, the head of the K-FOR peacekeeping force, Lieutenant-General Sir Michael Jackson, described the agreement as a turning point in NATO's mission to establish an enduring climate of peace and security for the people of Kosovo.
President Clinton also met European officials today at a United States-European Union summit, which focused on reconstruction aid for Kosovo and the stability of the Balkans. The American government has already made it clear that it believes Europe should pay the bulk of reconstruction costs. The German Chancellor, Gerhard Schroeder and the outgoing Commission President, Jacques Santer, was also be present.
