The United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, has urged the people of Kosovo to respect the spirit of democracy when they vote in their first municipal elections under UN rule tomorrow. The elections are being boycotted by Serbs, while the Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica has issued a joint statement with the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, saying that Kosovo must remain part of Yugoslavia. Officials overseeing the elections have warned that an organised campaign of violence by former guerrillas could disrupt polling in some areas.
Vladimir Putin said today that vital gas supplies to Yugoslavia, cut off when Belgrade failed to pay a $400m bill, would be resumed. The announcement was made in Moscow after a meeting between Mr Putin and Vojislav Kostunica. Mr Kostunica is on his first visit to Moscow since becoming President, regarded as the most sensitive foreign trip so far because of Russia's support for his predecessor, Slobodan Milosevic.
