U.S. wants dialogue between Macedonia and rebels

A Macedonian special police officer maintains a watchful eye from an armored personnel carrier

From CNN State Department Producer Elise Labott

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States continues to support Macedonia in its battle against ethnic Albanian rebels, but urges the government to use "proportionate and calibrated security measures" and to hold talks with Albanian moderates in the country, senior State Department officials said.

Talks could happen as soon as this weekend, officials said.

"The sooner the better," another senior State Department official added. He said the U.S. was "ready to facilitate if it would be helpful," but would not dictate any demands of either party.

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"They are the best judges of what will work, they need encouragement and hand holding to structure a kind of dialogue to produce results," he said

A Macedonian offensive against the rebels over the past few days resulted in the recapture of most rebel-held positions and caused rebels to retreat.

Extra troops were sent to the border with Kosovo by the U.S. and NATO to stop the flow of weapons and rebel fighters into Macedonia and to limit Kosovo's use as a safe haven by guerillas.

The U.S. and NATO have also increased security assistance to Macedonia in order to help it improve its military capability. This includes several unmanned armored vehicles equipped with surveillance systems.

In addition to stepping up bilateral cooperation with Macedonia on intelligence-gathering, the U.S. is also speeding up delivery of about $17 million in military aid to Macedonia already approved for this year, officials said.

But they are quick to warn while Macedonia's response to the rebels has been "measured" so far, the crisis was in "considerable danger of spreading," if Macedonian forces were to use harsh force against the guerillas.

"They have a legitimate right to self-defense," one official said. "But destroying villages and acting as Milosevic did ... that's not an appropriate response. They need a message early on. They need to understand they are under international scrutiny and they need to behave."

One official said the "worst-case scenario" would be if the rebels capitalize on the Macedonian crackdown and gain the full support of the ethnic Albanian population in the region, becoming a "popular destructive movement."

The official used the example of the Kosovo Liberation Army, which started as a small group of fighters but quickly grew as Milosevic repressed the Kosovar population.

"It totally radicalized the population," the official said. "And there is a danger of that happening now."

During meetings in the region, the official said he "didn't detect an unwillingness" on the part of the Macedonian government to deal with the Albanians' concerns. The current crisis has revealed "a level of frustration" among the population that indicated the Macedonian government "ought to deal with this a little faster," he said.

The Albanian-American community has been urging a more robust American involvement in the crisis, including endorsing talks with the rebels themselves -- an idea rejected by the Bush administration.

"The matter of resolving and advancing civil rights issues is a matter for a legitimate political parties and not a self-styled bunch of liberation army types. We don't think it is advisable to negotiate with them."

The U.S. has been urging members of the Albanian Diaspora, including Albanian-Americans, not to support extremist activity -- financially or otherwise.

"We told them an endorsement of the extremists is cutting the legs of moderate Albanian leaders," one official said. "It is working against the Albanians of Macedonia and Kosovo." Officials vehemently deny accusations by Albanian-American leaders that they are not doing enough to address the crisis.

"The charge that we are inactive is outrageous," one senior official said. "We have been working on these issues for years ... and have the contacts to be a credible interlocutor and get them to do the right thing."

But the European Union is also urging the United States to "exert more diplomatic pressure," the Swedish Ambassador to Washington told CNN.

"There needs to be a strong political signal that the U.S. is ready to play a role," said Ambassador, Jan Eliason, whose country currently holds the Presidency of the European Union. "They have a strong standing with the Albanian community."

Eliason added that if the crisis were to spiral out of control, a U.S. commitment to become more heavily engaged militarily, along with its NATO partners, would be "crucial."

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Macedonian Government
European Union
NATO

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