Dutch lead NATO's Macedonia role

BUNARDJIK, Macedonia -- The Netherlands has taken charge of NATO's peacekeeping force in Macedonia -- its most high-profile command since the ill-fated Srebrenica incident during the Bosnian war.

The Dutch are contributing some 300 soldiers to the 700-strong Operation Amber Fox mission to protect international monitors.

The monitors are overseeing a peace process set in motion after last year's armed conflict in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

Asked if the new mission was an attempt to rehabilitate the Dutch military's reputation, the commander, General Jan Harm de Jonge, said: "I have nothing to do with that. I'm here to perform a mission, that's why I am here and that's what I have been trained to do."

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About 7,500 Bosnian Muslims were massacred in execution-like slayings during one week in July 1995 after Serb forces took over Srebrenica from the control of Dutch military.

A report into the incident, released in April this year, blamed the Dutch army for handing over Muslim civilians to Serb forces despite fears of widespread killing. (Story)

The 7,600-page report by the Netherlands Institute for War Documentation said the Dutch government sent 200 ill-prepared troops to Srebrenica, and that the United Nations -- which had pledged to protect all Muslims who sought sanctuary there -- disregarded the dangers once Serb troops overran the enclave.

The Dutch may be the last nation to command the NATO mission in Macedonia.

The European Union aims to take over from the 19-member alliance in October, launching the first peacekeeping operation in its history. (Story)