Kosovo PM quits after war crimes indictment

Kosovo PM quits after war crimes indictment
Financial Times (London, England) - March 9, 2005 Wednesday [London Edition 2]

By ERIC JANSSON

BELGRADE - Kosovo faces a heightened risk of unrest after the sudden resignation of Ramush Haradinaj, the province's prime minister, after he was served with an indictment for war crimes yesterday.

Mr Haradinaj, a former paramilitary commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army, announced his resignation after being served with an indictment by the United Nations war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

Kept secret by international prosecutors in The Hague, who even last night refused to reveal its contents, the indictment is believed to accuse Mr Haradinaj of responsibility for atrocities commited during the 1998-1999 Kosovo war.

The indictment is an important development in the western Balkan region, where the breakaway Serbian province of Kosovo remains the most volatile flashpoint.

Nato reinforced its Kosovo force of 20,000 troops with 600 German and 500 British soldiers 48 hours before the indictment's delivery, to counteract a risk, cited by western diplomats, that Kosovo Albanian extremists could use Mr Haradinaj's indictment as a pretext for action against Serb communities.

A year ago next week, thousands of Kosovo Albanians rioted in two days of violence that left 19 dead, thousands homeless and hundreds of Serb-owned properties in ashes.

Fresh memories of that violence, which Nato and the UN struggled to contain, coloured statements from international officials in Kosovo yesterday.

French Lieut-General Lieutenant General Yves De Kermabon, Nato's commander in Kosovo, urged Kosovo Albanians: "Do not respond to the temptation of anger. On the contrary, you must show your will to live in peace, as a mature democratic society."

Mr Haradinaj's sudden departure comes just four months after he came to power in the fledgling democracy, which operates under tight UN control.

Bajram Kosumi, the environment minister who is an ally of Mr Haradinaj, is now poised to become prime minister, although he must wait for a caretaker government to step aside.

UN and western diplomats say Kosovo is moving toward negotiations, perhaps later this year, regarding the province's possible independence from Serbia. Soren Jessen-Petersen, head of the UN mission in Kosovo, indicated the depth of international concern when in reaction to Mr Haradinaj's departure he said: "I cannot hide the fact that his departure will leave a big gap."

Mr Haradinaj's departure may provide an opportunity to restart internationally mediated talks between Belgrade and Pristina, Kosovo's capital. Vuk Draskovic, the Serbian foreign minister, called the resignation "a responsible act".