(12 May 1999) Russian/Eng/Nat
Boris Yeltsin dealt an unexpected blow to Yugoslav peace efforts on Wednesday, warning that Russia may pull out of talks just when the West was hoping a solution was near.
Yeltsin's comments were clearly tied to his fight with hardline foes in parliament, who accuse him of bowing to NATO by mediating in the crisis instead of arming Yugoslavia.
The consequences of such a diplomatic withdrawal would resonate far beyond Russia's borders, frustrating peace efforts and further eroding the West's relations with Russia and its erratic president.
But U-S Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott and Yeltsin's special envoy for Kosovo, ex-premier Viktor Chernomyrdin, appeared undeterred from negotiation efforts, during a meeting in Moscow.
Continuing of a new round of diplomatic efforts to find a solution to the Kosovo crisis, visiting U-S Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott met Yeltsin's special envoy for Kosovo Viktor Chernomyrdin for talks.
The U-S official is seeking Moscow's support for a peace deal, and had earlier met foreign minister Viktor Ivanov.
Following his discussions with Talbott, Chernomyrdin said there had been movement closer to a solution.
But Russia has also said there is little hope of finding a quick political solution to the crisis if NATO persists in its airstrikes against Yugoslavia.
SOUNDBITE: (Russian)
"If it (the NATO action) continues Russia will end its involvement in this process."
SUPER CAPTION: Viktor Chernomyrdin, Russian envoy for Kosovo
Despite this apparent sticking point, Talbott sounded upbeat, praising Chernomyrdin's diplomatic efforts.
SOUNDBITE: (English, with Russian translation)
"He and his president and his government are clearly prepared to keep working on the diplomatic track, as long as they feel there is some point in doing so. And we would say the same about ourselves - we're going to continue the diplomacy here, notably including our diplomatic work with the Russian Federation. I feel the constructive and serious day that I've spent in Moscow has been devoted to the task of seeing if we can broaden and deepen those areas of convergence."
SUPER CAPTION: US Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott
But Talbott said NATO's strategy on Kosovo had not changed.
Russia has opposed NATOs airstrikes on Yugoslavia but has sought to broker a political solution, sending envoys shuttling around Europe for talks.
The U-S and NATO have welcomed the efforts, hoping Moscow can use its ties to Yugoslavia to make any peace deal more palatable to Belgrade.
Western officials hailed Russia's decision to move closer to NATO's position by signing on to a proposed peace plan worked out in
Germany last week.
But the peace efforts suffered a setback over the weekend, after NATO bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, prompting outrage in Russia and other countries.
Then Yeltsin fired his prime minister and the government on Wednesday, upping the stakes in his battle with parliament.
Chernomyrdin did express concern that Yeltsin's dismissal of the government "will cause us special difficulties," but he did not elaborate.
He and Talbott are scheduled to meet again on Thursday.
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