Post by Bozur on Apr 13, 2005 18:14:57 GMT -5
NATO mulling reorganization of Kosovo forces, troop cuts likely
By Leon Bruneau - Agence France-Presse
MONS - NATO’s supreme commander, US General James Jones, announced yesterday a broad review of the alliance’s forces in Kosovo which could lead to a cut in troop numbers, at a crucial moment for the future of the territory.
“It has nothing to do with a decrease in commitment. The goal is not to do less but to do more... using the force differently,” Jones said at NATO’s military headquarters.
“We’re looking at a proposal from our commander on the ground (French General Yves de Kaemabon) to prune the tree to achieve greater efficiency,” Jones told journalists.
The review is the result of NATO’s failure to stop three days of bloody anti-Serb riots in March last year that left 19 dead and more than 900 wounded, the worst violence in the province since the war.
At the time, NATO had only about 3,000 troops operational out of nearly 18,000. The number of troops operational has since doubled, thanks to an initial reorganization of forces.
Jones acknowledged the politically sensitive nature of the review, given that talks on Kosovo’s final status could begin by the end of the year.
NATO currently has about 17,100 soldiers in Kosovo as part of its KFOR peacekeeping mission, which makes it the alliance’s biggest military operation under way.
Jones said he hoped to see NATO defense ministers make a decision about the Kosovo review before a meeting in Brussels in June.
But already “some nations are concerned about sending the wrong signals” ahead of crucial decisions over Kosovo’s future, a NATO official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
If the reorganization goes ahead, it could result in several thousand troops being pulled from the peacekeeping mission, the official said.
However, Jones insisted that NATO remained committed to the operation. “We still think the security situation in Kosovo is fragile,” the general said.
www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/news/content.asp?aid=55130
By Leon Bruneau - Agence France-Presse
MONS - NATO’s supreme commander, US General James Jones, announced yesterday a broad review of the alliance’s forces in Kosovo which could lead to a cut in troop numbers, at a crucial moment for the future of the territory.
“It has nothing to do with a decrease in commitment. The goal is not to do less but to do more... using the force differently,” Jones said at NATO’s military headquarters.
“We’re looking at a proposal from our commander on the ground (French General Yves de Kaemabon) to prune the tree to achieve greater efficiency,” Jones told journalists.
The review is the result of NATO’s failure to stop three days of bloody anti-Serb riots in March last year that left 19 dead and more than 900 wounded, the worst violence in the province since the war.
At the time, NATO had only about 3,000 troops operational out of nearly 18,000. The number of troops operational has since doubled, thanks to an initial reorganization of forces.
Jones acknowledged the politically sensitive nature of the review, given that talks on Kosovo’s final status could begin by the end of the year.
NATO currently has about 17,100 soldiers in Kosovo as part of its KFOR peacekeeping mission, which makes it the alliance’s biggest military operation under way.
Jones said he hoped to see NATO defense ministers make a decision about the Kosovo review before a meeting in Brussels in June.
But already “some nations are concerned about sending the wrong signals” ahead of crucial decisions over Kosovo’s future, a NATO official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
If the reorganization goes ahead, it could result in several thousand troops being pulled from the peacekeeping mission, the official said.
However, Jones insisted that NATO remained committed to the operation. “We still think the security situation in Kosovo is fragile,” the general said.
www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/news/content.asp?aid=55130