• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

• NATO is set to extend its six-month-old peacekeeping mission in Macedonia (sic) for another three months, though Germany’s continued leadership of the force looks in doubt, an alliance official said on Wednesday. The official said the 19 members of the North Atlantic alliance would probably respond this week to Skopje’s formal request for the lightly armed force of 700 soldiers and support personnel to stay in theatre until the end of June. "We should have an agreement probably -- I don't see any reason why not -- sometime before the end of this week," said the official, who asked not to be named. "There is no reason to believe we will not extend the mission." The official said the question of which country would lead the force under the new mandate would be decided once the Macedonian (sic) government’s request had been accepted. He said there had been no contact between NATO officials and the EU on a proposed takeover of the Macedonia (sic) mission by the EU. "There is probably a political interest (within the EU) but it seems to me there is no common position yet...so therefore there is no reason for us at this stage to engage," the official said.(Reuters 1812 130202 GMT Feb 02)

• Serb leaders in Serbia and Bosnia urged hiding war crimes suspects Wednesday to surrender to a UN court in moves seen as steps toward overall cooperation with the international tribunal. In Serbia, Justice Minister Vladan Batic appealed to the "patriotic feelings" of about a dozen wanted men, pleading with them to surrender to relieve Yugoslavia of international pressure. Suspects who do not surrender could be extradited, he said. The dozen men believed to be in Serbia include four top associates of former President Milosevic. Serbia’s Prime Minister Djindjic told the private Fonet news agency Wednesday that defiant suspects "do not deserve mercy." "If they don’t turn themselves in, the government of Serbia will take measures," he added. Though international officials were pressuring Serbian and Yugoslav officials to fully cooperate with The Hague tribunal, the government was "not facing any ultimatum" to hand over the suspects, Batic said.(AP 131947 Feb 02 GMT)

OTHER NEWS

• Afghan interim Prime Minister Karzai will visit Germany for talks next week with Chancellor Schroeder on the international aid effort to rebuild the war-ravaged country, the government said Wednesday. Karzai is also expected to discuss the future of the international peacekeepers protecting Kabul when he meets Schroeder in Berlin on Monday. A Berlin conference of donor nations this week is discussing projects related to setting up a national police force. Afghanistan has asked Germany for help in training the police. Schroeder’s invitation to Karzai "underscores the German government's commitment to the reconstruction of Afghanistan," said government spokeswoman Charima Reinhardt, who announced the visit.(AP 131636 Feb 02 GMT)

• British government suggestions that mercenaries could be hired for armed UN missions prompted fears on Wednesday over the dangers of "privatized peacekeeping". Critics said the idea, floated by Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, was an abdication of the government's international duties and raised questions about the accountability of UN forces and respect for human rights in conflict zones. Straw said on Tuesday that as demands for international intervention in regional trouble-spots grew and governments’ defense spending fell, the case for contracting private military companies became stronger. "A strong and reputable private military sector might have a role in enabling the UN to respond more rapidly and more effectively in crises," he wrote in the introduction to a government consultation paper on regulating mercenaries and private military companies. But Straw’s views were attacked from within his own Labor Party for offering a "veneer of respectability" to hired guns. "It would be deeply offensive, an abdication of the responsibilities of government and agencies with the high ideals of the UN, for this to happen," said Andrew MacKinlay, a Labor member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee.(Reuters 1645 130202 GMT Feb 02)

 FINAL ITEM