USA Appeals To Albanian Extremists To Lay Down Arms

James Pardew, US Special envoy for the Balkans, has appealed to Albanian extremists to lay down arms. When speaking in Pristina Thursday, Pardew indicated that Albanian "rebels" in Macedonia and southern Serbia pose a threat to stability in the Balkans and therefore must lay down arms. According to him, they violate stability in the Balkans and destroy everything positive that has been achieved in Kosovo and the entire region. The US Special envoy denounced the new outbreak of violence in Macedonia and in the south of Serbia accusing Albanian "mutineers" of that. Pardew demanded that the so-called liberation army of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja lay down arms, dissolve their organization and leave the territory occupied by them since their mere presence there is a provocation. He indicated that "NATO has been gradually losing patience" and the extremists have very little time left to lay down their arms and stop to endanger Albanian civilians. At the same time, the US envoy did not elaborate which steps might be expected from NATO if the extremists remained deaf to its appeals. The day before James Pardew visited southern Serbia.