Bosnian Serb leaders gave Dr Vojislav Kostunica a presidential welcome yesterday as Belgrade's new leader began a controversial visit to the Serb part of the former Yugoslav republic.
Dr Kostunica had written to the joint post-war leadership of Bosnia, which had protested that the visit violated diplomatic protocol by not being organised through the capital, Sarajevo. Dr Kostunica said it was a private trip that would not be politicised.
The Yugoslav President made no statements as he arrived by car for an Orthodox church service on a hill overlooking the southern town of Trebinje, in honour of the poet Jovan Ducic.
He was introduced later to a gathering outside the church as "Dr Kostunica", but the republic's leaders had made clear they viewed it as an official visit by laying on an honour guard and greeting him as president.
The joint Bosnian leadership said on Friday that Dr Kostunica's letter did not resolve doubts about the visit and on Saturday he appeared to give in to pressure from the international officials running Bosnia when he visited Sarajevo yesterday. Mr Mirza Hajric, foreign policy adviser to the Muslim member of Bosnia's three-member presidency, called Dr Kostunica's visit to Sarajevo a "positive step". "There's a Bosnian phrase - `Once bitten by a snake you are afraid of a lizard'," he said. "On the other hand we need to give a chance to the new Belgrade leadership."
Meanwhile, the government of Montenegro, Serbia's junior partner in Yugoslavia, yesterday denied reports it was about to propose to Belgrade a plan to break up the federation.
The official statement appeared to be a response to a report in the Montenegrin daily Vijesti that the government would adopt a new platform this week for negotiations with Serbia based on two independent states with some shared functions.
The report coincided with remarks from the Montenegrin Foreign Minister, Mr Branko Lukovac, that Serbia and Montenegro should be independent.