Macedonia's Prime Minister Mr Ljubco Georgievski called today for the declaration of a state of war to help the country fight ethnic Albanian rebels who killed five soldiers overnight, his spokesman said.
"A strong military response is the only way to achieve peace," Mr Georgievski's spokesman Mr Antonio Milosovski told reporters."All we lack is a strong political decision for military action," he added.
Mr Milosovski said declaring a state of war would allow the military to call up all able-bodied men to fight. A two-thirds majority vote in parliament is needed to approve such a move.
In a sign of the depth of distrust between politicians from the Slav majority and the Albanian minority, who govern together in an emergency all-party coalition, Mr Georgievski asked for a declaration of loyalty.
"He (the Prime Minister) called on both Albanian parties to state publicly what side they are on - the side of the murderers or the side of the state," Mr Milosovski said.
Macedonia called for a state of war in early May after a rebel attack killed eight soldiers but was dissuaded by Western powers, who argued it would inflame the situation, alienate ethnic Albanians and complicate the search for peace.
It was unclear how determined the Slav-led government is this time to raise the stakes in the battle against the insurgency that began in February.Rebels argue they are fighting for rights for their minority, up to one third of the population, but the Macedonian government says they are trying to destroy the state.
The government called on citizens not to engage in acts of vengeance and said it was considering imposing a curfew in Bitola, in southern Macedonia, home to three of the dead and scene of riots in May when previous funerals were held there.