Western military intervention in Macedonia remains off the agenda despite a request from President Boris Trajkovski for help to disarm ethnic Albanian guerrillas, NATO secretary general Lord Robertson said today.
Mr Robertson and EU foreign policy chief Mr Javier Solana arrived in Macedonia today to push Slavic and ethnic Albanian parties in the fragile government coalition to accept a peace plan proposed by President Trajkovski.
Mr Trajkovski's plan features an amnesty for rebels of Macedonian nationality, a ceasefire and NATO supervision of the disarming and demobilisation of the self-proclaimed National Liberation Army.
But Mr Robertson said there are no plans for NATO-led Kosovo peacekeepers to be deployed in Macedonia.
He told a news conference after talks with Macedonian political leaders that he would take President Trajkovski's request to NATO headquarters for consideration.
Earlier today proposals by the ethnic Albanian guerrillas to disarm their units in exchange for a seat at the negotiating table were rejected by the Macedonian government.
"It is absolutely unacceptable to negotiate with armed paramilitary groups especially when you have legitimate representatives of the ethnic Albanians," a Macedonian government official said.
The rebels' political leader, Mr Ali Ahmeti, said in a statement today his guerrillas wanted an immediate truce signed by the army and the rebel forces, a place in planned talks on reforms and an amnesty for his fighters, who would be given a chance to join the security forces and enter politics.
But the government official speaking against the proposal said: "This not only the position of Macedonia but also of the international community."
AFP &