SKOPJE, Macedonia (Islamweb & Agencies) - Ethnic Albanian parties boycotted peace talks and two Western diplomats postponed a visit Thursday, raising fears negotiations to end Macedonia's five-month ethnic Albanian revolt for equal rights with the country's Slav majority could collapse.
Violence also erupted as two bomb blasts shook the suburbs of the capital Skopje overnight, injuring a woman, and three civilians were reportedly abducted by ethnic Albanians. (Read photo caption below).
NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson and Javier Solana, the EU's foreign policy chief, put off a visit to Skopje after Macedonia bluntly rejected a Western plan to give the ethnic Albanian minority greater rights and make Albanian an official language.
In turning down the plan Wednesday, Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski accused the United States and European Union - who are mediating peace talks between majority Macedonians and ethnic Albanians parties - of interference in Macedonia's affairs.
A joint statement by the envoys called Georgievski's reaction an undignified response to international efforts to assist in the search for a peaceful solution
Diplomacy ground to a standstill when both ethnic Albanian parties involved in the peace process stayed away from Thursday's meeting with Macedonian parties and President Boris Trajkovski.
Arben Xhaferi of the Democratic Party of Albanians said Macedonian leaders ``are continuously provoking a continuation of fighting. Macedonia would be the only case in history where a war will start because of linguistic disputes.''
Xhaferi called the situation ``very serious.''
Meanwhile, Hans-Joerg Eiff, NATO's ambassador to Macedonia, expressed concern over the stability of the cease-fire, describing the Macedonian rejection as ``a serious setback.''
Sporadic infantry fire also was reported around Tetovo, the tiny nation's second-largest city, and the town of Kumanovo, the War Ministry said.
Instead of peace negotiations Thursday, mediators Francois Leotard of the European Union and James Pardew of the United States, held talks at the expert level.
However, Trajkovski and a diplomatic source requesting anonymity said only experts, not political leaders, are expected to meet Friday, making clear that the political negotiations were stalled.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Philip Reeker said the United States was encouraging all parties to participate in the talks. ``All the parties need to come together to try to take the emotion out of it and work diligently to make compromises,'' he said.
Late Thursday, a crowd of several hundred Macedonians demonstrated in downtown Skopje for their government and condemned the West for what organizers said was ``performing experiments with Macedonia.'' Patriotic songs were played over loudspeakers.
PHOTO CAPTION:
A forensic team investigates the explosion site in Skopje, macedonia's residential area of Kisela Voda, Thursday, July 19 2001. Police said two hand grenades were detonaded under a car. An unidentified woman was lightly injured. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)
- Jul 19 12:16 PM ET