BELGRADE, Yugoslavia (AP) — Sharply opposed to NATO airstrikes on Yugoslavia, Russia sent its foreign and defense ministers Sunday to call on President Slobodan Milosevic, whose generals were preparing to defend the country against an assault.
NATO is threatening attacks to end seven months of bloodshed in Kosovo — despite signs Serbs may be ready for a compromise on how the rebellious Serb province should be governed.
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev met with Milosevic, Serbian President Milan Milutinovic, and Yugoslavia’s top defense officials.
Serbian police and the Yugoslav army have routed separatist Kosovo Albanian rebels during the seven-month crackdown. The conflict has killed hundreds — most of them ethnic Albanian civilians — and driven hundreds of thousands of villagers from their homes. .