Salonika - Yugoslav troops could go back to Kosovo at any time, a return that is non-negotiable, the Yugoslav Foreign Minister, Mr Zivadin Jovanovic, told a Greek newspaper in an interview published yesterday.
"We insist that we are ready to go back to Kosovo tomorrow," Mr Jovanovic said, adding that Yugoslavia would never back down on its demand to return to the province, now under UN administration.
UN Resolution 1,244, and the military accord struck between NATO and Belgrade, forced Yugoslavia to withdraw all its forces from Kosovo in June 1999. Up to 999 soldiers and policemen were to be allowed to return to Kosovo under the accord in co-operation with international forces, but their precise number, the timing of the deployment and the scope of their mandate have still to be negotiated.