FYR of Macedonia: President calls for greater control of border with Kosovo

The President of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia this morning urged the international security force in Kosovo (KFOR) and the United Nations mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) to exercise more control over the northern border area to prevent trespassing into his country's territory.

Addressing the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva, President Boris Trajkovski said the crisis currently threatening his country was a "direct export from Kosovo." He called for an "urgent and systematic" disarmament of the population in Kosovo and immediate punishment of terrorists and "armed extremists," including the political leaders who supported and encouraged them. He also called for support of bodies that supported tolerance and democratic values.

The goal of the rebels operating on the border with Kosovo was to destroy "the model of multicultural democracy" that existed in his country, the President said. He charged that the rebels were "governed by racist ideology" and by interest in "trafficking in drugs and women."

President Trajkovski also expressed the determination of his country to maintain and strengthen its stability, while intensifying the process of dialogue in order to enhance interethnic relations.