Meanwhile, NATO this week begins debating a proposal to deploy 50,000 troops in Macedonia as an eventual peacekeeping force for Kosovo. The alliance had originally planned a 28,000-strong force, but that was before the widespread destruction caused by the war. "It should be pretty easy to get NATO to move those forces into position for a peacekeeping mission premised on Milosevic's accepting their entry into Kosovo," says TIME Pentagon correspondent Mark Thompson. "And the alliance is unlikely at this stage to even debate the idea of sending them in without Milosevic's permission." So despite talk of moving tens of thousands of troops into the region, NATO's emphasis remains on using a combination of bombs and diplomacy to secure Belgrade's permission for them to enter Kosovo.
Waiting for the Other Side to Crack First
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With each side convinced that the other is about to crack, resolution of the Balkan conflict remains focused on diplomatic efforts. Last week, the public airing of differences among NATO members over ground troops and ending the bombing gave Milosevic reason to hold out for more concessions from the alliance. And some appear to be coming -- over the weekend, Madeleine Albright conceded that Belgrade should be allowed to keep some troops in Kosovo after a settlement. But reports of a growing protest movement inside Yugoslavia against the war have also given NATO renewed cause to believe its air campaign will crack Belgrade's resolve. The commander of the Yugoslav forces in Kosovo, General Nebojsa Pavkovic, is reported to have spent Sunday placating mutinous soldiers and protesters in the Serbian town of Raska, and mothers of conscripts have reportedly demonstrated in other towns.