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BELGRADE, Sep 7, 1999 -- A senior Russian official was quoted on Monday as saying that Western policies on Kosovo were leading the war-torn Serbian province towards independence.
"Under the slogan of maintaining sovereignty and territorial integrity, some Western countries are recommending solutions violating those principles and U.N. resolution 1244 and are practically leading to Kosovo's secession," First Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Avdeyev was quoted by the official Tanjug news agency as saying..
Avdeyev was speaking to reporters after meeting Yugoslav Foreign Minister Zivadin Jovanovic at the start of a visit to Yugoslavia.
Avdeyev's remarks were seen as referring to recent moves by Kosovo's U.N. administration to declare the German mark as its currency of choice and to establish a customs service at the province's border with Macedonia.
Yugoslavia has complained that these decisions posed a threat to its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The U.N. Security Council resolution which formally brought an end to the Kosovo crisis allows Yugoslav and Serbian personnel to maintain presence at key border crossings.
"We're concerned by the fact that the civilian and security mission under U.N. auspices in Kosovo is not in accordance with U.N. decisions," Jovanovic told reporters on Monday.