In Test of Troubled Waters, Powell Rebuffs Montenegrin
By JANE PERLEZ
WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 - Delving into Balkan diplomacy for the first time since he assumed office, Secretary of State Colin L. Powell has refused to see Milo Djukanovic, the president of Montenegro, sending a firm signal that the Bush administration opposes independence for his republic, Serbia's last partner in the Yugoslav federation.
General Powell's decision not to see Mr. Djukanovic, who is in Washington to explain why he thinks Montenegro should be independent, was based on a desire not to encourage the further changing of borders in the region, administration officials said. A meeting would give further impetus to leaders in Kosovo, who want independence, and in the Serbian entity in Bosnia, whose leaders would like to attach themselves to Serbia proper.
The previous secretary of state, Madeleine K. Albright, met with Mr. Djukanovic on a number of occasions, although she never explicitly came out in favor of independence for Montenegro. Instead, she said she preferred that Serbia and Montenegro sort out their differences in a democratic manner.
In an interview today, Mr. Djukanovic said he was confident that the coming parliamentary elections in Montenegro would provide a victory for what he called the "independence forces" and give "fresh impetus to demands for a referendum."
Mr. Djukanovic, who cooperated with the United States in its efforts to isolate Yugoslavia's former strongman, Slobodan Milosevic, said he envisioned an independent Montenegro integrated into Europe but on friendly terms with Serbia. Visas and passports would not be required to cross the borders, he said.
"It is wrong to suggest that Montenegrin independence will trigger instability in the region," he said.
Mr. Djukanovic's position on independence has evolved in the last two years from making it clear that he yearned for separation from Serbia but declining to make definitive pronouncements. This changed when he went to Belgrade last month with a demand for independence, though with a comment that "there is room for talks." He has pressed harder for independence since Mr. Milosevic's ouster and the coming to power of a democratic government in Serbia.
The Montenegrin leader has quite a few steps to maneuver around to test the will of the Montenegrin people on independence.
The people are divided, with Mr. Djukanovic's supporters saying they now have just over 50 percent support for independence. There is little international support, particularly now as Serbia makes a rocky transition from the rule of Mr. Milosevic to the leadership of the new Yugoslav president, Vojislav Kostunica, and Serbia's prime minister, Zoran Djindjic.
In the interview, Mr. Djukanovic tried to draw a distinction between himself and the authorities in Serbia on the question of sending people indicted by the war crimes tribunal to The Hague for trial. The Montenegrin said he had told the chief prosecutor of the tribunal, Carla del Ponte, that "anyone indicted on war crimes should go to The Hague."
In contrast to the brushoff to Mr. Djukanovic, Mr. Powell plans to see Mr. Djindjic and, separately, a trio of Kosovar leaders, Hashim Thaci, Vertan Surroi and Ibrahim Rugova, on Friday. General Powell met today with the president of Macedonia, Boris Trajkovski.
General Powell has much to discuss with the Serbs and the Kosovars, most importantly how to tamp down the clashes between remnants of the Kosovo Liberation Army and Serbian forces inside Serbia. He will be urging the Kosovars to discourage the militants from provoking Serbs in the Presevo Valley, which adjoins the American sector in eastern Kosovo.