NATO expected to decide on ground invasion at summit

NATO is expected to decide during its summit in Washington this weekend to prepare for a ground invasion of Kosovo, a senior European official said.

The official, who did not want to be identified, said increasing pressure is being placed on the United States and Britain for an invasion of Kosovo over the next month in an attempt to "get this whole thing over with." The official said NATO members on the European continent are concerned that their economies would be damaged should NATO's bombing campaign continue through the summer.

In addition, the official said, NATO's allies in the Balkans, such as Macedonia and Croatia, want the campaign to end. Both countries have granted air rights to NATO planes on their way to bombing missions in Yugoslavia.

"From a humanitarian point of view, the support continues for the NATO operation," the official said. "But from the strategic point of view in terms of the future of Yugoslavia, there is more and more concern. That's why everybody would like this to end as soon as possible, even if it means a ground attack."

The official said NATO can no longer insist on less than a capitulation of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. He said if Milosevic obtains an unconditional ceasefire he will hail this as the "greatest victory in Serbian history."

About 12,000 NATO troops are currently in Macedonia. NATO Secretary General Javier Solana reiterated that the alliance has no plans to invade Yugoslavia. But he added, "If the moment comes when it is necessary I'm sure the countries that belong to NATO will be ready to do it."

On Sunday, the British newspaper Observer reported that NATO is making plans for a ground invasion of Kosovo as early as the end of May. The newspaper reported that about 80,000 troops have been allocated for the mission.

The Observer said American troops have begun training in Colorado as part of a plan to complete NATO's operations in Yugoslavia by July. A NATO source told the newspaper, "We are no longer talking about simply sending peacekeeping troops into an entirely permissive environment."