Word: rugova
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1999
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Snake is still a rank amateur. Kosovo is in ruins, his rebel army is edgy about its demilitarization, and political rivals on all sides are waiting for him to slip up. He'll also face political challenges at home--most notably from the elected President of Kosovo, Ibrahim Rugova, and from newspaper publisher Veton Surroi. Still, the U.S. has anointed him, at least temporarily, as its man. On a visit to Pristina last week, State Department spokesman Jamie Rubin took Thaci for a highly public cup of coffee at a well-known downtown cafe. And in a busy week last...
...contrast, the West's favorite Kosovar politician has substantially dimmed. Ibrahim Rugova, the pacifist leader, was posing for pictures with Milosevic while Thaci and his forces were struggling in the hills. Although most everyone agrees that the Milosevic meetings were conducted under duress, the images hurt Rugova. He still has many loyal followers in the camps of Albania and Macedonia, but he also has no shortage of political enemies...
...course, an essential mission of the war was to give Kosovars the ability to choose for themselves. In Tent H-26 at the Stenkovec camp, the debate has begun. "Rugova's policies led us to this mess," says Rashit Hazir, a teacher from Pristina. "Only the K.L.A. can guarantee our protection." Counters Najle Cerkini, 33, a farmer's wife: "Rugova is a man of the West, and the West came to our rescue, not the K.L.A." After heated debate, a tentwide vote gives Rugova the victory, 5 to 3. NATO's toughest mission may be to ensure a similarly peaceful...
...work her cell phone. She talked to the Ukrainian Foreign Minister about Russia's evolving position, then the French and British foreign ministers about the statement she hoped to get at the G-8 meeting, and finally a conference call of key NATO ministers for an update on Rugova's release...
...left the Ivanov meeting with half a triumph, Albright was handed a phone. Christopher Hill was at a villa outside Rome with Rugova, who wanted to speak to her. Yes, Rugova told her, he would support NATO's bombing and negotiating positions in his public statements. "I'm glad to hear that," she replied. "We've been concerned about where you stood ever since your appearance with Milosevic on TV." Albright was relieved: if he had opposed the NATO mission, it would have been a public relations fiasco. In the grand solarium of the Petersberg center, the formal meeting...