Message Board: Conflict in Kosovo RELATED VIDEO CNN's Jim Bittermann is at the peace talks in Paris Windows Media 28K 80K

March 15, 1999
Web posted at: 10:08 a.m. EDT (1008 GMT)

PARIS (CNN) -- Ethnic Albanians at the internationally mediated Kosovo peace talks in Paris said Monday they would sign a peace agreement.

U.S. National Security Adviser Samuel Berger told CNN that he was assured by ethnic Albanian leaders that the delegation at this second round of talks would sign the document. The talks are aimed at finding a political solution to end the separatist conflict.

However, Berger said the ethnic Albanians did not say whether they would actually put ink to paper on Monday, or later in the week.

NATO has repeatedly warned Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic that he faces allied air attacks should the Yugoslav side be the only party to block a peace agreement.

NATO spokesman James Shea, speaking in a CNN interview Monday, repeated that threat and described the Paris talks as a "last chance" for peace in Kosovo, where 2,000 people have been killed in the separatist conflict.

The international peace plan for Kosovo would give the ethnic Albanian majority in the Serbian province wide-ranging local autonomy but would leave the territory an integral part of Yugoslavia.

Milosevic has so far firmly rejected the deployment of nearly 30,000 NATO-led troops to ensure implementation of the accord.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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