British NATO troops crossed the Yugoslav border on Saturday
MILITARY PLAN: RELATED VIDEO CNN's Richard Blystone explains why the Gurkhas have a reputation as fierce fighters (June 12) Windows Media 28K 80K CNN's Tom Mintier reports on the reaction of Kosovars to NATO's arrival in the province (June 12) Windows Media 28K 80K CNN's Nic Robertson reports from the Pristina airport (June 12) Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K CNN's Jim Clancy reports from Pristina on the welcoming of troops (June 12) Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K To view the latest video streams on the strikes in Kosovo, use the arrow buttons below to scroll through the video gallery.        Windows Media Real        28 K 80 K INTERACTIVE: NATO rolls into Kosovo  ALSO: Russians await orders in Kosovo as generals meet with NATO Ethnic Albanians in Kosovo start receiving aid Winners and losers: Analysis of the Kosovo conflict  THE DELUGE OF REFUGEES: Number, whereabouts of Kosovo refugees  MESSAGE BOARD: Crisis in Kosovo  IN-DEPTH SPECIAL: Focus on Kosovo

June 12, 1999
Web posted at: 6:24 p.m. EDT (1805 GMT)

In this story: Russians meet British in Pristina NATO, Russians meet in Macedonia KFOR moves quickly through Kosovo RELATED STORIES, SITES

PRISTINA, Yugoslavia (CNN) -- The advance guard of NATO's peacekeeping force arrived Saturday in Kosovo's provincial capital, where a small Russian force awaited them at the city's airport.

British armored units arrived at the airport at Pristina at 3:50 p.m. (9:50 a.m. EDT). The airport will be a staging ground for supply shipments to the peacekeeping force, known as KFOR. Occasional celebratory gunfire echoed through Pristina as the British arrived.

U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen said the Russian contingent was making preparations to cooperate with KFOR's advance units, and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Hugh Shelton said the British and Russians had a "cordial" meeting in Pristina.

After an 11-week air war, British and French units led the way into Kosovo, followed by U.S., German and Italian troops. Chinook and Puma helicopters carrying paratroopers and members of Britain's elite Gurkha rifle regiment flew across the border as Operation Joint Guardian -- one of the biggest military undertakings in Europe since World War II -- got under way.

Gen., NATO's supreme commander, said NATO would have "several thousand troops inside Kosovo" by nightfall to stabilize the province as the Yugoslav army pulls out.

"Our forces are entering difficult territory, but they know their cause is a right one," Clark told reporters at allied headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.

So far, 7,000 Yugoslav Army regulars and Serbian security police have left Kosovo under a withdrawal agreement reached Wednesday, Clark said.

NATO peacekeepers swooped into Kosovo aboard helicopters and trucks at dawn Saturday on a mission to clear land mines for NATO ground troops and to prepare for the safe return of hundreds of thousands of ethnic Albanian refugees.

A massive convoy of British and French military vehicles rolled into Kosovo around the same time, transporting the first NATO foot soldiers to step into the province since the 19-member military alliance began its 79-day air war.

Russians meet British in Pristina

While Serbs in Kosovo offered a subdued welcome to the KFOR troops, ethnic Albanians in Kosovo greeted the arriving soldiers with chants of "NATO, NATO" and "Tony Blair, Tony Blair." The British prime minister was one of NATO's most hawkish leaders during the Yugoslav conflict.

But NATO's entrance into the Yugoslav province was upstaged by the arrival early Saturday of a Russian contingent in Pristina, its purpose uncertain.

The Russians' pre-dawn arrival stunned NATO and U.S. officials. The move came in direct conflict with Moscow's assurances to Washington that it had no plans to move into Kosovo ahead of NATO troops.

"It certainly was a precipitous action, leading to some confusion," Cohen said.

But U.S. officials told CNN that the arriving British troops had a good meeting with the Russians, with no tension between them.

Russia has urged NATO to give it control of a sector of Kosovo as part of the peacekeeping force. NATO has refused to do so.

Russian Foreign Minister said the move into Kosovo was a mistake and the troops would be pulled back. But Kremlin officials soon contradicted him: Russian President 's senior international policy aide said Yeltsin ordered the troops into Kosovo to lead its peacekeeping force.

Yeltsin left the timing of the deployment up to the military, the aide, Sergei Prikhodko, told CNN. Yeltsin then promoted the detachment's commanding general for his performance.

Asked about how the Russians surprised NATO with their move into Kosovo, Clark said, "I think there's a lot of explaining that will have to be done on a lot of matters in time."

NATO, Russians meet in Macedonia

Smiling and waving, Russian soldiers in camouflage fatigues entered Pristina in the pre-dawn hours Saturday. Russia and Serbia, the dominant republic in the Yugoslav federation, are traditional allies. Pristina's Serb residents lined the streets, cheering, chanting and tossing flowers onto the convoy of trucks and armored personnel carriers.

Russia's role in peacekeeping efforts was still unsettled: A Russian military delegation arrived in the Macedonian capital, Skopje, on Saturday to discuss that question with its NATO counterparts.

While NATO has balked at putting Russia in control of part of Kosovo, Russia has balked at putting its forces under a NATO officer -- in this case, British Lt. Gen. Michael Jackson, KFOR's commander.

Clark said he welcomed Russian troops' participation, "and we're working now to see that they're deployed within an effective and unified chain of command."

NATO troops are familiar with many of the Russian officers in Pristina from their service with the Bosnian peacekeeping mission, Clark, said Saturday.

"We know we will be able to work this out, as soldiers always do," Clark said.

Pleurat Sejdiu, a representative of the ethnic Albanian Kosovo Liberation Army, said the Russians' ties to the Serbs should prevent them from controlling any part of Kosovo.

"It's very clear this is a first step toward partition of Kosovo," Sejdiu said.

KFOR moves quickly through Kosovo

Although peacekeepers met no resistance as they went into Kosovo, they were on high alert for explosives and traps.

KFOR troops reported mortar fire shortly after crossing the frontier; they had to disarm several Serb soldiers and encountered members of the KLA, who they instructed not to interfere.

The NATO convoy then passed through a number of villages and did not see a single civilian. Signs of human tragedy were evident, following the massive exodus of Kosovo refugees over the past few months. Hundreds of abandoned cars, pieces of clothing and shoes were strewn about.

Yugoslav army officers at a checkpoint at Grlica protested that they needed more time to retreat from their positions to allow the NATO peace force to proceed.

British officers were not ready to compromise, and they insisted the Serbs get out of the way. After about 30 minutes of argument, the Serbs turned their vehicles around and NATO's advance resumed.

There were clear signs of Yugoslav forces giving way before the British thrust, as called for under Wednesday's withdrawal agreement with NATO. At least four flatbed trucks carrying Serb tanks were seen driving north, away from KFOR's advance.

More than a million ethnic Albanians were displaced by the ethnic strife in Kosovo. They made up 90 percent of the province's population of 2 million before the war, and more than 800,000 fled the country.

One of KFOR's top priorities is to resettle those refugees, but the peacekeepers need some time to consolidate their hold on the province, Clark said.

"We just ask that the refugees give us a little more time, until the situation is more stabilized, before they return," he said.

In Pristina, the ripple effect of NATO troops' swift advance started to show, with greater numbers of Serb residents packing cars and trailers to leave. Fearing reprisals from returning Albanians, many Serbs are leaving Kosovo to settle elsewhere in Serbia.

The city's market was thronged with hundreds of people trying to buy fresh food for their departure. And on the southern outskirts of Pristina, several plumes of smoke spiraled into the sky, apparently from fires set by Serb nationalist diehards in empty Albanian areas.

Correspondents Nic Robertson, Tom Mintier, Matthew Chance, Jill Dougherty and Chris Burns contributed to this report.

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