Serbia

Serbia has asked U.N. officials in Kosovo to arrest and extradite three former Kosovo Albanian rebel leaders to face trial for crimes allegedly committed during the 1998-99 war in the province. Justice Minister Vladan Batic said Hashim Thaci, Ramush Haradinaj and Agim Ceku must answer charges of terrorism, armed rebellion and genocide. Thaci and Haradinaj lead political parties in Kosovo; Ceku heads a local security force. A United Nations spokeswoman in Kosovo said the U.N.

Iraq said Thursday that it suspected a woman there had died of the H5N1 strain of bird flu, and Serbia said a dead swan was being tested to see whether it was that nation's first known case. The latest apparent cases came hours after U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt said it was "just a matter of time" before wild birds and possibly poultry in the United States contracted H5N1.

At night, when the lawns are empty and the lamps along the walking paths are the only source of light, Topcider Park on the outskirts of Belgrade is a perfect meeting place for spies. It was here in 1992, as the former Yugoslavia was erupting in ethnic violence, that a wary CIA agent made his way toward the park's gazebo and shook hands with a Serbian intelligence officer. Jovica Stanisic had a cold gaze and a sinister reputation.

Serbia will use economic, political and diplomatic measures to stop Kosovo from declaring independence Sunday, but will avoid violence, Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic told an emergency Security Council session Thursday. Jeremic said at the closed-door meeting that allowing the province to secede would do "irreparable harm" to the notion of sovereignty, and would trigger secession by other disaffected territories.

Serbian and Kosovo Albanian leaders met Tuesday for their first face-to-face talks since the end of the 1998-99 war in what was intended to be a move toward improving relations but at times seemed only to highlight their mutual antagonism. "This is the first time that they have talked to each other. It is a very, very important step," Javier Solana, the European Union's foreign policy chief, said at a news conference.

Risking yet another violent split in Yugoslavia, Montenegro on Thursday demanded a radical loosening of links with its sister republic, Serbia, and failing that, complete independence. Montenegro's pro-Western government wants control over federal troops on its soil, foreign affairs and other matters, and the republic threatened to call a referendum on secession from what is left of Yugoslavia if Belgrade refuses.

IT was plain contrariness. That's my only explanation for taking the train from Belgrade, Serbia, to Bar in Montenegro on the Adriatic coast. I wanted to see the Serbian countryside, all but off the tourist map since the recent Balkan wars, and to follow the wild gorge of the Tara River into Montenegro. My trip coincided with the potentially explosive May 21 election deciding whether Montenegrins would vote for independence from Serbia. (They did.

As Yugoslavia's rival republics seemed intent on scuttling the latest peace plan Tuesday, the likelihood of an all-out Balkan war escalated along with European neighbors' frustrations over how to prevent it. The combatants in Yugoslavia have persistently sought to take advantage of foreign mediation. A battle over interpretation has followed each of three declared truces, leading to their failure and adding to the grievances each republic has stockpiled against the others.

COUNTDOWN TO THE CUP Host country South Africa plays Mexico at 7 a.m. PDT on June 11 to kick off the 32-team tournament. GROUP D Serbia vs. Ghana, June 13, 7 a.m. Germany vs. Australia, June 13, 11:30 a.m. Germany vs. Serbia, June 18, 4:30 a.m. Ghana vs. Australia, June 19, 7 a.m. Ghana vs. Germany, June 23, 11:30 a.m. Australia vs. Serbia, June 23, 11:30 a.m. The next round: The top...

The Davis Cup match between the U.S. and host Serbia on March 5-7 in Belgrade could almost be called Southern California against Serbia. Sam Querrey of Thousands Oaks will play singles and twins Mike and Bob Bryan of Camarillo will play doubles, captain Patrick McEnroe announced Wednesday. The other singles player will be John Isner of Georgia. The match will be played on red clay in a 20,000-seat arena, one that McEnroe expects to be raucous. It will be the first Davis Cup meeting between the U.S. and Serbia.