Serbian President Draws Anger in Tour of Kosovo

Serbian President Boris Tadic, touring Kosovo in the first visit by a Serbian leader since the 1999 war, sought to reassert his country’s claim over the U.N.-run province, vowing never to accept its independence.

“This is Serbia!” Tadic declared in the village of Silovo, a Serbian enclave in eastern Kosovo, as he began a two-day tour of the province, sparking angry protests by ethnic Albanians in the provincial capital, Pristina.

About 10,000 people, mostly Albanians, were killed in the 1998-99 war between ethnic separatists and Serbian security forces. NATO airstrikes ended Belgrade’s rule in Kosovo and paved the way for a U.N. administration. Kosovo remains a part of Serbia pending a settlement in negotiations expected later this year.