NATO peacekeepers on alert as Kosovo breaks away

Euronews

Ready to react should tension spill over into violence, NATO peacekeepers in Kosovo are on a state of alert.Security has been stepped up, not least in the ethnically-divided, flashpoint town of Mitrovica.

KFOR's commander Lieutenant-General Xavier de Marnhac said his troops "will react and oppose any provocation that may happen during these days, whether from the Albanian or the Serb side."

Serbs vow never to give up Kosovo, and, as the clock ticked away to today's independence declaration, protesters gathered in Belgrade.Steeped in history and the site of dozens of centuries-old Orthodox monasteries, Kosovo is considered a religious heartland by many Serbs.

Newspaper advertisements called for more demonstrations against what was dubbed this "punishment and humiliation." But, despite the strength of feeling and the backing of Russia, Serbia can now do nothing to stop independence or Kosovo's recognition by the West.