President Warns Against Partition

Kosovo's president, Fatmir Sejdiu, called on Nato yesterday to ensure that the embryonic state is not partitioned when it declares its independence from Serbia.

That declaration is due to take place tomorrow or on Monday, triggering diplomatic turmoil as western countries rush to recognize its sovereignty, while Russia and Serbia strive to deny it legitimacy.

The tensions could also spark clashes inside Kosovo between its Serb minority and the Albanian majority, possibly drawing in UN police and the 16,000 Nato troops garrisoned in the breakaway province.

In an interview with the Guardian Sejdiu, Kosovo's president and future head of state, put the onus on Nato to stop the fledgling country being dismembered on ethnic lines. He said northern Kosovo, where a mostly Serb population lives along the border with the rest of the Serbia, posed a particular threat.

"The north is a challenge in itself, but territorial integrity is the responsibility of international security forces," he said. "The integration of the north will not be an easy process because there are parallel structures there which were not built by the people of Kosovo but by Belgrade."

Yesterday, Serb politicians convened an assembly in Mitrovica, pledging to reject the independence declaration and set up parallel institutions. They threatened to organize protests on Monday in several Serb-held towns.

EU foreign ministers are due to meet in Brussels on Monday.