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Serbia withdraws ambassador from US

Serbia has withdrawn its ambassadors to the US and other nationssthat recognized Kosovo's independence and angry Serbs yesterday set fire to two border crossings linking Kosovo to southern Serbia, police said, as international tensions grew over the territory's independence.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned the US that Kosovo's independence was "dangerous" for the world but US President George W. Bush insisted the move would bring peace.

The arson attack was the latest violence in reaction to the declaration of independence made by Kosovo on Sunday, which has since been formally recognized by the US and the main European powers.

Serbia has vowed to fight the split by its former province and groups of Serbs attacked and set fire to crossings at Jarinje and Banja on its northern border with Serbia yesterday.

Kosovo police spokesman Veton Elshani said the fires had been set by "angry" groups of Serbs, but there were no reports of casualties.

In another incident that police could not confirm, a Serb media source said that a customs building had been set on fire by Serb protesters in the town of Zubin Potok.

There have been riots in Belgrade, with mobs stoning the US and European embassies. Tomorrow a huge rally is planned in Belgrade by Serbia's main political parties, who all oppose Kosovo's independence.

Russia has been Serbia's main partner in opposing independence and Lavrov said he warned US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over the implications of the break during telephone talks on Monday.

"We confirmed our principled position on the unacceptability of the unilateral action by Pristina," the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement. "The dangerous consequences were underlined of such a move, which is fraught with dangers for the foundations of world order and international stability formed over the course of decades."

The US has been an equally strong supporter of Kosovo's independence and Bush yesterday called it a historic move, but acknowledged there were differences with Russia.

"History will prove this to be a correct move, to bring peace to the Balkans. This strategy has been a long time coming," Bush told reporters in Tanzania. "And now it is up to all of us to help the Kosovars to realize their peace."

The US president called on the Kosovars "to honor their commitment to support the right of non-Albanians, non-Kosovars, inside their country."

Its anger has reached such a pitch that Serbia's ambassador to Nigeria, Dragan Mraovic, likened Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci to Osama bin Laden in an open letter to a Nigerian newspaper which backed independence.

"One can trust in Thaci, who is very well known for his numerous terrorist acts, for which he was prosecuted in Serbia and sentenced to jail ... in the same way Osama bin Laden should be trusted," he wrote.
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