Primakov, left, speaks with Schroeder after his arrival Tuesday in Bonn RELATED VIDEO CNN's Brent Sadler reports on the Russian-mediated negotiations with Yugoslavia Windows Media 28K 80K CNN's Brent Sadler reports on the meeting between Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov and Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic on March 30 Windows Media 28K 80K CNN's Brent Sadler reports on the Russian delegation meeting in Belgrade Tuesday - March 30. Windows Media 28K 80K To view the latest video streams on the strikes in Yugoslavia, use the arrow buttons below to scroll through the video gallery. 28 K 80 K INTERACTIVE: Flight from Kosovo:  ALSO: Pentagon's supply of favorite weapon may be dwindling U.S.: Milosevic offer falls 'far short' NATO brushes aside Yugoslav offer, targets troops 'Just go': Refugees describe terror in Kosovo U.S., world mobilize to aid Kosovo refugees Go along on a B-52 mission

March 31, 1999
Web posted at: 4:15 a.m. EST (0915 GMT)

In this story: Italy, Britain stay the course Yugoslavia: NATO should halt without conditions Annan: Peace accord must address refugees RELATED STORIES, SITES

MOSCOW (CNN) -- Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov returned to Moscow Wednesday after failing to broker a Kosovo peace with Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic.

However, CNN's Steve Harrigan reports from Moscow that Primakov chose not to label his mission a failure and instead blamed NATO for demanding too much.

NATO officials say nothing short of a complete Serb withdrawal from Kosovo is acceptable.

Primakov emerged Tuesday from six hours of talks in Belgrade with Milosevic saying they were a "good start," but Yugoslavia was prepared to open negotiations if NATO airstrikes were suspended.

NATO countries have rejected the offer as completely unacceptable, but Primakov used a Russian proverb to suggest the alliance was blindly determined to pursue military action. "Appetite comes with the eating," he said.

Harrigan reported that some diplomatic analysts in Moscow rejected Primakov's attack on NATO, saying Moscow should shoulder part of the blame for not giving clear enough signals on how much support Russia was willing to give Yugoslavia.

After his meeting with Milosevic, Primakov traveled to Germany to meet with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. The German leader strongly opposed Primakov's message from the Yugoslav president.

"I made clear I cannot accept the precondition that we must cease military activities first and then start negotiating. I am sure the NATO partners see it the same way," Schroeder said.

That sentiment was echoed in the United States, Italy and Britain, as those leaders prepared their countries for an ongoing air campaign.

"President Milosevic began this brutal campaign; it is his responsibility to bring it to an immediate end and embrace a just peace," U.S. President Bill Clinton said in a statement. "There is strong consensus in NATO that we must press forward with our military action."

Italy, Britain stay the course

In Rome, which has been seen as one of the more moderate NATO countries, Italian Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema gave a 10-minute televised address to the nation in which he accused the Yugoslav forces of genocide and said Italy would continue to do its part to stop the "slaughter and violence" against Kosovo's civilian population.

A spokesman for British Prime Minister Tony Blair said, "It's action, not words, that counts. (Milosevic) knows what he has to do."

NATO officials have said Milosevic must agree to three conditions to end the bombing campaign -- end military action in Kosovo, accept the "framework" of the Rambouillet peace agreement, and accept a NATO-led implementation force.

Primakov said Tuesday the Yugoslav president was willing to participate in new Kosovo peace talks and would allow the return of "peaceful" refugees, but only on condition that NATO stop its airstrikes and the West stop supporting the Kosovo Liberation Army rebels.

"He thinks negotiations should be constructive, and he is ready to be constructive," Primakov said after the meeting.

A short while after Primakov's talks with Milosevic ended, a Serbian television newscast quoted Milosevic as saying that NATO and Albanian troops massed on the border with Yugoslavia would also have to be drawn down.

Yugoslavia: NATO should halt without conditions

Zivadin Jovanovic, the Yugoslav foreign minister, elaborated in an appearance taped for CNN's Larry King Live.

"If aggression is stopped and if the NATO forces from borders of Yugoslavia, particularly in Macedonia, are withdrawn ... if the assistance, military training, financial ... to the terrorists is ceased, then it would be logical consequences that the forces of Yugoslavia which are there to struggle defending against aggression be diminished," said Jovanovic.

Jovanovic said it was NATO that should halt its military operations unconditionally.

"They (NATO) committed a crime -- crime against peace, crime against humanity," he said. "They are provoking our greatest humanitarian catastrophe in the region by bombing continuously civilians, cities, towns, villages, etc., and they certainly should stop it without any precondition."

Annan: Peace accord must address refugees

At the United Nations, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan expressed outrage over reports of a "vicious and systematic campaign of ethnic cleansing" by security forces in Kosovo and said a resolution to the conflict should provide for the return of the refugees now fleeing the province.

"Civilian populations must never come under indiscriminate and deliberate attack. Such actions are in flagrant violation of established humanitarian law," he said.

"Any solution to the conflict must allow these unfortunate people to return voluntarily to their homes in full security and dignity," Annan said.

Dampening any speculation that Annan might undertake a mission to the region, his spokesman said he "has no plans to travel to Belgrade."

CNN's Steve Harrigan and Reuters contributed to this report.

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