PRISTINA: FOURTH ATTEMPT FOR NEGOTIATIONS UNSUCCESSFUL

( Editorial: --> 0329 ) PRISTINA, March 17 (Hina) - The fourth attempt by a Serbian government delegation to start negotiating with Kosovo Albanian leaders in Pristina failed on Tuesday. Kosovo Albanian representatives decided to ignore an invitation to negotiations, standing by their request for an international mediation as a guarantor that a negotiated agreement would be honoured. The head of the Serbian government delegation Ratko Markovic again blamed Kosovo Albanian representatives for the failure. He again invited them to negotiations on Wednesday at 11am. In a reference to participation of a group of ethnic Turks in yesterday's and today's negotiations with representatives of the Serbian government in Pristina, the Democratic Party of Kosovo Turks in a separate statement said that certain journalists of Turkish nationality should not be considered the Turks' representatives, as they have not been authorised for that. The Democratic Action Party of Kosovo also stated that nobody could talk on behalf of Bosniak-Muslims without authorisation, as some individuals participating in those negotiations did. Tomorrow's visit to Kosovo by the special US envoy for the former Yugoslavia Robert Gelbard is expected with great interest, given that an all-Albanian peaceful protest against Serbian violence and terror has been announced for 11am tomorrow. (hina) jn mrb/mr 171957 MET mar 98