NATO NOT SFOR RESPONSIBLE FOR POSSIBLE INTERVENTION IN KOSOVO

( Editorial: --> 4994 ) SARAJEVO, Oct 2 (Hina) - The Stabilisation Force (SFOR) in Bosnia- Herzegovina (BH) will not participate in an international community military intervention which will be implemented under NATO's direct command if the crisis in Kosovo continues, the SFOR's spokesman Richard Saint-Louis said on Friday in Sarajevo. Major Saint-Louis said that the SFOR's duty would not change. Its job is to secure the stabilisation in BH, while NATO is dealing with the situation in Kosovo. The staff which could be engaged there would be under NATO's direct command, he added. In response to questions whether the SFOR was taking some security measures to protect its soldiers from possible retaliation, Saint- Louis said that the SFOR command was constantly evaluating the situation in BH and emphasised that presently the security risk was insignificant. Commenting on the threats made yesterday to western countries and NATO by Yugoslav Deputy Prime Minister Vojislav Seselj in case of a military intervention against Yugoslavia, the SFOR spokesman said that pure rhetoric should be separated from real threats made in Seselj's statement. SFOR is going to react in line with its estimation of the real level of threats. (hina) it/ha 021440 MET oct 98