Nato pledges to cut off Macedonian rebels

Nato Secretary General Lord Robertson says the international force in Kosovo will cut off the supply lines to ethnic Albanian rebels in Macedonia.

Robertson says Nato will be appealing to allied governments to send more troops to Kosovo to bolster the 40,000-strong Kfor force there.

However, he insists there is no question of changing Kfor's mandate to allow allied troops to carry out military operations in Macedonia.

"We are determined to starve this limited group of extremists of the means," to carry on fighting, Robertson told reporters.

For security reasons, Robertson declined to say how many troops would be moved to the border area.

Macedonian Foreign Minister Srdjan Kerim welcomed the NATO pledge and says his government is not asking for the Alliance to cross the border.

"The Macedonian security forces are able and will be able to take care of the security of our country" once Nato cuts off the rebel supply lines, Kerim says.

Robertson says his decision to attend a meeting of European Union foreign ministers today was a sign of international unity in seeking to isolate the rebels.

"We all stand fair and square behind democratic governments and the democratic parties of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia," he says.

Clashes between Macedonian forces and ethnic Albanian rebels have died away after a night of fierce fighting around the country's second-largest city, Tetovo.