By Steven Mufson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, February 3, 2001; Page A16

Although the Bush administration has talked about scaling back the U.S. military role in the Balkans, leaders from Kosovo, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia converged on the State Department and National Security Council yesterday to make sure that the United States does not disengage from the region.

In separate meetings with several of the leaders, Secretary of State Colin L. Powell found himself dragged into pressing issues such as whether there will be a trial for former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic, independence for Montenegro and Kosovo, and U.S. economic aid for the region. All the Balkan leaders urged the United States to keep its military forces in the region to guarantee stability.

Perhaps the clearest signal Powell sent, however, was a meeting he didn't have: with Montenegro's president, Milo Djukanovic. Although the State Department said Powell had a tight schedule, some Balkan experts saw it as a message of disapproval for the Montenegrin's aspirations for rapid independence from Yugoslavia.

There was little sign that the Balkan leaders were going to work out their differences on their own. Instead, by using Thursday's National Prayer Breakfast as a reason to come to Washington, the Balkan leaders were hoping that the Bush administration would get religion too -- at least on the issues that most concern them.

Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, in meetings yesterday with Powell and deputy national security adviser Stephen Hadley, said his government wanted more time before deciding how to hold Milosevic accountable for alleged war crimes during the 1999 conflict in Kosovo, a province of Yugoslavia's dominant republic, Serbia.

Congress has set a deadline of March 31 for Serbia's new leaders to show cooperation with the international war crimes tribunal in The Hague, which wants Milosevic turned over for trial. But Djindjic first wants a trial held for Milosevic in Serbian courts.

"Does [cooperation] mean sending Milosevic to The Hague before April? If it means that, it means we have problems," Djindjic said in an interview yesterday. He said his government needed time to establish democratic institutions, make progress on economic recovery and bring about greater stability before dealing with Milosevic.

Milosevic's downfall in October paved the way to Djindjic's reform-minded government, which was appointed on Jan. 25.

"We can send Milosevic to The Hague, but what about the consequences?" Djindjic said.

Djindjic said Powell showed a willingness to discuss the issue further. A State Department official said Powell stressed that "ultimately, the international community will only be satisfied by an international process."

Djindjic also said he opposes independence for Montenegro, a U.S. ally during the Milosevic era and the smaller of two republics in the Yugoslav federation.

Djukanovic insisted in an interview yesterday that his country should hold a referendum on whether to split off from the Yugoslav federation, rather than accept the substantial autonomy it has already. Such a referendum, he said, could be held within 60 days of elections scheduled for April 26. If Montenegrins choose independence, Djukanovic said, they could create a new union with Serbia that would provide for joint military forces, open borders and common monetary policy.

"I am sure that America and Europe will not abandon its basic position, and that is that any people has the right to determine in a democratic fashion what sort of state they want to live in," Djukanovic said, noting that Montenegro had a long history of independence.

Diplomats said Djindjic likely fears a backlash from Serbian nationalists, who might drum up opposition over the further disintegration of Yugoslavia. In his meeting with Powell and later in an interview, Djindjic said Montenegro should wait three years to see how the current autonomy arrangement works, and then a new constitution could be considered. Rushing it, he said, would threaten "stability."

"Let us integrate with Europe and redefine our relationship on the way, not the other way around," Djindjic said. He said he agreed with a separation of the functions Djukanovic wants reserved for Montenegro, but Djindjic said he does not see the need for two states.

Some foreign policy experts criticized Powell's failure to see Djukanovic while making time for leaders of Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia and Romania. Instead, Djukanovic met with an official of the National Security Council and with James Dobbins, who deals with the Balkans at the State Department.

"I'm appalled by the way we treat our friends from an administration that claims we treat our friends well," said Morton Abramowitz, a longtime State Department official and former ambassador. "He has tried to run a democratic country, he saved a lot of ethnic Albanians, he treated different ethnic groups well, and he stayed out of Milosevic's hands. And this is how we treat him."

U.S. officials told Djukanovic that they believe "the future of Montenegro is in Europe and the best way to get to Europe is within a democratic [federal republic of Yugoslavia]." The officials told Djukanovic that they believed that "the authorities in Belgrade are ready for good-faith negotiations and that in the end the positions are not that far apart."

Kosovo's leaders pressed Powell on the eventual status of Kosovo, a province of the Serb republic whose ethnic Albanian leaders want independence.

Djindjic also asked for more time and "stability" before his government is pressed to commit on the status of Kosovo, which is now controlled by NATO-led peacekeeping forces.