Russia denies report of deal with West on Kosovo

UNITED NATIONS, May 29 (Reuters) Russia's UN ambassador denied today that Moscow and Western powers had reached a compromise on the future of the UN-run Serbian province of Kosovo, dismissing a report in a Croatian newspaper.

''These reports are not true,'' Vitaly Churkin told reporters, referring to a story in yesterday's edition of the daily Jutarnji List.

The paper quoted sources ''close to the Russian leadership'' as saying Russia would not veto a Western-backed UN resolution granting Kosovo effective independence, in return for a two-year moratorium on Kosovo UN membership.

Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority is impatient for independence after eight years of United Nations stewardship, and has the backing of the United States and its European allies.

Serbia rejects a breakaway and has enlisted the aid of Russia, which has hinted it could veto the resolution being pushed by Western powers.

Referring to what he called ''wild speculations,'' Churkin said: ''Things are exactly where they were yesterday or the day before yesterday ... As far as those fundamental differences (between Russia and the West) are concerned, they have not changed at all.'' Because of the deadlock, the Western sponsors of the resolution have temporarily put it on ice and are not expected to return to it until after a Group of Eight summit in Germany next month.

REUTERS RJ KP2306