Pomeroy: ND Guard keeping peace in Kosovo

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A peacekeeping force in Kosovo will be getting smaller, but North Dakota Rep. Earl Pomeroy says that's not likely to shorten the deployment of the North Dakota National Guard soldiers there.

More than 600 North Dakota soldiers are part of a NATO contingent in Kosovo. Pomeroy visited the Balkans region in eastern Europe last week.

He says the North Dakotans are as well-informed about local conditions as the State Department. Pomeroy says the North Dakotans do security patrols and visit people in Kosovo communities.

Pomeroy says the NATO force is being reduced and more responsibility is being turned over to local police. He says conditions are largely quiet, but he says the presence of the soldiers keeps it that way.

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