Canada to send five defence planners to help NATO peacekeepers in Kosovo

They will be deployed for 12 months to NATO's peacekeeping headquarters in Pristina, capital of the former Serbian province. "Five Canadian Forces personnel can make a great difference," MacKay told a news conference Friday at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown, near Fredericton.

"Their know-how, their experience, their ability in co-ordinating in Kosovo I expect will make a real difference," he said. "There are different levels of personnel contribution from different countries This specific request was made and we responded."

The minister said the military members, described as defence planners, will be drawn from various bases across the country.

They're main role will be co-ordinating funds and equipment sent from donor countries.

MacKay said the Afghanistan mission remains Canada's No. 1 focus with more than 2,000 troops on the ground. He described the Kosovo deployment as kind of "niche" mission.

A UN-sanctioned, international peacekeeping force - now 15,000-strong - rolled into Kosovo in June 1999 after 300,000 Kosovars fled their homes amid fighting between the Kosovo Liberation Army and forces from Serbia and the former Yugoslavia.

Having intervened in Kosovo to protect the majority ethnic Albanians from ethnic cleansing, NATO also committed to protecting the province's ethnic Serbs from a similar fate.

Kosovo declared independence on Feb. 17, 2008 and has been recognized by several countries, including the United States, Japan and the European Union.

However, the Serbian government has strongly objected to losing a province many Serbs consider the historic cradle of the nation.

The Serbian government says the independence declaration was illegal and has recalled ambassadors from nations that have recognized Kosovo as a new nation.