The release by Serbia of the captured US soldiers is a bonus that must have surprised even the Reverend Jesse Jackson. Whether it is an indication that President Slobodan Milosevic is starting to weaken is quite another question.
The unexpected gesture made while Allied bombs rain down on Yugoslavia appears to improve the President's international position. The fact that it comes after the news of the killing of bus passengers by a Nato air strike may enable him to take an even more magnanimous pose, and to divert attention for a while from the atrocious things his men are doing in Kosovo.
Pressure is now likely to rise on Nato to make concessions. Russia can be expected to redouble its efforts. But, welcome as the release of the three men is, nothing has changed on the ground. Nor has there been any visible movement on Mr Milosevic's part to put right the situation which caused the conflict in the first place. And, just as Mr Milosevic shows no sign of yielding to the pressure from the air, so the alliance clearly cannot step back without undermining its credibility.
From the moment Nato began the bombing - and even more so as the fury of those attacks has increased - it was clear that this was not a conflict which would be ended with a diplomatic papering over of the cracks, as has happened too often elsewhere in the former Yugoslav federation. Mr Milosevic had to be brought definitively to heel, preferably to be replaced by somebody whose word could be trusted. Peace, when it came, had to be on terms which would guarantee ethnic Albanian refugees a return to their homeland in safety and security.
Although Nato still refuses to recognise this, the only way to achieve its aims is to send an armed international force into Kosovo on the ground which can ensure that the crimes of recent years are not repeated and that the province is restored to something like normal life.
Negotiations may be necessary along the way, and the legal basis for Nato's action remains flimsy. But the minimum conditions for an end to the conflict are clear, however much public opinion may rightly be shaken by the growing catalogue of bombs going astray and civilian casualties, and may fear a lengthy involvement in a ground occupation.
