Abstract: Describes the fatal spiral of hardening Serb intransigence and growing Kosovar Albanian armament that followed the abolishment of Kosovo's autonomy in 1990 and led to escalation of the conflict. The chapter identifies important military activities and sites of mass murder, most importantly the early Serbian military operation in Drenice/Drenica and the later execution of 45 Albanians in Recak/Racak. The chapter discusses the rise of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), and describes how the efforts by the UN Security Council and the Contact Group led to an agreement between US envoy Richard Holbrooke and Slobodan Milosevic to implement a cease-fire and introduce the Kosovo Verification Mission. But this agreement was broken and further diplomatic efforts in Rambouillet and Paris failed to bring about cession of hostilities.

Keywords: Contact Group, diplomacy, escalation, KLA, mass murder, Rambouillet, Richard Holbrooke, Slobodan Milosevic, UN Security Council, Verification Mission,