MOSCOW (AP) -- Russia called for an immediate halt to NATO airstrikes against Yugoslavia today, warning that the growing number of alliance attacks could wreck any chance of a political settlement. Russia's special envoy on Kosovo also said that Yugoslavia may be willing to accept peacekeeping troops from NATO nations which are not taking part in the airstrikes as part of a settlement. Viktor Chernomyrdin said he would press for at least a temporary and immediate halt to the airstrikes as he began talks today with Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott and Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari. He warned that NATO's steady escalation of the attacks could wreck the talks. ``The result of the upcoming negotiations on Wednesday should be a stop to missile and bomb strikes on Yugoslavia,'' he told reporters. There appeared to be little chance that NATO would halt the bombing. Chernomyrdin, who is due to fly to Belgrade on Thursday, said Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic is willing to accept various elements of a peace deal. Milosevic agrees that NATO nations not taking part in the air attacks, such as Greece and Portugal, could be part of an international force in Kosovo, he said. Moscow wants to find a political solution, although it has made little progress to date, despite frequently raising international hopes of success. The West hopes that Russia can play a major role as an intermediary and persuade Belgrade to back down. Russia strongly opposes NATO airstrikes against Yugoslavia, but has been urging Yugoslavia to curb its policies in Kosovo. NATO says it won't accept any limitations on the force it wants to put into Kosovo. It also continues to insist on a complete Yugoslav military pullout despite Russian calls for a limited Serb military presence. Talbott said today that all Serb forces must pull out of Kosovo. He said a token force might be allowed later. ``As Secretary (of State Madeleine) Albright and others have said, once there have been complete withdrawals the international community might consider permitting the return of some official Yugoslav personnel to perform very carefully and supervised functions within Kosovo,'' he said before meeting Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov. Talbott said Kosovo should remain part of Yugoslavia, but he did not appear optimistic for a quick breakthrough. ``We're taking it one step at a time, dealing with a tough issue. But we've got our sleeves rolled up. I think we're working well,'' he said. Ivanov was to fly to Sweden today for a meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on efforts to mediate the crisis. Ivanov will then visit China for similar talks. -=-=- 