OMRI Daily Digest II, No. 101, 25 May 1995

From: "Steve Iatrou" <siatrou@cdsp.neu.edu>

CONTENTS

  • [01] UN THREATENS AIR STRIKES . . .

  • [02] . . . AFTER VIOLENCE FLARES IN SARAJEVO.

  • [03] PEACEKEEPING IN BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA.

  • [04] OTHER NEWS FROM FORMER YUGOSLAVIA.

  • [05] ANOTHER ETHNIC ALBANIAN CONVICTED IN MACEDONIA.

  • [06] MACEDONIAN COALITION ABOUT TO SPLIT?

  • [07] BULGARIA'S LAST COMMUNIST PREMIER TO HEAD STATE-RUN COMPANY.

    •

    OMRI DAILY DIGEST

    No. 101, Part II, 25 May 1995

    SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

    [01] UN THREATENS AIR STRIKES . . .

    The United Nations on 24 May issued an ultimatum to the warring sides around Sarajevo either to silence their heavy weapons by noon local time the following day or face the threat of NATO air power. It also demanded the return by the same time of four heavy guns pilfered by Bosnian Serb forces just outside Sarajevo. All other heavy weapons are to be surrendered to the UN or removed from the exclusion area around the city by noon local time on 26 May. If they are not removed, the warring sides will again face the possibility of air strikes, according to the ultimatum. Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has reacted forcefully, insisting that Bosnian Serb forces will treat UN soldiers as "hostile" if NATO launches air strikes. Reuters quotes Karadzic as saying that "if the UN orders air strikes, we are going to treat the UN as the enemy." According to international media, Sarajevo and its environs were relatively calm and quiet on the morning of 25 May. -- Stan Markotich , OMRI, Inc.

    [02] . . . AFTER VIOLENCE FLARES IN SARAJEVO.

    UN calls for NATO air strikes come in the wake of some of the most serious fighting to hit the Bosnian capital over the past year at least. The Croatian news agency Hina on 24 May reported that at least five people were killed and 30 injured when Bosnian Serb artillery pounded the city and surrounding areas the same day. It also observed that phosphorous bombs, forbidden by Geneva conventions, were among those used in the latest attacks. -- Stan Markotich , OMRI, Inc.

    [03] PEACEKEEPING IN BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA.

    Reuters on 24 May reports that UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros Ghali will formally outline by 26 May a series of proposals for the future of peacekeeping operations in Bosnia, which may include withdrawals, greater use of air strikes, or scaling back operations. It is reported that unlike in the past, Boutros Ghali is likely to refrain from preferring one option over the other. Meanwhile, Nasa Borba and Vjesnik on 25 May report that if UN peacekeepers do withdraw from Bosnia, up to 50,000 NATO forces may be dispatched to offer the peacekeepers protection during the withdrawal process. The dailies also observe that U.S. Secretary of Defense William Perry has suggested that half the NATO contingent may come from the U.S. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [04] OTHER NEWS FROM FORMER YUGOSLAVIA.

    Nasa Borba on 25 May quotes UN human rights envoy Tadeusz Mazowiecki as suggesting at a press conference in Pakrac the previous day that the Croatian army may have committed some human rights violations against Serbs during its advance on rebel Serb- held parts of western Slavonia earlier this month. But the daily also notes that Mazowiecki offered few details to back this claim. Hina observed that Mazowiecki noted his understanding of the situation was still somewhat "murky." The envoy's probe into alleged human rights violations continues on 25 May in Zagreb. Meanwhile, Nasa Borba also reports on Moscow envoy Alexander Zotov's second day in Belgrade, noting that the Russian representative has already said he sees little reason for the international community to insist on the continued imposition of sanctions against rump Yugoslavia. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [05] ANOTHER ETHNIC ALBANIAN CONVICTED IN MACEDONIA.

    Musli Alimi, a former university professor from Kosovo, was sentenced to eight months in jail on 24 May, international agencies reported the same day. He was convicted on charges of obstructing the police during riots in February when thousands of ethnic Albanians tried to prevent policemen from closing down the self-declared Albanian-language university in Tetovo. One Albanian died during the clashes. Alimi is the fifth ethnic Albanian sentenced in connection with the riot. -- Stefan Krause , OMRI, Inc.

    [06] MACEDONIAN COALITION ABOUT TO SPLIT?

    The ruling Macedonian coalition,currently facing its most serious crisis since it was formed seven months ago, may be on the verge of splitting, Reuters reported on 24 May. The Liberal Party, second-largest of the three members of the ruling Alliance for Macedonia, has announced it will press embezzlement charges against Finance Minister Jane Miljovski, deputy leader of the Social Democratic Alliance, the largest coalition partner. Miljovski is accused of depositing into his party's account 8.1 million denars ($212,000) designated for the Liberals. The Liberal Party has invited the two major opposition parties to attend its next congress, which will discuss the future of the coalition. The Alliance for Macedonia won 93 of the 120 seats in the fall 1994 parliamentary elections. The Liberals hold 29 of these seats. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [07] BULGARIA'S LAST COMMUNIST PREMIER TO HEAD STATE-RUN COMPANY.

    Andrey Lukanov is to head the Bulgarian-Russian gas company, which will be set up in accordance with an agreement signed during Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin's visit to Sofia on 18-19 May, Standart reports on 25 May. The newspaper says that his return to an official post after five years puts him in a key position both in the field of economics and in relations with Russia. Lukanov was first deputy prime minister in the 1980s and was elected to the Politbureau in 1989. From 1989 to 1990, he was Bulgaria's last communist premier. In order to head the new company, Lukanov will have to resign his seat in the parliament. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    This material was reprinted with permission of the Open Media Research Institute, a Prague-based nonprofit organization.

    HTML by the HR-Net Group / Hellenic Resources Institute
    news2html v2.09c run on Thursday, 25 May 1995 - 13:55:36