OMRI Daily Digest I,II, No. 175, 8 September 1995

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

Open Media Research Institute Directory

CONTENTS

  • [01] YELTSIN SIGNS LAW ON HUMANITARIAN AID FOR YUGOSLAVIA.

  • [02] CONTACT GROUP PREPARES PEACE PLAN . . .

  • [03] . . . BUT PEACE MAY BE HARD TO ACHIEVE.

  • [04] NATO AIR RAIDS CONTINUE.

  • [05] SERBS REFUSE TO WITHDRAW.

  • [06] SECURITY COUNCIL CONDEMNS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS.

  • [07] MACEDONIA TO RECEIVE $200 MILLION IN FOREIGN AID.

  • [08] RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER IN SOFIA.

  • [09] BULGARIAN PRESIDENT, PREMIER ON EUROPEAN INTEGRATION.

  • [10] GREEK-MACEDONIAN UPDATE.

    •

    OMRI DAILY DIGEST

    No. 175, Part I,II, 8 September 1995

    RUSSIA

    [01] YELTSIN SIGNS LAW ON HUMANITARIAN AID FOR YUGOSLAVIA.

    President Yeltsin on 7 September signed a law allowing Russian firms to trade with rump Yugoslavia, so long as the deals involve only "humanitarian" goods, ITAR-TASS reported. The law, designed to facilitate the delivery of Russian food and medicine to rump Yugoslavia while UN economic sanctions are in effect, was passed by the State Duma during its 12 August special session. The new law could bring Russia into conflict with the UN sanctions regime, however, as it includes fuel among the commodities that can be shipped. Yeltsin's parliamentary critics are calling for Russia to withdraw entirely from UN sanctions against rump Yugoslavia. -- Scott Parrish, OMRI, Inc.

    SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

    [02] CONTACT GROUP PREPARES PEACE PLAN . . .

    The international Contact Group has finalized outline proposals for a Bosnian peace settlement, which are to be presented at the first meeting of the foreign ministers of Bosnia, rump Yugoslavia, and Croatia in more than 18 months, international agencies reported on 8 September. The preparatory meeting was attended by EU mediator Carl Bildt and his UN counterpart, Thorvald Stoltenberg. U.S. special envoy Richard Holbrooke said the foreign ministers' talks on 8 September will include constitutional arrangements but no territorial issues. He refused to predict the outcome of the negotiations, saying that failure of the talks would be "an absolute disaster." Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher played down differences with Russia over recent NATO air strikes. He said Russia supported the Holbrooke peace initiative and added he believed that "we'll be able to work and stay together with the Russians." -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

    [03] . . . BUT PEACE MAY BE HARD TO ACHIEVE.

    Holbrooke, after meeting with rump Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic late on 7 September, said "we had some problems" but gave no details, international media reported. The meeting was requested by the Yugoslav delegation. Other delegates also agreed that peace will be hard to achieve. Croatian Foreign Minister Mate Granic is quoted as saying that he would be satisfied if "only one piece of paper concerning some basic element about constitutional arrangements" were produced. Negotiations between Granic, Milutinovic, and their Bosnian counterpart, Muhamed Sacirbey, began at the U.S. mission in Geneva on 8 September under Holbrooke's chairmanship. The new proposal has not yet been published but is reported to be based on a 51%--49% division of Bosnia between the Muslim-Croat federation and the Serbs. -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

    [04] NATO AIR RAIDS CONTINUE.

    NATO warplanes using night vision gear continue to bomb Bosnian Serb positions around the clock, Reuters reported on 8 September. NATO said night attacks on military barracks and ammunition dumps near Sarajevo and other strategic targets, including bridges and radar posts in Foca and west Bosnia, were a "success." NATO pilots have so far flown about 2,000 sorties. The Serbs said civilian targets were also being hit. U.S. Secretary of State Christopher said the strikes will not cease, adding that "this campaign can continue for some time." Another U.S. official is quoted as saying "we've advised the Bosnian government to be restrained militarily . . . [and] not to initiate their own military operations under cover of the NATO-UN operations." Elsewhere, a Yugoslav government statement called on the UN Security Council to rein in NATO, saying "unacceptable and unreasonable" air strikes put the peace process in jeopardy, international agencies reported. -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

    [05] SERBS REFUSE TO WITHDRAW.

    Bosnian Serbs on 7 September insisted that more NATO air strikes will not make them pull back their big guns from the 20 km exclusion zone around Sarajevo, international agencies reported the next day. UN spokesman Alexander Ivanko said there was no evidence the Serbs were about to comply with the UN demand that big guns be pulled back. "We have checked and no heavy weapons have moved out of the exclusion zone." Ivanko said. He added that "the Bosnian Serbs continue to defy the will of the international community." -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

    [06] SECURITY COUNCIL CONDEMNS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS.

    The UN Security Council issued two separate statements rapping Croatia for the mass exodus of 150,000 Serbs and condemning the lack of Bosnian Serb cooperation in allowing access to Muslim prisoners, Reuters reported on 7 September. It demanded that access be provided to sites deemed important by the International War Crimes Tribunal for its investigations. The U.S. has produced evidence that between 2,000 and 2,700 Bosnian civilians were machine-gunned to death soon after Srebrenica fell in July. UN investigators have not been allowed to visit those sites. About 10,000 civilians from Srebrenica and 3,000 from Zepa are unaccounted for. The second statement on Croatia expressed "deep concern" at the mass exodus of local Serbs. The council demands that Croatia "immediately investigate . . . report [on the burning of houses, looting of Serbian property, and killings], and take appropriate measure to put an end to such acts." The council also demanded respect for the rights of local Serbs, including their return in safety. -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

    [07] MACEDONIA TO RECEIVE $200 MILLION IN FOREIGN AID.

    Donor countries and international organizations belonging to a consultative group chaired by the World Bank have agreed on new aid for Macedonia worth $200 million, Reuters reported on 7 September. Together with some $400 million saved through a debt rescheduling accord reached with the Paris Club in July 1995, the new credit will cover Macedonia's 1995 external financing gap of about $600 million. World Bank Director Rachel Lomax said financial support for Macedonia in 1996 looked strong, since the country has made great progress in economic reforms since 1994, despite "adverse external circumstances." -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [08] RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER IN SOFIA.

    Andrei Kozyrev arrived in Sofia on 7 September for his first official visit to Bulgaria, AFP reported the same day. He met with his Bulgarian counterpart, Georgi Pirinski, and President Zhelyu Zhelev. Talks focused on the situation in the former Yugoslavia and a possible eastward expansion of NATO. Kozyrev said the Yugoslav conflict has to be solved by the warring sides, rather than outside forces. He also repeated Russia's position against a NATO expansion, while Zhelev said the decision to apply for membership was Bulgaria's sovereign choice and was not directed against Russia. The two sides also signed a new consular treaty. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [09] BULGARIAN PRESIDENT, PREMIER ON EUROPEAN INTEGRATION.

    Zhelyu Zhelev and Zhan Videnov on 7 September addressed the National Assembly to mark the creation of a Bulgarian-EU parliamentary committee, Bulgarian newspapers reported the following day. Both stressed the importance of closer ties with the EU. Zhelev said Bulgaria will be able to present its request for EU membership within months. He called integration into European structures the best guarantee "for [Bulgaria's] democratic and stable development." Videnov said his government is preparing a strategy for beginning negotiations on full EU membership, which he described as Bulgaria's main foreign policy priority. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [10] GREEK-MACEDONIAN UPDATE.

    AFP on 8 September reported that the foreign ministers of Greece and Macedonia, Karolos Papoulias and Stevo Crvenkovski, will meet in New York on 12 or 13 September to sign an agreement between their two countries. The Greek Foreign Ministry said the accord "should enable mutual recognition." Tanjug, citing Macedonian press reports, reported that Greece and Macedonia will sign a seven-year friendship treaty, drafted by the U.S., the EU, and the UN, that will require Macedonia to change its flag and clarify certain articles of its constitution. Greece, for its part, will lift the embargo on Macedonia and stop blocking Macedonia's admission to certain international bodies. Only the name issue will remain frozen for the time being. Reuters on 7 September cited Macedonian Finance Minister Jane Miljovski as saying that a name change was not realistic and that the dispute over it had not been rational from the start. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    This material was reprinted with permission of the Open Media Research Institute, a nonprofit organization with research offices in Prague, Czech Republic.
    For more information on OMRI publications please write to info@omri.cz

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