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OMRI Daily Digest II, No. 18, 25 January 1996
CONTENTS
[1] SERBS, CROATS, AND MUSLIMS MEET IN SARAJEVO.
[2] CROATS PREPARE FOR NEXT STAGE OF BOSNIAN PEACE . . .
[3] . . . ON BOTH CIVILIAN AND MILITARY FRONTS.
[4] POLITICKING STARTING UP IN BOSNIA.
[5] FOUR PEACEKEEPERS KILLED IN SARAJEVO BLAST.
[6] WORLD BANK TO PROVIDE BOSNIA WITH $150 MILLION.
[7] BELGRADE SIGNALS COOPERATION WITH THE HAGUE?
[8] BELGRADE-ZAGREB HIGHWAY TO REOPEN.
[9] ROMANIAN PRIME MINISTER VISITS SLOVENIA.
[10] REBEL DNIESTER TO TAX MOLDOVAN TRANSIT CARGOES.
[11] WAS MAXWELL THE "KING OF BULGARIA" . . .
[12] . . . OR NOT?
[13] HUNGARIAN PRESIDENT VISITS ALBANIA.
[14] ALBANIAN STATE MEDIA ACCUSE OPPOSITION OF ESPIONAGE . . .
[15] . . . DEMOCRATS DEMAND INVESTIGATIONS.
OMRI DAILY DIGEST
No. 18, Part II, 25 January 1996
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[1] SERBS, CROATS, AND MUSLIMS MEET IN SARAJEVO.
The international
community's High Representative for civilian affairs, Carl Bildt, met on
24 January with leading representatives of the political "entities"
party to the Dayton agreement. The Bosnian government was represented by
outgoing Prime Minister Haris Silajdzic and his designated successor
Hasan Muratovic; the Muslim and Croat Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina
by Prime Minister-designate Izudin Kapetanovic; and the Republika Srpska
by Prime Minister Rajko Kasagic. Reuters said the participants spoke
favorably about the session, with Silajdzic calling it "relatively
relaxed." Kasagic added that "the war is behind us, the war is over. We
must now build the bridges of peace." Bildt stressed the importance of
access to the media for the coming elections, and the participants set
up a working group to sort out radio and television frequencies. --
Patrick Moore
[2] CROATS PREPARE FOR NEXT STAGE OF BOSNIAN PEACE . . .
Oslobodjenje's
Onasa News Agency reported on 24 January that the Croatian Democratic
Community (HDZ) met in Mostar and nominated its candidates for posts in
the new federal and republican governments. The leading Croatian party
selected Jandranko Prlic to head the republic's foreign ministry, and
Drago Bilandzija to be federal deputy prime minister and finance
minister. Vladimir Soljic will head the federal defense ministry, while
Mato Tadic will be at justice. The party also agreed to transfer its
executive functions to the federation in keeping with the Dayton
agreement, and called on the Muslims to do the same. -- Patrick Moore
[3] . . . ON BOTH CIVILIAN AND MILITARY FRONTS.
The existing Croatian
Community of Herzeg-Bosna would thus become a political organization and
give up its governmental role. Many Croats have been uneasy about what
they regard as subordinating their role to the Muslims in the
federation. The head of the Bosnian Croat army (HVO) general staff,
General Zivko Budimir, told Vecernji list of 25 January that the Croats
will have their own national units in the new federal army and thus be
able to maintain "their national identity . . . and the traditions of
the HVO." -- Patrick Moore
[4] POLITICKING STARTING UP IN BOSNIA.
The first weeks of the implementation
of the Dayton agreement have witnessed various parties and politicians
gearing up for the elections slated for later this year. Onasa said on
24 January that Silajdzic refuses to rule out forming a new political
party. If he does set up a new organization, it could be a big step in
breaking up a political landscape hitherto dominated by three large
ethnically-based parties. The small Social Democratic Party called for
free and democratic conditions for the elections. Its Vice President
Gradimir Gojer denied that his civic-based party is a-national or
godless, claiming he is at least as good a Croat as the HDZ's Kresimir
Zubak, and noting that SDP members observe Christmas or Ramadan.
Meanwhile in Serbia, Nasa Borba on 25 January quoted Democratic Party
leader Vojislav Kostunica as saying his group would not set up a Bosnian
branch to take part in the elections, unlike some other Serbian parties.
-- Patrick Moore
[5] FOUR PEACEKEEPERS KILLED IN SARAJEVO BLAST.
Four IFOR peacekeepers were
killed and six injured in a blast on 25 January at the Zetra Olympic
stadium in Sarajevo, international media reported. Improper handling of
ammunition was the suspected cause. Unconfirmed reports said two victims
were Portuguese and one Italian. Elsewhere, four French soldiers were
injured by an explosion during a training mission near Sarajevo. In
another incident on 25 January, a mine explosion injured four Danish
soldiers. -- Michael Mihalka
[6] WORLD BANK TO PROVIDE BOSNIA WITH $150 MILLION.
The World Bank confirmed
in Sarajevo on 24 January that it will provide $150 million in emergency
aid for Bosnian reconstruction, international agencies reported. The
funds, which come in addition to the some $500 million promised at a
Brussels conference on Bosnia reconstruction last month, are primarily
intended to help rebuild the country's devastated utilities. The World
Bank estimates that Bosnia needs $5.1 billion over the next three years
for reconstruction. -- Michael Mihalka
[7] BELGRADE SIGNALS COOPERATION WITH THE HAGUE?
Uros Klikovac, federaldeputy premier and justice minister, announced on 24 January that an
office of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
shall open in rump Yugoslavia in the near future, Nasa Borba reported.
He suggested that this marked the start of cooperation between Belgrade
and the Hague, as outlined in the Dayton accord, but stressed it did not
signal that Belgrade would extradite suspected war criminals. Klikavac
maintained that Dayton obliged Belgrade to cooperate but said the
agreement did not specify "the means" of cooperation. "Insofar as [rump]
Yugoslavia learns of someone being involved in war crimes, then our
[legal] authorities are obliged to bring proceedings against such a
person. As far as I know, precisely these kinds of proceedings are
already being undertaken," he said. -- Stan Markotich
[8] BELGRADE-ZAGREB HIGHWAY TO REOPEN.
UN officials announced that the main
Belgrade-Zagreb highway will reopen on 25 January, but only to UN and
NATO military traffic, Politika reported the same day. Formerly the
highway of the "Brotherhood and Unity," connecting Slovenia in the north
and Macedonia in the south, the busiest road in former Yugoslavia was
closed ever since the war started in summer 1991, thus becoming a symbol
of separation of the former Yugoslav republics. -- Daria Sito Sucic
[9] ROMANIAN PRIME MINISTER VISITS SLOVENIA.
Nicolae Vacaroiu on 24 January
began a three-day tour through former Yugoslavia, Romanian and Western
media reported. Accompanied by a group of economic experts, Vacaroiu
discussed with Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Drnovsek and President
Milan Kucan ways of expanding mutual economic cooperation. -- Matyas
Szabo
[10] REBEL DNIESTER TO TAX MOLDOVAN TRANSIT CARGOES.
The president of the
self-proclaimed Dniester republic on 23 January decreed drastic customs
control on Moldovan cargoes transiting the region, BASA-press reported
the following day. The decree provides for duties on all goods exported
or imported by Moldova through Dniester territory but gives no details
of the new tariffs. A spokesman for Moldovan President Mircea Snegur
said the move came as a shock, since it occurred the same day the
Dniester leaders were discussing in Chisinau ways to de-block
negotiations over the future legal status of the region. -- Dan Ionescu
[11] WAS MAXWELL THE "KING OF BULGARIA" . . .
Bulgarian newspapers on 24
January reported on an article in The Guardian the previous day entitled
"King of Bulgaria," which deals with the connections between late media
tycoon Robert Maxwell and former Bulgarian Communist leaders. The
article, based on the Maxwell biography "Foreign Body" by Russell
Davies, says Maxwell, former Bulgarian Communist Dictator Todor Zhivkov,
former Prime Minister Andrey Lukanov, and former Communist Party
Politburo member Ognyan Doynov had developed "perfect channels" to
transfer some $2 billion in foreign currency out of Bulgaria. Maxwell
reportedly helped the Communist leaders to launder money, mainly through
joint ventures set up in the West with Bulgarian capital. -- Stefan
Krause
[12] . . . OR NOT?
Lukanov in an interview with RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service on24 January said articles such as the one in The Guardian are simply
attempts by newspapers to boost their sales. He added that Maxwell's
investment policy in Bulgaria prior to 1989 was "good for the country."
Pari on 25 January cited Lukanov as saying "Bulgaria did not transfer $2
billion because it simply did not have it." Doynov, who worked for
Maxwell for one year after 1989, told the BBC on 23 January that he has
no knowledge about trade deals between Bulgaria and Maxwell and that no
money was transferred out of Bulgaria while he was a Politburo member.
Former Premier Dimitar Popov repeatedly asserted that $2 billion of
foreign reserves "vanished during Lukanov's tenure." -- Stefan Krause
[13] HUNGARIAN PRESIDENT VISITS ALBANIA.
Hungarian President Arpad Goncz
visited Albania on 23-24 January, signing agreements on transport
cooperation and the protection of investments with his Albanian
counterpart Sali Berisha, Republika and international agencies reported.
Goncz and Berisha expressed hope that the Dayton agreement will increase
chances for a solution of the conflicts in Kosovo and Vojvodina and
committed themselves "to contributing to the peaceful solution of these
problems." -- Fabian Schmidt
[14] ALBANIAN STATE MEDIA ACCUSE OPPOSITION OF ESPIONAGE . . .
Albania,
Rilindja Demokratike, and public television on 24 January accused the
independent media and the Socialist party of espionage. The allegations
are based on an Italian news agency interview with a former Albanian
secret police officer. Albania said "tens of millions of Italian lira"
are being paid monthly by the "communist world," including "Moscow and
Serbia," to direct a network of spies which aims to "control the policy
of the Tirana government." Albania further claims that "Serbian
Communists are financing the [communist-era Albanian] secret police, the
Socialists, the [independent daily] Koha Jone and [the Socialist party
daily] Zeri I Popullit." -- Fabian Schmidt
[15] . . . DEMOCRATS DEMAND INVESTIGATIONS.
The Democratic Party reacted to
the allegations by calling for a parliamentary investigation, the
Albanian language service of Deutsche Welle reported on 24 January. The
party also called on the prosecutor's office and secret police to
investigate all funding and revenues of the Socialists and Koha Jone "to
bring the culprits to justice," international agencies reported on 25
January. The Socialists said the charges are part of the election
campaign. Koha Jone and Zeri i Popullit on 25 January denied receiving
any money from Serbia. -- Fabian Schmidt
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 [email protected]
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