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OMRI: Daily Digest, Vol. 3, No. 59, 97-03-25
From: Open Media Research Institute <http://www.omri.cz>
Vol. 3, No. 59, 25 March 1997
CONTENTS
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] SHEVARDNADZE ULTIMATUM TO RUSSIAN PEACEKEEPERS.
[02] ALIEV IN KYIV.
[03] ARMENIA'S NEW PRIME MINISTER INTRODUCED TO CABINET.
[04] KAZAKSTANI OIL COMPANY SOLD.
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[05] EU FAILS TO AGREE ON MILITARY PROTECTION FOR AID CONVOYS TO ALBANIA.
[06] ALBANIA, ITALY AGREE TO CLOSE STRAITS OF OTRANTO.
[07] IZETBEGOVIC IN WASHINGTON.
[08] SERBS AGREE TO UN POLICE FORCE IN BRCKO.
[09] SERBIA'S BK TELEVISION RETURNS TO AIRWAVES.
[10] CROATIA, ITALY DISAGREE OVER REPAYMENT OF WAR-TIME DEBT.
[11] NATO SECRETARY-GENERAL IN MACEDONIA.
[12] ROMANIAN FOREIGN NEWS.
[13] ROMANIAN JOURNALISTS ACQUITTED OF OFFENDING FORMER PRESIDENT.
[14] MOLDOVAN COMMUNISTS, SOCIAL DEMOCRATS HOLD CONGRESSES IN CHISINAU.
[15] ETHNIC TURKISH FORCES TO SPLIT BEFORE BULGARIAN ELECTIONS?
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] SHEVARDNADZE ULTIMATUM TO RUSSIAN PEACEKEEPERS.
Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze argued in his traditional Monday
radio interview on 24 March that the upcoming CIS heads of state summit
should either broaden the mandate of the CIS peacekeeping forces deployed
in Abkhazia to enable them to protect the Georgian population more
effectively, or comply with the Georgian parliament resolution calling for
their withdrawal, Reuters reported. Both the Turkish Ambassador in Tbilisi,
Tofik Okiazus, and Georgian presidential press secretary Vakhtang Abashidze
have rejected the claim by Russian State Duma deputy Sergei Baburin that
Turkey has moved troops closer to its border with Georgia in anticipation
of the deployment of a NATO peacekeeping force in Abkhazia, Nezavisimaya
gazeta reported on 21 March. Meeting two weeks ago with a delegation from
the Turkish parliament, Shevardnadze had proposed that Turkey take a more
active role in resolving conflicts in the Caucasus, and Abkhazia in
particular. -- Liz Fuller
[02] ALIEV IN KYIV.
On arrival in Kyiv on 24 March for a two-day official visit, Azerbaijan's
President Heidar Aliev held talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Leonid
Kuchma on bilateral cooperation, the planned Transcaucasus transport
corridor, European security, and the future of the CIS, ITAR-TASS reported.
Aliev subsequently told journalists that after the existing Baku-Batumi oil
pipeline is repaired and extended to the Georgian Black Sea port of Supsa
in 1998, Azerbaijan's Caspian oil will be shipped from Supsa to Ukraine for
export to the West. Azerbaijani and Ukrainian representatives signed a
series of bilateral inter-governmental agreements including several on
military cooperation, but Ukrainian Foreign Minister Henadii Udovenko
stressed that the latter are not directed against any third country. -- Liz
Fuller
[03] ARMENIA'S NEW PRIME MINISTER INTRODUCED TO CABINET.
President Levon Ter-Petrossyan on 24 March introduced newly appointed Prime
Minister Robert Kocharyan to the government members, Armenian and Russian
media reported. Ter-Petrossyan said that Kocharyan's "popularity,
efficiency and ability to get things done" were the reasons for his choice.
He said the appointment of the Nagorno-Karabakh leader will not change
Armenia's economic strategy, arguing that his country remains committed to
democracy and free-market reforms. Also, according to Radio Rossii, Foreign
Minister Aleksandr Arzumanyan claimed that Yerevan will not take a harder
line at the negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict's settlement as a
result of the change of prime ministers. Vazgen Manukyan, the leader of the
Armenian opposition, told NTV that Kocharyan's appointment is "absurd" as
it will create additional problems for Armenia regarding Nagorno-Karabakh. -
- Emil Danielyan
[04] KAZAKSTANI OIL COMPANY SOLD.
On 24 March it was announced that Central Asian Petroleum (CAP), a
subsidiary of the Indonesian Setdco Group, has won a 60% stake in
Kazakstan's largest oil company, Mangistaumunaigaz, Reuters reported.
Mangistaumunaigaz produced six million metric tons of oil, about one third
of the Kazak total, and 1.8 billion cubic meters of gas in 1995. CAP
offered $250 million, outbidding five other minor challengers. Analysts
were concerned that major Western oil companies stayed away from the sale,
suggesting that they do not trust the Kazakstan government to clearly
define the assets and liabilities of the firms up for sale. -- Peter
Rutland
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[05] EU FAILS TO AGREE ON MILITARY PROTECTION FOR AID CONVOYS TO ALBANIA.
The EU foreign ministers, meeting in Brussels on 24 March, failed to agree
on a joint force to provide security to aid workers in Albania,
international media reported. Italy, Greece, and France said they would
provide troops for such a force, but the other EU member states made clear
they would not. Turkey has also offered to send troops. German Foreign
Minister Klaus Kinkel said the EU was ready to provide aid and that
security would be provided by individual states on a voluntary basis. He
added that the OSCE should coordinate the operation. But his French
counterpart, Herve de Charette, insisted that the EU take a leading role
and proposed that the UN Security Council issue a mandate for intervention.
The EU foreign ministers are scheduled to discuss the issue with Albanian
Premier Bashkim Fino in Rome today. -- Fabian Schmidt
[06] ALBANIA, ITALY AGREE TO CLOSE STRAITS OF OTRANTO.
Fino and Italian counterpart, Romano Prodi, have agreed to coordinate
efforts to stem the flow of emigrants across the Adriatic Sea,
international media reported on 24 March. The number of refugees now
exceeds 12,000. The Italian navy began returning all unauthorized ships by
towing two trawlers with refugees back to Albania. But later the same day,
another Albanian boat with several hundred refugees docked in Brindisi,
while an Italian air force transport plane brought six tons of emergency
medical aid for the northern part of the country. Meanwhile, the world-
famous ruins at Butrint have been looted and vandalized, Reuters reported
on 24 March. Doors to the museum and archaeological storerooms have been
smashed and some statues stolen. -- Fabian Schmidt
[07] IZETBEGOVIC IN WASHINGTON.
Alija Izetbegovic, chairman of the Bosnian presidency, has urged U.S.
Defense Secretary William Cohen to accelerate a U.S.-sponsored program to
arm and train Bosnia's Muslim-Croat federation, AFP reported on 24 March.
Izetbegovic said only 20% of the program has been implemented so far. The
Bosnian president also asked Cohen to put more pressure on the Serbs to
reduce weapon stocks in keeping with an arms control agreement. He
underscored the need to send war criminals Radovan Karadzic and Ratko
Mladic to The Hague, saying that, otherwise, there will be "no real peace
in Bosnia." Meanwhile, Haris Silajdzic, Muslim co-chairman of the Bosnian
government, warned in Egypt of the risk to stability in Bosnia and the
whole region if U.S. troops pull out. Cohen has said that U.S. troops will
leave Bosnia in mid 1998 even if war breaks out again. -- Daria Sito Sucic
[08] SERBS AGREE TO UN POLICE FORCE IN BRCKO.
The Bosnian Serbs on 23 March agreed to allow the deployment of 200 unarmed
UN policemen in the disputed town of Brcko, in northern Bosnia-Herzegovina,
AFP reported. Bosnian Serb Interior Minister Dragan Kijac said the UN
police will work with local Serb police to "strengthen security in the
region." But Bosnian Serb President Biljana Plavsic has rejected the idea
of a joint Serb-Muslim force in the town, saying it was "out of question."
Brcko is claimed by both Bosnian entities and was the only issue unsolved
in the Dayton peace accord. A final decision on who will rule the town has
been postponed until March 1998. Meanwhile, Brcko will remain under the
Serbian administration but also under international control. -- Daria Sito
Sucic
[09] SERBIA'S BK TELEVISION RETURNS TO AIRWAVES.
Following a ruling by the Economic Court in Belgrade in favor of
independent BK Television and against the Serbian Post, Telephone, and
Telegraph (PTT) , the station resumed broadcasting to southern Serbia for
the first time since 20 March, Nasa Borba reported on 25 March. The PTT
had denied BK use of the Avala-Jastrebac relay line on the alleged grounds
of unpaid bills and licensing irregularities. As a result, BK's range was
limited to the Belgrade and Novi Sad areas (see OMRI Daily Digest, 24
March 1997). BK Television returned to the airwaves with a vengeance by
hosting a round table on media freedom on 24 March. Zajedno coalition
leader Vuk Draskovic said that demonstrations would resume unless there
were media freedom, and all opposition leaders backed Radical Party leader
Vojislav Seselj's call for complete privatization of the media. The regime
has recently spoken about the need for change, but its proposed media law
aims at more restrictions rather than at liberalization. -- Patrick Moore
[10] CROATIA, ITALY DISAGREE OVER REPAYMENT OF WAR-TIME DEBT.
Croatian and Italian experts met on 24 March in the Croatian port of Split
to discuss Croatia's $35 million debt to Italy, Vecernji List reported.
Croatian Deputy Foreign Minister Hido Biscevic offered to pay one half in
cash and the other half in stocks from the portfolio Croatia's
Privatization Fund, which consists of state-owned hotels and other tourist
facilities. But Italy rejected the proposal saying the whole debt should be
paid in real estate. The debt originates in the post-war period, when
Yugoslav partisans recaptured areas in the northern Adriatic Istrian
peninsula from the Italian fascist state and expelled the ethnic Italian
minority from Istria. A treaty between former Yugoslavia and Italy on
settling territorial and material disputes was never fully implemented. --
Daria Sito Sucic
[11] NATO SECRETARY-GENERAL IN MACEDONIA.
Javier Solana, at the beginning of his two-day visit to Macedonia, met with
President Kiro Gligorov, Premier Branko Crvenkovski, Foreign Minister
Ljubomir Frckovski, and Defense Minister Blagoj Handziski to discuss the
situation in the Balkans and NATO enlargement, Nova Makedonija reported
on 25 March. Solana noted Macedonia's "very positive" contribution to
NATO's Partnership for Peace program but did not comment on Skopje's desire
to join NATO. Solana said he and Gligorov did not discuss the possibility
of replacing UNPREDEP forces currently stationed in Macedonia with NATO
troops. Solana's visit is the first by a NATO secretary-general to
Macedonia. -- Stefan Krause
[12] ROMANIAN FOREIGN NEWS.
Prime Minister Victor Ciorbea met with his Spanish counterpart, Jose Maria
Anzar, in Madrid on 24 March, Radio Bucharest reported. They discussed
Romania's application for integration into NATO and the EU, which Spain
supports. Later that day, he addressed a meeting of European Christian
Democratic and Popular parties in Lisbon, talking on NATO's expansion to
the East. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Adrian Severin was in Brussels to
attend the third session of the Romania-EU Association Council and an EU
meeting on the organization's enlargement. He urged the union to open talks
with all applicants at the same time, Reuters reported. Finally, Radio
Bucharest reported on 25 March that former King Mihai arrived in London to
begin his role as "ambassador of Romanian interests," promoting that
country's admission to NATO. He met with Prince Charles and is scheduled to
have lunch with Queen Elizabeth today. -- Michael Shafir
[13] ROMANIAN JOURNALISTS ACQUITTED OF OFFENDING FORMER PRESIDENT.
A Bucharest court on 24 March overturned a lower court ruling whereby two
journalists were found guilty of "offense to authority," RFE/RL and
Romanian TV reported. Sorin Rosca Stanescu and Tana Ardeleanu had claimed
that former President Ion Iliescu was recruited by the KGB while studying
in Moscow in the 1950s. Stanescu, chief editor of the daily Ziua, writes
today that the latest ruling is correct, but he says he is not satisfied
because the Penal Code article under which he and Ardeleanu were sentenced
remains valid. Stanescu challenges Iliescu to sue for libel as an
individual rather than hiding behind the Prosecutor-General's Office. The
prosecution has 10 days to appeal the sentence. -- Michael Shafir
[14] MOLDOVAN COMMUNISTS, SOCIAL DEMOCRATS HOLD CONGRESSES IN CHISINAU.
Vladimir Voronin, leader of the Party of Moldovan Communists, addressed the
party's third congress in Chisinau on 22 March, BASA-press and Infotag
reported. He said the Communists should start preparing for the next
elections and do their best to shorten the life of the present government.
Meanwhile, the two rival wings of the Moldovan Social Democratic Party held
parallel congresses in Chisinau on 22 March, Infotag and BASA-press
reported. The wing led by Anatol Taran, special advisor to President Petru
Lucinschi, adopted a resolution establishing a United Social Democratic
Party of Moldova. The rival congress of the wing led by Oazu Nantoi
appealed to center-left formations to form a coalition for the next
parliamentary elections. The congress elected Andrei Turcanu chairman of
the party and Nantoi chairman of its political council. -- Michael Shafir
[15] ETHNIC TURKISH FORCES TO SPLIT BEFORE BULGARIAN ELECTIONS?
Almost all northern chapters of the mainly ethnic Turkish Movement for
Rights and Freedom (DPS) met in Razgrad on 24 March to support the local
DPS branch's proposal to form a DPS within the United Democratic Forces
(ODS), Standart reported. The DPS leadership recently decided not to join
the ODS, opting instead to form a Union for National Salvation (SNS) with
the monarchists and other forces. Participants of the Razgrad meeting
called DPS leader Ahmed Dogan's decision "disastrous" for the DPS. Ivan
Kostov, leader of the Union of Democratic Forces, the biggest group within
the ODS, said the ODS's door remained open to Dogan, 24 chasa noted.
Meanwhile, former Tsar Simeon II decided to openly support the SNS. Just
two weeks earlier, Simeon indirectly called on his followers to vote for
the ODS. -- Stefan Krause
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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