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OMRI: Daily Digest, Vol. 3, No. 60, 97-03-26
From: Open Media Research Institute <http://www.omri.cz>
Vol. 3, No. 60, 26 March 1997
CONTENTS
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] GEORGIA TO RECEIVE NEW IMF LOAN.
[02] NEW ARMENIAN PREMIER HOLDS FIRST NEWS CONFERENCE.
[03] WHO WILL BE AZERBAIJAN'S NEXT PRESIDENT?
[04] THE SECURITY OF KAZAKSTAN'S BORDERS.
[05] KYRGYZ JOURNALIST ARRESTED AGAIN.
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[06] CONTINUED VIOLENCE IN ALBANIA.
[07] EU FOREIGN MINISTERS MEET WITH ALBANIAN PREMIER.
[08] TWO ALBANIANS KILLED IN KOSOVO.
[09] ARE BOSNIAN SERB POLICEMEN FIGHTING IN ZAIRE?
[10] TUDJMAN SAYS SERBS WHO ACCEPT CROATIAN STATE CAN STAY.
[11] ZAJEDNO LEADERSHIP WARNS SERBIA COULD BECOME ANOTHER ALBANIA.
[12] MONTENEGRIN PRIME MINISTER SACKED FROM PARTY JOB.
[13] MACEDONIAN PREMIER SURVIVES CONFIDENCE VOTE.
[14] ROMANIAN MINISTERS IN U.S.
[15] MOLDOVAN DEPUTY PREMIER WARNS AGAINST "BULGARIZATION."
[16] FORMER MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT ON FUTURE PLANS.
[17] LEGAL PROCEEDINGS LAUNCHED AGAINST FORMER BULGARIAN MINISTER.
[18] BULGARIA TO BUY RUSSIAN MILITARY AIRCRAFT?
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] GEORGIA TO RECEIVE NEW IMF LOAN.
The IMF will grant Georgia a second annual loan of $76 million, to be
disbursed in two tranches, ITAR-TASS reported on 26 March. IMF specialists
noted Georgia's success over the past two years in economic stabilization,
specifically the reduction of inflation, and in structural reform. Among
the IMF targets set for Georgia for 1997 are an 8-10% increase in GDP and
bringing inflation down from the present 14% to 10-12%. -- Liz Fuller
[02] NEW ARMENIAN PREMIER HOLDS FIRST NEWS CONFERENCE.
Robert Kocharyan said his appointment, which surprised himself as well as
others, may bring a new impetus to the Nagorno-Karabakh peace talks,
international agencies reported on 25 March. Kocharyan said that Armenia
has no new proposals regarding the settlement of the conflict as its "old
ones have not been realized yet." Kocharyan, former Nagorno-Karabakh
president, dismissed Azerbaijan's criticism that his appointment runs
counter to international norms, saying that "whatever happens in Armenia
and Karabakh Azerbaijan always sees as a problem." Formally a citizen of
the self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, Kocharyan said he will
retain this citizenship. -- Emil Danielyan
[03] WHO WILL BE AZERBAIJAN'S NEXT PRESIDENT?
Less than one- third of 500 people polled in Azerbaijan are prepared to
vote for incumbent Heidar Aliev in next year's presidential election,
although more than two-thirds believe he will be reelected, according to 7
Gun of 21 March as summarized by the Tacis-funded Transcaucasia Media
Project. Deposed former President Abulfaz Elchibey, the chairman of the
Popular Front Party, and Lala-Shovket Gadjieva, the leader of the Liberal
Party, each rated 12.2%. Rasul Guliev, the disgraced former parliament
chairman, Isa Gambar, former parliament speaker under Elchibey and current
chairman of the Musavat Party, Zardusht Alizade, leader of the Social
Democratic Party, and Etibar Mamedov, the chairman of the National
Independence Party of Azerbaijan, each rated 3-4%. -- Liz Fuller
[04] THE SECURITY OF KAZAKSTAN'S BORDERS.
The secretary of Kazakstan's Security Council, Beksultan Sarsekov, on 25
March expressed his country's concern about events along the borders with
China and Russia, Reuters reported. In the first official reaction to the
February clashes between Uyghurs and Chinese in neighboring Xinjiang
Province, Sarsekov told a press conference in Almaty "we are concerned by
events" and by the "harsh measures" used by the Chinese against the
Uyghurs. However, Kazakstan signed a treaty with China in 1996 in which
both sides promised not to help separatist movements in the other's country
and Sarsekov said Kazakstan has nothing to do with the problems in China.
Addressing the issue of the Kazak-Russian border, he criticized the use of
Cossack formations to guard the border, which Sarsekov said was at odds
with the Kazak-Russian border agreement, especially as "these Cossacks
received uniforms and weapons (from Russia). -- Bruce Pannier
[05] KYRGYZ JOURNALIST ARRESTED AGAIN.
Authorities in Bishkek have taken Ryspek Omurzakov, a journalist from the
Kyrgyz weekly Res Publica, into custody, RFE/RL reported. Omurzakov was
summoned to the Lenin District prosecutor's office on 24 March and failed
to return home. RFE/RL correspondents subsequently learned Omurzakov was
being detained by the authorities, who have the right to hold him for 72
hours without filing a charge. In July 1996 Omurzakov was given a two-year
suspended sentence for insulting the president. On 14 January Omurzakov
published an article in Res Publica criticizing the director of the
Frunze Machine building factory, Mikhail Paryshkura, for poor conditions in
the factory's hostel. Paryshkura filed libel charges on 7 February but
promised to withdraw the suit after meeting with Omurzakov, who showed the
director a complaint signed by 108 employees of the factory. Paryshkura did
not drop the suit as promised, leading to Omurzakov's detention. -- Bruce
Pannier and Naryn Idinov
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[06] CONTINUED VIOLENCE IN ALBANIA.
At least 13 people were killed in separate incidents in southern Albania
and Tirana on 25 March, international media reported. Four of the victims
were policemen. A Dutch journalist was admitted to a Greek hospital after
being shot in Saranda. Gunmen in Vlora briefly took four Italian doctors
hostage and forced them to arrange for a wounded comrade to be evacuated to
Italy. The man was seriously injured in the head the previous day in a
shoot-out with police that left three officers dead. The doctors were
released once the Italians supplied a helicopter to fly the man to Bari for
treatment. Italian Defense Minister Beniamino Andreatta said "this shows
how difficult it is to operate when there is no security." EU Humanitarian
Affairs Commissioner Emma Bonino said that failure to intervene in Albania
would drive civil disruption beyond the country's borders. -- Fabian
Schmidt
[07] EU FOREIGN MINISTERS MEET WITH ALBANIAN PREMIER.
The EU foreign ministers and Bashkim Fino, meeting in Rome on 25 March,
failed to reach agreement on sending a security force to protect aid
convoys. Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini told reporters that "for
the moment, few [EU] countries have shown willingness" to provide troops
for such a force. Only Austria, France, Greece, and Italy are willing to
participate. A new EU evaluation mission will visit Albania on 26 March to
identify humanitarian, administrative, and security needs. Military experts
from six countries have already flown to Albania for talks on the possible
deployment of a multinational protection force as part of the EU relief
mission. Turkey and Romania have expressed willingness to join such a
force. -- Fabian Schmidt
[08] TWO ALBANIANS KILLED IN KOSOVO.
Two ethnic Albanians close to the Serbian regime were killed and a third
man wounded in an attack by unidentified gunmen, AFP reported on 26 March.
The victims were identified as Jusuf and Fehmiu Halitaj. The incident took
place in Sicevo. Responsibility for similar killings has been claimed by
the Kosovo Liberation Army. The number of Albanians shot dead in Kosovo
this year now totals 12. Six Serbs, mostly policemen, have been killed in
separate shootouts. -- Fabian Schmidt
[09] ARE BOSNIAN SERB POLICEMEN FIGHTING IN ZAIRE?
Bosnian Serb Interior Minister Dragan Kijac on 25 March denied that his
ministry has sent policemen to fight in Zaire, AFP reported. But local and
international media claim that the Kinshasa government have hired
demobilized soldiers and members of special police forces from the
Republika Srpska and Serbia to fight in the civil war. Kijac also denied
that his ministry is providing papers for Serbs who want to go to Zaire. He
said that if some Serbs have gone to Zaire, "such departures took place
through independent agencies" and not through his ministry. In other news,
a Pakistani Embassy official in Sarajevo said a 140-strong group of mainly
Muslim Bosnian army officers will begin training in Pakistan in April as
part of a bilateral cooperation program, AFP reported. -- Daria Sito Sucic
[10] TUDJMAN SAYS SERBS WHO ACCEPT CROATIAN STATE CAN STAY.
Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, visiting the former front line in
Belisce on 25 March, said the Serb minority in Croatia will be guaranteed
their rights and state protection if they accept Croatian citizenship,
international media reported. "We have to open our arms to Serbs who have
not committed war crimes. ... Serbs who stay here will be protected. The
Croatian authorities will protect them," AFP quoted Tudjman as saying. But
at a rally in Osijek organized by ruling Croatian Democratic Community
(HDZ), Tudjman was booed when he repeated those remarks. Osijek is home to
some of the tens of thousands of refugees who were expelled from eastern
Slavonia in 1991, when rebel Serbs captured it. Tudjman promised that
refugees could start returning to their homes this year. -- Daria Sito
Sucic
[11] ZAJEDNO LEADERSHIP WARNS SERBIA COULD BECOME ANOTHER ALBANIA.
The leaders of the opposition coalition said there can be no progress as
long as Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic remains in power. The country
could "face Albania's destiny" unless Milosevic goes, they added. But while
criticizing Milosevic is nothing new for Zajedno, the leaders on 25 March
also began to outline their own alternative political and economic program,
AFP reported. "Our economic program consists of proposals for major
economic changes--transition and privatization," the opposition's economic
expert Miroljub Labus said. The "two major problems for the Serbian economy
are unemployment and lack of investment," he continued. "With a dynamic
economic program, and new rules and regulations compatible with European
laws, we can prepare our country for joining the European Union around
2005, " coalition leader Vesna Pesic added. -- Patrick Moore
[12] MONTENEGRIN PRIME MINISTER SACKED FROM PARTY JOB.
Milo Djukanovic has been ousted as vice president of the governing
Socialist Democratic Party (DPS) of Montenegro, AFP reported on 25 March.
The move is the latest development in a prolonged controversy in which
Djukanovic called on Serbian President Milosevic to resign. Djukanovic is
now expected to lose the premiership in a confidence vote, since the DPS
has a majority in parliament. President Momir Bulatovic also seems bent on
ousting other members of government who favor more autonomy for Montenegro,
Nasa Borba notes today. Ongoing tensions between Belgrade and Podgorica
reflect a widely-held perception in Montenegro that Milosevic's policies
are preventing the revival of the mountain republic's two main sources of
income, namely shipping and tourism. -- Patrick Moore
[13] MACEDONIAN PREMIER SURVIVES CONFIDENCE VOTE.
Branko Crvenskovski survived a confidence vote in Macedonia's parliament on
25 March, AFP and Nova Makedonija reported. He gained support from all
parties except the Liberals--who walked out of the session--and the ethnic
Albanian PDPA-NDP coalition. Liberal leader Stojan Andov justified his
party's boycott of the vote by saying the government has made no progress
toward combating organized crime and that the confidence vote is a
diversion from the parliament's real work. But Ljupce Georgijevski, head of
the nationalist non-parliamentary opposition party VMRO-DPNME, supported
Crvenkovski's recent declaration of war against the mafia. He has canceled
a general strike scheduled for 27 March. Meanwhile, the head of the Bitola
government financial office is under investigation for allegedly
transferring public funds to Bitola's TAT savings house, which absconded
with $90 million in deposits from 30,000 savers. -- Michael Wyzan
[14] ROMANIAN MINISTERS IN U.S.
Ulm Spineanu, minister of state in charge of economic reforms, and Minister
of Communications Sorin Pantis are currently in the U.S. in a bid to boost
U.S. investment in Romania, an RFE/RL correspondent reported from
Washington on 25 March. Spineanu will attend the opening of the conference
"Romania--The Number One Emerging Market in Eastern Europe" in the U.S.
capital later today. Organizers say they had to stop registration because
far more investors wanted to participate than originally envisaged,
Adevarul reports on 26 March. Meanwhile, Premier Victor Ciorbea's
scheduled meeting with Portuguese Premier Antonio Guterres had to be
canceled because of "unforeseeable circumstances," Radio Bucharest reported
upon his return to Romania. -- Michael Shafir
[15] MOLDOVAN DEPUTY PREMIER WARNS AGAINST "BULGARIZATION."
If Moldova fails to undertake necessary economic reforms over the next few
months, the country may follow Bulgaria's path, Deputy Premier Ion Gutu
told a round table on structural reforms organized by the World Bank's
Moldova office. Gutu said the government was aware that the current crisis
can be overcome only through deepening reforms and cooperation with
international organizations, Infotag reported on 25 March. World Bank
expert Hafez Ghanem said either the country can allow reforms to slow down
and find itself in a situation like that of Bulgaria's or it can pursue the
Hungarian and Polish models. He said reforms were urgent in the energy,
agriculture, and services sectors. "Today's statistics in Moldova resemble
those of Bulgaria one year ago," Ghanem said. -- Michael Shafir
[16] FORMER MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT ON FUTURE PLANS.
Mircea Snegur, addressing a press conference in Chisinau on 25 March, said
he will never run again for presidential office and will concentrate his
efforts on ensuring that the Party of Revival and Accord wins the
parliamentary elections scheduled for 1998, Infotag reported. He also said
negotiations were under way for setting up a Democratic Convention of
Moldova with forces on the right of the political spectrum. -- Michael
Shafir
[17] LEGAL PROCEEDINGS LAUNCHED AGAINST FORMER BULGARIAN MINISTER.
Vasil Chichibaba, first agriculture minister in the former Socialist
government, and three of his deputies have been charged with economic crime,
Trud reported on 26 March. In 1995, there was a severe grain shortage
because 827,280 tons of grain were exported for 7.14 billion leva ($196.3
at the 1995 average exchange rate of 67.2 leva to $1); later, 198,933 tons
had to be imported for 6.46 billion leva. If Chichibaba and his deputies
are found responsible for the losses caused to the state budget, they will
face up to 10 years in prison. In other news, Interior Ministry Secretary
Atanas Atanasov and National Police Director Slavcho Bosilkov said more
than 30 contract killings have taken place since 1991. They said
authorities know most of the perpetrators but, under current legislation,
can neither arrest nor try them. -- Stefan Krause
[18] BULGARIA TO BUY RUSSIAN MILITARY AIRCRAFT?
Deputy Defense Minister Simeon Petkovski has said Bulgaria is negotiating
with Russia about buying 14 MiG-29SM planes and setting up a joint venture
to overhaul MiG planes, Reuters reported. Petkovski said Russia offered
Bulgaria a $450 million loan to buy the planes and to set up an
international service center in Plovdiv. He said both sides agreed in
principle, but the loan will have to be approved by the Bulgarian
parliament after the 19 April parliamentary elections. Meanwhile, President
Petar Stoyanov has appointed his economic adviser Krasimir Angarski as
caretaker economics minister, Demokratsiya reported. -- 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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