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RADOR: News from Romania, 98-10-12
October 12, 1998
CONTENTS
[01] A Communique Issued by Romania's Supreme Council for Defence
[02] Details Concerning the CSAT Communique;
[03] Political Reactions to CSAT Communique;
[04] A Meeting of South-East European Heads of States;
[05] MApN Delegation on a Visit to Budapest;
[06] Minister Gavril Dejeu on Conclusions of the Trieste Conference on
Fighting Organised Crime;
[07] Future PSDR-ApR Merger;
[08] Commission to Set Up Petofi-Schiller University Plans;
[09] The Petofi-Schiller University Project - Subject to Further Tensions.
[01] A communique issued by Romania's Supreme Council for Defence
Under the auspices of Preisdent Emil Constantinescu, the meeting of
Romania's Supreme Council for Defence (CSAT) was taking place at the
Cotroceni Palace on Saturday. A communique issued by the Press Office of
the Romanian Presidency after the meeting says "Romania is favouring
negotiations designed to seek a solution to the crisis in Kosovo".
Answering the request of the NATO Council, the "NATO forces are allowed
access to Romania's airspace for emergency operations". According to the
communique, "Romania is supporting the international community measures to
solve the crisis, although Romania, as one of Yugoslavia's neighbouring
countries, cannot assume the resposability of a direct participation in
fighting, in case such operations may occur. Romania is committed to
participate in peacekeeping and humanitarian operations and send a
multifunctional humanitarian team including a medical sector, refugees
housing facilities and a team to help the resoration of homes destroyed. In
this respect, the Romanian president is to ask the parliament for the
approval. Aware of the conflict's serious consequences, Romania is again
expressing its wish for a peaceful solution to the crisis". RADOR
[02] Details concerning the CSAT communique
Reliable sources in the General Staff of the Romanian Army said on Sunday
that the emergency and unexpected operations the CSAT communique was
talking about referred to the case when a plane claimed engine
defficiencies and, according to international agreements, it could ask for
landing approval due to bad conditions or any other obstacle preventing it
to follow its original route. Such moves may also include the planes
involved in search-and-rescue operations. According to the same source, the
decisions made by the General Staff of the Romanian Army are considering
the developments in the country's closest neighbourhood. The measures refer
only to some military units and categories of personnel already
established. RADOR
[03] Political reactions to CSAT communique
The Romanian political leaders have expressed their opinion of the CSAT
communique. "I believe the decision denying access for military operations
to Romania's airspace was right", said Ion Iliescu, the leader of the
opposition Party of Social Democracy in Romania (PDSR). "We agree with the
decision and Ibelieve it represents Romania's interests", said Marko Bela,
the leader of the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians (UDMR). The
vicepresident of the National Liberal Party (PNL), Valeriu Stoica, said
"Romania had to save both its friendly relations with Serbia and its
international credibility". The leader of the Christian Democrat National
Peasant Party (PNTCD), Ion Diaconescu, said the communique was fair and
answered Romania's main interests. "We has to take into account that
Yugoslavia is our neighbour, it was never a conflict between the two
countries and we are not supposed to break the tradition", Mr Diaconescu
concluded. RADOR
"We do not agree with the approval allowing access to Romania's airspace
for any sort of planes, no matter the army they belong. Such approval may
be accepted only in compliance with international agreements, and such
agreements are excluding the use of military bases and the airspace access
for attacks against a third country", said Valeriu Tabara, the leader of
Romanians' National Unity Party (PUNR). The leader of the Greater Romania
Party (PRM), Corneliu Vadim Tudor, said he believed the "CSAT communique
was actually a declaration of war against a sovereign state" while the
president of Romania's Alternative Party (PAR), Varujan Vosganian, has
warned that, in case a plane under the attack of the Serbian forces would
land on Romanian airports for help, then, "according to international
agreements, Serbia might consider it was in war with Romania". RADOR
In their statement to the press, the MP leaders have been exercising
restraint considering Romania's delicate position bwteeen its wish to join
NATO and its traditional friendship with Yugoslavia. The deputy speaker of
the Romanian Senate, Ulm Spineanu, seemed a little confused about the
conditions allowing access to Romania's air space. The chief commissioner
for foreign affairs in the Romanian Senate, Stefan Ilie, also a leading
member of the Democratic Party, has welcomed the CSAT communique while PNL
senator Cornel Boiangiu, secretary of the copmmission for defence and
national security affairs, is absolutly rejecting it considering the
significant Romanian minority living in Yugoslavia. On the other hand,
deputy Slavomir Gvozdenovic, also the leader of the Serb Union in Romania,
has strongly criticised the communique: "Irrespective of the delicate
position of our country in its attempt to join the Euro-Atlantic structures,
one should not join Europe at your neighbours' expense". RADOR
[04] A meeting of South-East European heads of states
Romanian Prime Minister Radu Vasile and Foreign Minioster Andrei Plesu have
left for the Turkish resort of Antalya to attend a meeting South-East
European heades of states and governments. While at the Otopeni Airport,
Prime Minister Radu Vasile said the "talks were expected to concentrate on
economic issues (the way the economic crisis around the world was affecting
the countries in the region) and political issues (mainly the Kosovo crisis
but also ways of cooperation in fighting organised crime and
moneylaundring)". Referring to the crisis in Kosovo, the Romanian prime
minister said that "a common position was expected to exclude the
participant states' involvement in military operations. As far as we are
concerned, Romania's position is clear", the prime minister added. In his
turn, Foreign Minister Andrei Plesu said the meeting this year would
naturally concentrate on the Kosovo crisis and its possible consequences
for the countries in the region. RADOR
[05] MApN delegation on a visit to Budapest
A delegation of Romania's National Defence Ministry (MApN) was visiting
Budapest on Saturday. The talks have concentrated on the stage in
developing the Romanian-Hungarian Batallion, ways of further bilateral
cooperation and recent development in NATO activity. According t MApN State
Secretary Constantin Dudu Ionescu, the crisis in Kosovo was subject to
separate discussions as the two countries should prepare for an eventual
armed conflict in the region. Mr Dudu Ionescu said that Romania and Hungary
were both supporting a peaceful solution to the crisis in Kosovo. RADOR
[06] Minister Gavril Dejeu on conclusions of the Trueste conference on
fighting organised crime
An international conference on fighting organised crime has ended in the
Italian port of Triste on Sunday. Participants included interior ministers
of the Central-European Initiative member countries. Romanian Interior
Minister Gavril Dejeu, also the head of the Romanian delegation attending
the conference, has informed that "participants have decided to set up a
working group including representatives of all member countries who are
expected to meet at least twice a year and approximate means and methods of
cooperation. The legal approximation is most essential as we keep speaking
about it without achieving it, and such failures are serious obstacles in
fighting organised crime. We pointed out the need to seek similar names for
crimes, and similar ways in chasing and punishing the criminals. And more,
we have to agree over the treatment the criminals are going to face in
prisons", minister Dejeu concluded. RADOR
[07] Future PSDR-ApR merger
At a meeting on Saturday, the National Council of the ruling Romanian
Social Democrat Party (PSDR) has decided that negotiations for its possible
merger with the opposition Alliance for Romania Party (ApR) should end by
November 15. 61 of the 72 members in the National Council have expressed
their support of the move. An extraordinary congress on the two party's
unification is expected by December 15. RADOR
[08] Commission to set up Petofi-Schiller University plans
A communique issued by the Press Office of the Democratic Union of Ethnic
Hungarians in Romania (UDMR) says the Department for national minority
affairs has presented Romania's National Education Ministry (MEN) with
proposals of personalities to participate in framing the report on the
setting up of the Petofi-Schiller University. The minority minister
delegate to the the prime minister Gyorgy Tokay has appinted five
university professors to act as temporary coordinators of the Hungarian-
German university and onthe three members in the working group to draw up
the report. MEN is expected to appoint another two people. According to the
communique, Mr Tokay made the proposals after meeting representatives of
the Hungarian and German university communities. RADOR
[09] The Petofi-Schiller University project - subject to further tensions
The Organisation of Ethnic Hungarian Students (KMDS) of the Babes-Bolyai
University in Cluj has decided to present the UDMR with a protest against
the setting up of the Petofi-Schiller Hungarian-German University. The
organisation is urging the UDMR to denounce the project and plead the
setting up of a Hungarian language teaching state university according to
previous decisions made at the UDMR Congress in 1992 which promised to
restore the former Janos Bolyai University in Cluj. On the other hand, the
PNTCD branch in Cluj and its leader Matei Boila, also a member in the
PNTCD's Coordination and Control Bureau (BCCC), has blamed both the Radu
Vasile Cabinet and the prime minister (for making the decision without
consulting the party) and the UDMR. Senator Boila says the Petofi-Schiller
University project was actually hiding "UDMR's commitment to making further
steps towards autonomy, ethnic segregation and further tensions leading to
the escalation of a conflict created by both Hungarian and Romanian
extremists". RADOR
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