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Yugoslav Daily Survey, 97-10-01Yugoslav Daily Survey Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Yugoslavia <http://www.yugoslavia.com>Yugoslav Daily SurveyCONTENTS
[01] YUGOSLAV PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC MEETS BOSNIAN PRESIDENCY MEMBER KRAJISNIKTanjug, 1997-09-29President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Slobodan Milosevic received on Monday the Republika Srpska member of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency Momcilo Krajisnik. Great progress has been achieved in resolving the crisis in Republika Srpska and an important agreement has been reached within Bosnian Presidency to enable Bosnian citizens to obtain dual (Bosnian and Yugoslav) citizenship, which is a great step forward, it was noted during the meeting. The document on dual citizenship, signed by all three members of the Bosnian Presidency - Alija Izetbegovic, Momcilo Krajisnik and Kresimir Zubak - is based on the General Agreement on peace in Bosnia and confirms the importance of the Dayton Agreement for peace and stability in the region, it was underlined during the meeting. [02] YUGOSLAV FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS WITH U.N. SECRETARY GENERALTanjug, 1997-09-29Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic met with U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan at U.N. Headquarters in New York on Monday. During an exhaustive and friendly talk, Milutinovic and Annan exchanged views on topical international issues, specifically those on the agenda of the 52nd regular autumn session of the U.N. General Assembly. They discussed also the implementation of the Dayton Peace Accord in Bosnia- Herzegovina, as well as peace, security and stability in the Balkan region. Annan paid tribute to the active and positive role played by the FR of Yugoslavia in the Balkans. Milutinovic presented to Annan a cheque to the amount of Yugoslavia's contribution to the United Nations for 1997, and invited him to visit Yugoslavia, which Annan accepted. During the morning, Milutinovic met also with foreign ministers of Iraq and Jordan, Mohamed Sayed Al-Sahaf and Fayez Tarawneh, respectively. The talk with the Iraqi minister related to the promotion of bilateral cooperation and, in this context, an exchange of ambassadors, as well as to the international situation and the implementation of the Dayton Accord. The talk also touched on the Non-alignment movement , with the Iraqi minister reiterating his country's support for Yugoslavia's fully inclusion in the movement as soon as possible. The talk with the Jordanian minister brought to light a shared interest towards constant promotion of traditionally friendly bilateral relations in all fields, specifically in economy where there is great scope for cooperation. It was also agreed that the two countries should exchange ambassadors. The Jordanian minister stressed that Jordan fully supported the efforts of the FR of Yugoslavia for peace, security and cooperation in the region. [03] YUGOSLAV PREMIER SAYS TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT IS A PRIORITYTanjug, 1997-09-29Yugoslavia's Prime Minister said on Monday that scientific, technical and technological development was a priority for the national economy in the aftermath of the world's anti-Yugoslav sanctions and on the threshold of the 21st century. Opening the 8th Congress of the Yugoslav Engineering Society, Prime Minister Radoje Kontic said that the present moment was characterised by greatly changed conditions in the FR of Yugoslavia and its neighbourhood. This state of affairs necessitated that "an adequate place be given to technical and technological progress in the new ambience," Kontic added. "The development of an open market economy is our country's strategic commitment, whence the need for appraising current international trends," he said. Technical and technological inventions and innovations had become decisive factors in achieving production results, he added. He said that current international trends were especially characterised by regional and sub-regional integration processes. Here he stressed that Yugoslavia had a positive attitude to all integrations that were based on the equality of the members and openness to cooperation with third countries. It was Yugoslavia's strategic orientation to be a full member of the European Union, which presupposed harmonising Yugoslav regulations with those of the E.U. states, he said. It was important that the national economy should no longer lag behind the world in technical and technological terms, and the greatest efforts must be invested into putting a stop to this and then closing the gap, he said. He said that some serious problems still persisted, such as the tenacity of the so-called outer wall of sanctions with a resultant shortage of domestic and foreign capital, as well as difficulties associated with the gray market and public spending. [04] US AND EU DIPLOMATS AGAINST DEMONSTRATIONS OF ETHNIC ALBANIAN STUDENTSTanjug, 1997-09-29Chief of the US mission in Belgrade Richard Miles expressed on Monday in Pristina his concern with the announcement of demonstrations of ethnic Albanian students in Serbia's southern Province of Kosovo-Metohija scheduled for October 1. At a press conference at the US Information Center in Pristina following meetings held by a joint 13-member delegation of the US, the European Union and representatives of embassies of European countries in Belgrade with Government representatives and with ethnic Albanian political and student leaders, Miles said he felt the greatest concern regarding the timing of the planned demonstrations - between the first and second rounds of elections in Serbia. Underlining the serious approach of the delegation members' governments to the situation in Kosovo and especially the planned demonstrations, Miles said endeavours were being intensified to implement the agreement on education signed by Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, then President of Serbia, and ethnic Albanian leader Ibrahim Rugova. Of course the people have the right to assemble and protest peacefully and to let the authorities know their views, Miles said, but added that the timing of the protest was ill-chosen and that he had conveyed this view to Rugova and student leaders. The situation in Kosovo is explosive, Dutch Ambassador and member of EU Presidency Johannes Sizoo said, expressing the Union's concern with the situation in Kosovo. The EU believes that the situation in Kosovo must be resolved by peaceful means, Sizoo said and added that the stance of the entire international community was that a dialogue must be initiated as soon as possible between the authorities and the leaders of the Albanian population. Referring to the meeting with Government representatives, Sizoo said he was assured by the authorities that force would not be used except in case of violation of the law. He also urged ethnic Albanian political leaders to refrain from violence, and said he had been assured by student leaders that the demonstrators would not resort to violence. The Ambassador added that the delegation had told the students they had a tremendous responsibility regarding the forthcoming demonstrations and that the timing for the protest was bad. Miles and Sizoo said the talks had helped the delegation understand the stances of both the authorities and Albanian political parties and students, and provided an opportunity to convey to them the stance of the international community. Underlining that EU representatives will be present in Kosovo in the next few days, the diplomats expressed hope that the demonstrations would be postponed and that they would be peaceful. [05] ODALOVIC: ALL PROBLEMS SHOULD BE SOLVED WITHIN SERBIA AND YUGOSLAVIATanjug, 1997-09-29Ethnic Albanian political party leaders must give up the idea of an independent Kosovo and find solutions to all problems within Serbia and Yugoslavia, Deputy Head of the Kosovo District Veljko Odalovic said on Monday. Odalovic and Provincial Information Secretary Bosko Drobnjak met with a 13- member delegation of the United States, the European Union and representatives of European countries' embassies in Belgrade, including U.S. Charge d'Affaires Richard Miles, Dutch Ambassador and E.U. representative Johannes Sizoo and Ambassadors Ivor Roberts of Great Britain, Raphael Gerard of Canada and Slawomir Dabrowa of Poland. A statement released after the meeting said that Sizoo had reiterated the E.U., U.S. and 'Contact Group' stand that Kosovo and Metohija was an integral part of Serbia and Yugoslavia and that the idea of an independent republic of Kosovo enjoyed no support in the world. He condemned terrorist attacks which had intensified of late. Both sides expressed concern over the announced demonstrations of ethnic Albanian students. Odalovic said that the organisers of the rallies were responsible for all possible consequences and that the security and other state organs would act in keeping with the law and intervene only in case of violent provocations or direct breach of the law. He said that a large number of those who strolled the streets of Pristina were neither students nor inhabitants of Pristina. The statement said that it had been concluded that the solution lay in the implementation of the education agreement, signed by Slobodan Milosevic and Ibrahim Rugova, solely through the legal institutions of the system. [06] YUGOSLAVIA ATTENDS INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF ARCHIVESTanjug, 1997-09-29A Yugoslav delegation headed by Director of Yugoslav Archives Jovan Popovic attended the International Conference of Archives in Edinburgh. The Conference, which focused on the legal aspects regarding archives, was attended by 200 delegates from around the world. Yugoslavia attended the Conference as a permanent member and founder of the International Council of Archives, and had taken part in its activities even during the period under international sanctions. [07] REPUBLIKA SRPSKA PRESIDENT ON RESOLVING POLITICAL CRISISTanjug, 1997-09-27The people are happy with the manner in which the internal crisis in Republika Srpska is being resolved, and this is why it was worth it to go to Belgrade, to talk for five hours and to reach a good agreement enabling things to move in the right direction, Republika Srpska President Biljana Plavsic said on Saturday evening. In an interview to the Srpska TV from the Banja Luka studio, Plavsic said that the Serb people deserved to watch the same TV programs throughout Republika Srpska, in line with the Belgrade agreement. Plavsic urged the people to wait peacefully for the parliamentary elections, adding she saw the future Parliament as a body in which no party would have absolute majority and which will act under the rule of law. A division of Republika Srpska is out of the question, Plavsic said. The Dayton Agreement provides international guarantees for the continuous existence of Republika Srpska, Plavsic said. [08] PRESIDENTS OF RUSSIA AND FRANCE ISSUE JOINT STATEMENT ON BOSNIATanjug, 1997-09-26President Boris Yeltsin of Russia and President Jacques Chirac of France on Friday expressed concern about the latest developments in Bosnia, saying the crisis in the Republika Srpska must be defused in a democratic manner. In a joint statement on Bosnia, issued after a meeting at Moscow's Kremlin, Yeltsin and Chirac said their states were ready to continue cooperation in the region within the Bosnia multinational force. They stressed that their countries would make a joint effort on the bilateral level as well as within the five-nation 'Contact Group' for Bosnia and other international bodies to help fully implement an agreement signed in Paris on December 14, 1995. The statement said Moscow and Paris treated all parties in Bosnia equally. It called on them to fulfil their obligations, especially as regards the functioning of common bodies of power, and to form local councils once returns of local elections held on September 13-14 were released. The statement said the crisis in the Republika Srpska must be resolved through elections, calling on Republika Srpska authorities to implement an agreement to this effect reached on September 24. [09] UN OFFICIAL: BOSNIAN SERB AUTHORITIES MAKE CRUCIAL STEP TOWARDS PEACETanjug, 1997-09-26Republika Srpska authorities have reached an agreement with the UN mission to Bosnia on an urgent restructuring of the Bosnian Serb police, UN Secretary-General's special envoy Ambassador Kai Aide said on Friday. In a statement communicated to Tanjug, Aide said that the agreement was reached after the UN mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina had forwarded documents containing principles and guidelines of restructuring the Republika Srpska police force. Aide said that Republika Srpska President Biljana Plavsic and Prime Minister Gojko Klickovic had given their unconditional consent to the UN mission. He also said that the agreement was seen as an important step ahead in the implementation of the Dayton Peace Accords, following several- month talks. Once the reform agreement is implemented, the Republika Srpska police will represent a major contribution to a greater stability in the territory that had been dominated by tension over the past few months, said Aide. According to the statement, both Aide and the International Police Task Force Commissioner Manfred Seitner praised the Republika Srpska authorities' decision to take this crucial step towards securing peace and democracy in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Under the reconstruction programme, the Republika Srpska should have a 8, 500-strong police force, which is in line with Article 1. Annex 11 of the General Framework Agreement, urging UN assistance in setting up police forces that will operate in keeping with the internationally-recognized standards, said Aide. Aide also said that the reconstruction aimed to coordinate activities of the Republika Srpska police with democratic principles of police work, which the Bosnian Serb state accepted. He said that the UN mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina would provide training and step up its support for the reconstruction of the Republika Srpska police. [10] OSCE WILL MONITOR ELECTIONS IN REPUBLIKA SRPSKATanjug, 1997-09-26The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) decided on Friday after two days of deliberations to monitor the forthcoming parliamentary and presidential elections in Republika Srpska. The OSCE Standing Council agreed to monitor the parliamentary elections in Republika Srpska and any subsequent elections, a statement issued in Vienna says. Republika Srpska President Biljana Plavsic and Srpska member of the Bosnian Presidency Momcilo Krajisnik reached on Wednesday in Belgrade an agreement on resolving the crisis in Republika Srpska, with the mediation of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. In line with the agreement, parliamentary elections in Republika Srpska are scheduled for November 15 and the presidential election for December 7. The foreign ministers of the member- states of the Contact Group (US, Russia, France, Britain and Germany) recommended a few days ago in New York that elections in Republika Srpska should be monitored by the OSCE. [11] FOREIGN MINISTER MILUTINOVIC: WE HAVE REACHED SERIES OF CONCRETE ACCORDSTanjug, 1997-09-27Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic told Tanjug in New York Friday evening that he was very pleased with a series of bilateral contacts he had with quite a number of his counterparts, who are also in New York for the U.N. General Assembly session. "They were very intensive contacts and were held in a very good atmosphere. We found quite a few common points and reached quite a few political accords, very concrete ones," Minister Milutinovic said. "The U.N. are not a place for in-depth talks, but for political talks," Milutinovic set out. He said the contacts were used to define the directions of further bilateral cooperation, especially with countries with which Yugoslavia would not be able to have top-level contacts this year. The Yugoslav chief diplomat described as very important his meetings with the Contact Group ministers. "I have had meetings with representatives of all Contact Group members and of the European Union, and I have met also with ministers of far-away countries with which we are to achieve closer cooperation this year. We are discussing it now," Minister Milutinovic said. Milutinovic also singled out his meeting with the Albanian Foreign Minister, and noted that it was only natural that the meeting, the first of its kind after several decades, had taken place at the U.N. He stressed that his talks in New York had been focused on the situation in the Balkans, especially the implementation of the Dayton Agreement in Bosnia- Herzegovina. "A good part of the talks was devoted to that too, Yugoslavia being a co-author and guarantor of the Dayton Agreement," the Yugoslav Minister said. Milutinovic set out that, as opposed to the previous General Assembly session, at which the sanctions against Yugoslavia were also formally lifted, matters of cooperation were in the forefront now. [12] KRAJISNIK EXPRESSES BELIEF THAT AGREEMENT WILL BE RESPECTEDTanjug, 1997-09-26Guarantees that the Belgrade agreement will succeed are the signatures of Republika Srpska President Biljana Plavsic, Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic and my own, RS representative in the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency, Momcilo Krajisnik has said. He told the Serbian Television's political program Vidik that he would inform the RS Government and National Assembly about the details of the agreement. If the agreement is not respected, this would be a catastrophe, Krajisnik said and expressed readiness to do everything possible to secure its success. He expressed belief that Plavsic would also do the same and that the Contact Group would respect the agreement and dates of the elections to enable the people to decide on the overcoming of the crisis in RS. The agreement has been signed, the dates of the elections have been set and if one of the sides decided not to agree to the holding of the elections, that person would lose his credibility with the people, Krajisnik said. He said that for him there is the National Assembly and that this is where the decision of self-dissolution should be made in order to enable the holding of the parliamentary elections. "Whether the presidential elections are held, depends on Plavsic, while the elections for the RS President within the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency depends on me, because if we want these elections, then both of us have to resign," Krajisnik said. According to him, the new elections will resolve the issues of the police, Government and the current controversies, since it cannot be allowed for this situation to last as it leads to the division of RS." "If there are problems with the elections, Plavsic and I agreed to contact each other and not to allow problems to escalate. The elections will result in a clear cut situation and bring a better future to RS and its people," Krajisnik said. [13] YUGOSLAVIA URGES PEACE, STABLE DEVELOPMENT AND GOOD-NEIGHBOURLY RELATIONSTanjug, 1997-09-27Peace, stable development, good-neighbourly relations and all-round cooperation in the region are Yugoslavia's strategic commitments, Speaker of the Yugoslav Parliament's Chamber of Republics Srdja Bozovic said on Saturday at a ceremony at the Army of Yugoslavia Centre of Military Academies. All well-meaning people at home and abroad know well that the FRY never proclaims any country or people beforehand as hostile or a potential aggressor, Bozovic said at the commencement of the senior classes of the Army of Yugoslavia's military academies. "Peace, stable development, good-neighbourly relations and all-round cooperation in the region are our strategic commitments. That is why we rightly expect to have a more secure and better future. I sincerely hope that equality-based political, economic and cultural ties will at last be restored in the region in the interest of all peoples and states in the Balkans," the Yugoslav official stressed. "The normalization of relations with old and new neighbours is the best guarantee of peace, progress and the Yugoslavia's faster inclusion in regional, European and world integration processes," Bozovic said and emphasised that was one of Yugoslavia's basic foreign-policy goals. Bozovic set out that Yugoslavia had renewed and intensified relations and cooperation with a large number of countries and international organizations thanks to its consistent policy aimed at achieving and maintaining peace. He emphasised that alongside of working for peace and cooperation among all nations, Yugoslavia must bear in mind that the "rivalry of European and world centres of power for the preservation of the existing and winning of new spheres of influence poses an objective threat to security and peace." Bozovic said Yugoslavia insisted that the right to freedom be universal, that it be equal for all citizens and all peoples. "We highly appreciate the efforts and determination of the international community to back with its influence the hither to signed peace agreements, but we must always remember that the attitude of political centres of power and of the immediate and wider military environment toward our country primarily depends on our internal stability," Speaker Bozovic stressed. "Consistent efforts for a peaceful resolution of all conflicts and constructive and mutually useful cooperation with all important international subjects do not eliminate the need for our state to develop and strengthen its own armed forces," Bozovic said. "With its strength and the unity of its senior commanding personnel, our Army has helped prevent the war from spilling over onto the territory of the FR of Yugoslavia and has been an important factor of the country's overall stability. The success is all the greater since the tasks were performed with very limited material and financial resources," Speaker of the Yugoslav Parliament's Chamber of Republics Bozovic set out. [14] YUGOSLAVIA WANTS FRIENDSHIP WITH ARAB COUNTRIESTanjug, 1997-09-27"Yugoslavia is open to cooperation with the rest of the world and is committed to resuming the good and friendly relations it has had in the past with Jordan and other Arab countries," Yugoslav Information Secretary Goran Matic said in an interview published in the Jordanian daily "Al Aswaq". In the interview given to the prestigious daily's special reporter in Belgrade, Minister Matic set out that Yugoslavia and Jordan were linked by traditionally friendly ties developed over decades. Commenting the media coverage in Yugoslavia of the recent elections in Serbia, Matic said some newspapers had violated the profession's ethics, and underscored that the elections had shown that a political program implemented by a party was that party's best propaganda. The Jordanian daily gave prominence also to Secretary Matic's idea about an international code for the protection of journalists. [15] YUGOSLAV FOREIGN MINISTER'S BILATERAL CONTACTS IN NEW YORKTanjug, 1997-09-27Continuing a series of meetings with foreign ministers participating in the U.N. General Assembly session in New York, Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic on Thursday met with his Greek, Spanish, Iranian and Turkish counterparts. In all meetings, interest was expressed in the promotion and upgrading of bilateral relations. The ministers discussed the international situation, primarily the implementation of the civilian aspect of the Dayton Peace Accords for Bosnia-Herzegovina. In a cordial and open meeting with Greek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos, Greece's support was confirmed to Yugoslavia's activities aimed at strengthening peace, security and cooperation in the region. The ministers also discussed concrete issues in the field of bilateral cooperation, placing special stress on economic issues. The Milutinovic-Pangalos meeting was part of a continual dialogue on all levels, aimed at a further promotion of cooperation between the two traditionally friendly countries. Spanish Foreign Minister Abel Matutes stressed Yugoslavia's positive role in the recent holding of local elections in Bosnia and the importance of its role in the reaching of an agreement on settling the crisis in the Republika Srpska. In addition to the implementation of the Peace Agreement on Bosnia-Herzegovina, the two ministers also discussed the promotion of the Spanish-Yugoslav cooperation. Bilateral cooperation and possibilities for its promotion were also a topic of a meeting between Milutinovic and Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Harazi, who also discussed topical international issues. In a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem, both sides showed their interest in peace, security and stability in the Balkans. They also discussed regional activities and stressed the importance of cooperation among Balkan countries. Milutinovic on Thursday also met with Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeni Primakov. Primakov welcomed the agreement on settling the crisis in the Republika Srpska, signed in Belgrade on Wednesday and praised Yugoslavia's role in its reaching. The agreement represents a significant step towards a positive development of the situation in the region, Primakov said. Milutinovic also met with Hungarian Foreign Minister Laszlo Kovacs. Promotion of overall relations was emphasised, especially those in the sphere of economy and the two ministers also reviewed plans for the conclusion of a number of bilateral agreements. The Yugoslav foreign minister on Thursday also met with Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic and UN Security Council President Bill Richardson have discussed implementation of the civilian aspects of the Dayton Accord, security, stability and peace in the Balkans. As part of his encounters with a number of foreign ministers at the United Nations, Milutinovic met late on Friday with his Guinean counterpart Lamnin Kamara. The two ministers discussed bilateral cooperation, with special attention on science and technology, and agreed on joint preparation of a concrete program for boosting ties. Talks included the Non-aligned Movement, and the reactivating of Yugoslavia, a founding member, in its activities. Guinea supports Yugoslavia's full engagement in the activities of the Non-aligned Movement, said Kamara. Milutinovic engaged in a friendly conversation with New York rabbi Arthur Sneider, and met with other notable personalities. [16] FRY DELEGATE ADDRESSED THE CONFERENCE OF MEDITERRANEAN COUNTRIESTanjug, 1997-09-26Addressing the the 2nd International Conference on economic cooperation and development of Mediterranean countries which was held in Kozani, Greece, Yugoslav Deputy Prime Minister Vojin Djukanovic said it was of vital importance to Yugoslavia to be taking part in the Conference on equal footing, saying this had enabled the country to contribute to the promotion of cooperation in the region of the Mediterranean Sea, the Balkans and the Black Sea. Djukanovic, who headed the Yugoslav delegation to the Conference, said that, in keeping with its commitment to a speedy reintegration into the world economy, Yugoslavia had begun implementing radical reforms and had undertaken ownership transformation. He said bringing into accord the country's regulations with those of the European Union, had made the country an attractive partner for foreign investment, joint ventures and joint appearance on third markets. Calling on foreign partners and investors to visit Yugoslavia and find about its business and investment potential, Djunic said 200 lucrative projects were waiting for prospective foreign investors to be carried out. [17] KRAJISNIK AND KLEIN DISCUSS DAYTON AGREEMENT IMPLEMENTATIONTanjug, 1997-09-27The Republika Srpska member of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency Momcilo Krajisnik and Assistant High Representative of the international community Jacques Klein discussed on Saturday in Pale the progress of the implementation of the Dayton Agreement. The three-hour meeting focused on several issues regarding the Agreement, including the laws on citizenship and travel documents, the design of banknotes and clarifying the position of Republika Srpska and its representatives in joint Bosnian institutions, Krajisnik said. Many of those issues can be resolved by holding similar meetings, Krajisnik said, and added that Republika Srpska wished to implement the Dayton Agreement. Krajisnik noted that he and Klein had resolved together the problem in Banja Luka and that such good cooperation was in the interest of peace and of the implementation of the Dayton Agreement. Klein described his meeting with Krajisnik as constructive and said that the latter had informed him of the Serb stances on several issues that should be resolved shortly. Joint endeavours will be pursued, Klein said and expressed hope that views on various issues would be coordinated, leading to definite solutions by next week. The international community is determined to ensure the successful implementation of the Dayton Agreement, Klein said. Yugoslav Daily Survey Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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