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OMRI Daily Digest II, No. 212, 31 October 1995
CONTENTS
[1] U.S. HOUSE VOTES AGAINST SENDING TROOPS TO BOSNIA.
[2] BOSNIAN PRESIDENT REJECTS DIVISION OF BOSNIA.
[3] EU FOREIGN MINISTERS AGREE ON RECONSTRUCTION PLAN FOR FORMER YUGOSLAVIA.
[4] FIRST CIVILIAN CONVOY IN MORE THAN THREE YEARS REACHES GORAZDE.
[5] ROMANIAN STUDENTS SUSPEND STRIKE.
[6] ROMANIAN DIPLOMAT ARRESTED ON SUSPICION OF CORRUPTION.
[7] BULGARIAN LOCAL ELECTIONS UPDATE.
[8] BULGARIAN BUSINESS GROUP LINKED TO ATTEMPT ON GLIGOROV'S LIFE.
OMRI DAILY DIGEST
No. 212, Part II, 31 October 1995
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[1] U.S. HOUSE VOTES AGAINST SENDING TROOPS TO BOSNIA.
The US House of
Representatives on 30 October voted 315 to 103 in favor of a non-binding
resolution expressing opposition to the sending of U.S. troops to Bosnia
without the consent of Congress, AFP reported the same day. The
resolution states that "in the negotiation of any peace agreement
between the parties to the conflict in the Republic of Bosnia and
Herzegovina, there should not be a presumption, and it should not be
considered to be a prerequisite to the successful conclusion of such a
negotiation, that the enforcement of such an agreement will involve
deployment of United States Armed Forces...." Reuters on 31 October
cites unnamed U.S. officials as saying that the three Balkan delegations
scheduled to meet in Ohio on 1 November will "not agree to peace...if
U.S. troops will not help other NATO members to enforce it." Chief
mediator and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Richard Holbrooke added
that the resolution may "weaken the negotiations." -- Stan Markotich
[2] BOSNIAN PRESIDENT REJECTS DIVISION OF BOSNIA.
Alija Izetbegovic has said
he is going to the Ohio talks with "moderate optimism." He stressed his
delegation will reject a partition of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Reuters
reported on 30 October. He also insisted on a united Sarajevo and
adequate international forces to ensure the peace process. Aid for
reconstruction must be tied to human rights, Izetbegovic argued.
Holbrooke pointed out that it "is going to be very, very hard to reach a
peace agreement." Serbian President Milosevic, representing the Bosnian
Serbs, Croatian President Tudjman, and Izetbegovic will discuss a peace
agreement in the presence of representatives of the Contact Group. --
Fabian Schmidt
[3] EU FOREIGN MINISTERS AGREE ON RECONSTRUCTION PLAN FOR FORMER YUGOSLAVIA.
The foreign ministers of the EU have agreed to provide $2 billion in
reconstruction aid for the former Yugoslavia. At a meeting in Luxembourg
on 30 October, they adopted a policy paper stating that Bosnia-
Herzegovina should remain a single state in its internationally
recognized borders and should be composed of two entities--the Muslim-
Croatian federation and the Republic of Srpska, Reuters reported the
same day. The policy paper also stressed the need for a multi-ethnic
society based on the rule of law and with respect for human rights. Aid
approval is dependent on an agreement being reached in Ohio. The EU
expects the U.S. and the Islamic countries to pay another $2 billion
each. -- Fabian Schmidt
[4] FIRST CIVILIAN CONVOY IN MORE THAN THREE YEARS REACHES GORAZDE.
The
first civilian convoy arrived safely in Gorazde on 30 October,
international media reported. The convoy was carrying humanitarian aid.
Another civilian convoy is scheduled to run on 1 November. Until now,
only UN convoys were able to reach the enclave occasionally. Meanwhile,
the Bosnian government and the Bosnian Serbs have exchanged more than
500 civilian and military prisoners in Koprivna, near Sanski Most,
Reuters reported on 30 October. According to the Financial Times on 30
October, the UN reported shelling by Bosnian Serbs near Dubrovnik. --
Fabian Schmidt
[5] ROMANIAN STUDENTS SUSPEND STRIKE.
The recently established National
Alliance of Student Organizations (ANOS) on 30 October announced it is
temporarily suspending the strikes and that the students will return to
classes beginning 31 October, Radio Bucharest reported. Student
representatives will meet on 6 November in Bucharest to discuss progress
toward meeting their demands and to decide whether new forms of protest
are warranted. The decision came after the Chamber of Deputies said on
30 October that it will reexamine the education law; the students have
objected to some of its provisions. ANOS said its decision was also
prompted by political parties' attempts to make political capital out of
the students' demands. -- Michael Shafir
[6] ROMANIAN DIPLOMAT ARRESTED ON SUSPICION OF CORRUPTION.
Benone Ghinea,
who served as commercial attache at the Romanian embassy in Johannesburg
from 1991-1995, has been arrested on suspicion of bribe-taking in
connection with the 1994 purchase of 12 Puma helicopters from the South
African arms manufacturer Armscor, AFP reported on 30 October, citing
Romanian police sources. According to the Romanian press, Ghinea
pocketed $400,000 from the deal. The Romanian government has denied any
involvement (see OMRI Daily Digest, 25 October 1995), but opposition
parties say the sale could not have taken place without official
approval. -- Michael Shafir
[7] BULGARIAN LOCAL ELECTIONS UPDATE.
According to data released by the
Central Electoral Commission on 30 October, the Bulgarian Socialist
Party (BSP) received 41% of the vote cast for municipal councils, while
its mayoral candidates received 37.8%. The Union of Democratic Forces
and its candidates garnered 24.7% and 27.2%, respectively, the People's
Union 12.3% and 15.8%, the ethnic Turkish Movement for Rights and
Freedom 8.2% and 7.7%, and the Bulgarian Business Bloc 5.0% and 3.5%.
The turnout for municipal councils was 54.7%, and for mayors, 53.1%.
Meanwhile, BSP Sofia branch leader Aleksandar Marinov blamed the party's
national leadership for the BSP's poor showing in the capital, Standart
reported on 31 October. He claims that the party used the wrong tactics,
thereby causing the defeat of its candidate, Ventsislav Yosifov. --
Stefan Krause in Sofia
[8] BULGARIAN BUSINESS GROUP LINKED TO ATTEMPT ON GLIGOROV'S LIFE.
The Greek
newspaper Thessaloniki on 30 October published an article alleging that
the Bulgarian Multigrup business conglomerate was behind the attempt to
kill Macedonian President Kiro Gligorov on 3 October. An article by
Spyros Kouzinopoulos, director of the Greek Macedonian Information
Agency, says Multigrup is "linked to the mafia and enriches itself
through illegal trade with Serbia and [Macedonia] in violation of the
embargo against rump Yugoslavia." Macedonian media have also pointed to
Multigrup as possibly carrying out the bomb attack. Multigrup Chief
Secretary Boyko Draganov said the company will take those responsible
for the article to court, 24 chasa reported on 31 October. -- Stefan
Krause in Sofia
This material was reprinted with permission of the Open Media Research Institute, a nonprofit organization with research offices in Prague, Czech Republic.
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