YWS 11/28

Yugoslav Daily Survey Directory

From: ddc@nyquist.bellcore.com (D.D. Chukurov)

28. NOVEMBER 1995. YUGOSLAV WEEKLY SURVEY

CONTENTS

- WAR ENDS, PEACE BEGINS - A QUICK "BACK TO THE FUTURE" - REINTEGRATION INTO INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS - RECIPIENTS OF YUGOSLAV RED CROSS

COMMENTS

WAR ENDS, PEACE BEGINS (by Zoran Jevdjovic)

The war ends and peace begins - this is a nutshell conclusion by politicians, analysts, journalists and general public in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (F.R.Y.), following the initialling of the history-making peace agreement in Dayton. General public in Yugoslavia had watched with care and concern the twenty-one days of developments at the peace talks in Dayton, Ohio, to sigh with relief at the news that the agreement was achieved in Dayton this mid-week. After the four-year-old conflict, caused by forcible secession from Yugoslavia, it has been thanks to the exceptional diplomatic efforts, skill and perseverance of, in the first place, President of Serbia Slobodan Milosevic that, following Dayton, the position of Serbia and the F.R.Y. on the international political scene has experienced a substantial turnabout. The F.R.Y., at the United Nations Security Council, with more or less willingness but without a single vote against, was completely acknowledged as the key factor in achieving peace in the Balkan area and in halting the war in Bosnia. Official Belgrade and the President of Serbia have received full satisfaction for all their endeavours so far towards a lasting and just solution to be achieved in order to result in an equal status for all the three nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, while allowing at the same time to meet the interests and demands by the key factors within the international community. This fact, of course, should not be neglected at all, because the present distribution of political might in the world must be respected although these same forces, with their unsteady policy had helped the crisis in areas of the former Yugoslavia to flare up and to end in its bloody denouement. In respecting: the interests of the Serb and Montenegrin people, the indispensability of the F.R.Y.'s exit from the regime of the unjust sanctions which had in the long run been tugging the country into isolation and backwardness, and the inevitability of finding the common language with the world's key factors - Belgrade's policy over a lengthy period has been pursued persistently and precisely towards the objective that has been achieved in Dayton. The end of the war and the beginning of peace has taken the F.R.Y. to the crossroads after which the further favourable development of events will be enabled. For, had conflicts continued in Bosnia and Herzegovina along with escalated international intervention, the entire territory of the former Yugoslavbia would have inevitably been dragged into the chaos of the war. Of course, nobody in his right mind would have wanted any such developments, but some had nonetheless been proposing what was conducive to war and destruction. Fortunately, the F.R.Y. citizens - and, as has become obvious, also the war-affected citizens of the Republika Srpska (R.S., the state of Serbs in the former Yugoslav republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina) - have been well aware that the national interest differs from the interests of individual political parties, leaders or elites, and from their political calculations. Long-lasting political and diplomatic effort, just as the admiring self-sacrifices of the F.R.Y. citizens during the 3.5-year-long period of the U.N. comprehensive and mandatory sanctions, have finally been crowned with success, presenting also what is the best reply to the advocates of war option and of entering uncertainty and conflict with the mightiest powers of the world today. (Tanjug's Press Agency, Belgrade, November 26, 1995)

A QUICK "BACK TO THE FUTURE" (by Stanislava Antelj-Medic)

After 1253 days, or almost three and a half years, the suspension of sanctions to Yugoslavia will enable the country to return to international trade, to dispose of its funds which were frozen in foreign banks, and the free movement of domestic ad foreign vehicules, ships and aircraft on international land and sea routes. Yugoslav funds in foreign banks, put at between 1.3 and 1.5 billion Dollars, will be freed. Our partners in the world are no longer banned from extending financial services to Yugoslavia. Everything will be returned to us now after it was taken away, for reason known only to world "judges", under U.N. Security Council resolutions from May 30,1992 and April 10, 1993. The resolutions were preceded by a decision of the European Community to suspend the agreement on cooperation with the former Yugoslavia and later directed only against Serbia and Montenegro. Assessing damages on this day, the first without sanctions, Yugoslavia must tell the world that its direct losses, a drastic drop in the GDP, are 55 to 60 billion dollars, and its indirect losses (due to technological and development lagging behind, the brain drain and the cutting off of foreign capital) total 148 billion dollars. The conditions in which the citizens of Yugoslavia had to live under the sanctions could be used as material for an extensive documentation for the "guardians" of human rights, as a contribution to international law, or on sanctions as a means of violating human rights. Now that the yoke of sanctions has finally been lifted, Yugoslavia must make the utmost efforts to return to the world, and this will probably first be visible in the economic field. The exports planned by the end of the year, unofficially evaluated at around 400 million dollars, will certainly improve the stagnating balance of payments. A complete return to the world is linked to a return to the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization, or to the world market, especially the European. This would open prospects for the establishment of institutional relations with the European Union. ("Tanjug's Daily Bulletin", Belgrade, November 24, 1995)

YUGOSLAVIA TO BE REINTEGRATED INTO INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS (by Borislav Lalic)

It is believed that the successful talks in Ohio will be followed not only by the settling of the armed conflict and stabilization of peace in Bosnia, but also Yugoslavia's speedy reintegration into international institutions, which should in turn lead to a slowing and eventual end of the media campaign against Yugoslavia. The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday evening unanimously suspended all sanctions against Yugoslavia, announcing they would be lifted totally in a few months, after the first post-war elections in Bosnia. This delay hardly seems logical. Chinese Ambassador Kin Huasun spoke about this at the council meeting last night. The sanctions should be lifted immediately, he said, just as Yugoslavia should be reintegrated into all international institutions as soon as the peace agreement is signed in Paris in December. Russian Ambassador Sergei Lavrov spoke along the same lines. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Madeleine Albright said before the session that she was happy things were moving toward a relaxation after the Dayton talks and that she thought the process of Yugoslavia's reintegration into international institutions would proceed in parallel with the implementation of the Dayton peace accords. It was announced here that the Paris conference would be scheduled soon, and that it would be followed by the full implementation of the peace accords, which means that a peace contingent of about 60,000 troops will be sent to Bosnia. In all this, the most important thing for Yugoslavia is that the "Ohio Initials" have brought an evident change in the international political climate toward Yugoslavia. This might lead to a slowing and ending of the frenzic media, psychological, economic, and propaganda campaigns which had been waged against Yugoslavia in the past three and a half years. ("Tanjug's Daily Bulletin", Belgrade, November 24, 1995)

ABOUT 500,000 PEOPLE ARE RECIPIENTS OF YUGOSLAV RED CROSS

The Yugoslav Red Cross has nearly half a million recipients, of which 430,000 are refugees, and about 75,000 are the needy, said YRC Secretary-General Rade Dubajic. On the occasion of the weekly action "Solidarity at Work", Dubajic said the Red Cross has 200,000 people registered as "old" refugees, and 230,000 new refugees, who arrived in August and September from the Republic of Serb Krajina. About 75,000 people are aided periodically, and 25,000 are listed as permanent recipients, said Dubajic. About 30,000 refugees who are not registered appear periodically, asking for help, he said. The YRC has conducted solidarity activities throughout the year, providing aid thanks to selfless firms, institutions and individuals. "Since August, 1,060,000 dinars have been paid on the YRC account, 533 tonnes of food have been bought, and the rest has been spent on other essentials", said Dr. Dubajic. "We will send part of the aid to Banjaluka, where more than 150,000 people are situated, after fleeing from the Croat-Muslim offensive in September", said Dubajic. The next traditional action is the YRC "One Package - Lots of Love", to be launched on December 19 for child refugees in Yugoslavia, of the needy, handicapped children, and children in the Republic of Serb Krajina and the Bosnian Serb state Republika Srpska, said Dubajic. ("Tanjug's Daily Bulletin", Belgade, November 14, 1995)