OMRI Daily Digest I,II, No. 155, 10 August 1995

From: "Steve Iatrou" <siatrou@cdsp.neu.edu>

CONTENTS

  • [01] MILOSEVIC ARRIVES IN MOSCOW; TUDJMAN REFUSES INVITATION.

  • [02] YELTSIN ON YUGOSLAV CONFLICT.

  • [03] COMMUNISTS, LDPR WANT TO DISCUSS BOSNIA AT SPECIAL SESSION.

  • [04] SERBIAN REFUGEES, SOLDIERS HEAD FOR SERBIA.

  • [05] SERBIA TO SETTLE REFUGEES IN KOSOVO.

  • [06] U.S. SAYS CROATIA NOT GUILTY OF "ETHNIC CLEANSING."

  • [07] CIA HAS EVIDENCE OF SERBIAN WAR CRIMES IN SREBRENICA.

  • [08] MORE ON RUMORS OF A BOSNIAN CARVE-UP.

  • [09] BELGRADE MASS RALLY DENOUNCES SERBIAN PRESIDENT.

  • [10] MILOSEVIC REPLIES TO KARADZIC.

  • [11] ECOLOGISTS URGE SHUTDOWN OF SLOVENIAN NUCLEAR FACILITY.

  • [12] ROMANIA OPENS FERRY-BOAT SERVICE TO TURKEY.

  • [13] BULGARIA, ROMANIA DISAGREE ON BRIDGE SITE.

  • [14] DATE SET FOR BULGARIAN LOCAL ELECTIONS.

  • [15] BULGARIA CONSULTS GERMANS OVER NATIONAL STOCK EXCHANGE.

  • [16] ALBANIAN PRESIDENT CALLS FOR "RECONSTRUCTION" OF DEMOCRATIC PARTY.

    •

    OMRI DAILY DIGEST

    No. 155, Part I,II, 10 August 1995

    RUSSIA

    [01] MILOSEVIC ARRIVES IN MOSCOW; TUDJMAN REFUSES INVITATION.

    Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic accepted President Boris Yeltsin's recent invitation and arrived in Moscow on 9 August, Russian and Western agencies reported. Yeltsin's attempt to mediate a settlement of the conflict in the former Yugoslavia fell through, however, when Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, after some confusion in Zagreb and Moscow, declined the invitation. Tudjman claimed that talks on the conflict required additional preparation and that Croatia could only participate in such discussions if Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic, whom Yeltsin had not included in his earlier proposal, was also invited. On 10 August, Izvestiya speculated that Tudjman's refusal had been prompted by pressure from the Western powers who feared that Russia might broker a Serb-Croat deal that would harm the interests of the Muslim-led Bosnian government. Milosevic is scheduled to meet with Yeltsin and other top Russian officials on 10 August. -- Scott Parrish, OMRI, Inc.

    [02] YELTSIN ON YUGOSLAV CONFLICT.

    In an interview with the Japanese newspaper Nihon Keizai, carried by ITAR-TASS on 9 August, President Yeltsin praised the activities of the UN peacekeepers in the former Yugoslavia but expressed concern about recent decisions to deploy a rapid-reaction force and simplify the procedures for using NATO air power to support the peacekeepers. Yeltsin condemned the recent vote in the U.S. Congress to ignore the UN arms embargo against the Bosnian government, saying that the embargo should be tightened. Russia does not favor the Serbs, Yeltsin claimed, but added that the accusations put forward by the international war crimes tribunal against Bosnian Serb leaders Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic were "unjust" since the conflict is a civil war in which nobody is either "right" or "guilty." On the same day, Russian Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev released a letter to UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros Ghali that harshly condemned the recent Croatian military offensive and claimed it had been "indirectly encouraged from the capitals of a number of leading world states." -- Scott Parrish, OMRI, Inc.

    [03] COMMUNISTS, LDPR WANT TO DISCUSS BOSNIA AT SPECIAL SESSION.

    The Communists and Vladimir Zhirinovskii's Liberal Democratic Party of Russia have proposed that the situation in Bosnia be included on the agenda of the Duma's 12 August special session, ITAR-TASS reported. On 8 August, several deputies proposed that Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic be invited to the meeting. The deputies will also try to adopt a Duma statement on the situation or pass a law calling on Yeltsin to abandon UN sanctions against rump Yugoslavia unilaterally. The Duma Council rejected all those proposals because, according to Duma Speaker Ivan Rybkin, the initiative to hold the special session addressed only the issue of the Russian elections, Russian Public TV reported. -- Robert Orttung, OMRI, Inc.

    SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

    [04] SERBIAN REFUGEES, SOLDIERS HEAD FOR SERBIA.

    The VOA on 10 August reported that some 100,000 Serbs are on the road from the former Krajina to Serbia via Bosnian Serb territory. A major problem is the presence of armed soldiers among the civilians, although few of the troops have any stomach for fighting. The Croats, who have just taken the last Serb stronghold of Dvor, do not trust the UN to disarm the men. Nor do the Bosnian Serbs seem to have much confidence in their nominal allies, whom they are disarming and then keeping out of Banja Luka, the BBC said. AFP reported that the International Committee of the Red Cross is concerned about the presence of the soldiers and what it will mean for the safety of the refugees. The International Herald Tribune added that Croatian civilians are pelting the refugees with stones. A Croatian policeman said that "these people are angry. You should be thankful they don't do more" to the Serbs. Meanwhile in Zagreb, UN special envoy Yasushi Akashi started talks on 9 August to scale down the UN presence in Croatia, especially of soldiers. "We would like to have a reduced but effective presence," Akashi told AFP. -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [05] SERBIA TO SETTLE REFUGEES IN KOSOVO.

    AFP on 10 August cited Tanjug to the effect that some "thousands" of Krajina refugees will be sent to the roughly 90% ethnic Albanian-inhabited province of Kosovo. It is not clear how many will be resettled there and what will happen to those who do not want to go. Serbian nationalists have long dreamed of reversing demographic trends in the impoverished area, which are the results of steady Serbian emigration and a high Albanian birth rate. The Serbian government to date has had little luck in enticing Serbs to settle there voluntarily, even with generous benefits. The first refugees are expected within days and some communities have volunteered to accomodate them, but any mass resettlement will require more resources than the authorities currently have at their disposal. Some observers have painted bleak scenarios should Belgrade apply its "ethnic cleansing" techniques in Kosovo. -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [06] U.S. SAYS CROATIA NOT GUILTY OF "ETHNIC CLEANSING."

    Peter Galbraith,influential U.S. ambassador to Croatia, rejected British and Serbian charges that Zagreb is guilty of "ethnic cleansing." He told the BBC on 9 August that "ethnic cleansing is a practice supported by Belgrade and carried out by Bosnian and Croatian Serbs, forcefully expelling local inhabitants and using terror tactics." He added that the Croatian military success could prove to be a positive step in resolving the conflict through negotiations. A British journalist said that international diplomacy has no new ideas anyway and that the problems are being resolved by the military on the ground. A German editor added that this is because the international community has no clout since it has been unwilling to use force. -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [07] CIA HAS EVIDENCE OF SERBIAN WAR CRIMES IN SREBRENICA.

    The VOA and The New York Times on 10 August reported on disclosures by a top CIA official and a State Department spokesman on the possible mass murder of Muslims by Serbs following the fall of Srebrenica last month. One spy photo apparently showed a field near a soccer stadium with hundreds or thousands of Muslim men and boys. A second photo, taken a few days later, showed the field empty but with the earth disturbed in a large pattern recalling that of mass graves elsewhere. There are some 6,000 people from Srebrenica still unaccounted for. The American officials said that incidents of human rights violations committed by the Croatian or Bosnian forces "do not approach the scale or systematic nature" of those of the Serbs. The State Department official noted that, following the Croatian reconquest of Krajina, there have been "scattered cases of human rights abuses" but "no reports of the kind of atrocities that followed the fall of Srebrenica." -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [08] MORE ON RUMORS OF A BOSNIAN CARVE-UP.

    The BBC on 10 August quoted a British commentator as saying that Croatia knows it needs the alliance with the Muslims for its own security and that the Croat-Muslim federation "is the current game in town." Many Croats have wondered why the British politican who produced the map, supposedly drawn by President Franjo Tudjman, waited three months to do so, and why the notes on the map contain no typical "Croatianisms." Tudjman, in fact, has just presented top Croatian awards to his Bosnian counterpart, Alija Izetbegovic and to Bosnia's foreign minister. Slobodna Dalmacija on 10 August quoted Bosnian Fifth Corps commander General Arif Dudakovic as praising the Croatian role in relieving Bihac. Meanwhile, Tudjman has refused to meet Serbian and Russian presidents in Moscow unless Izetbegovic is present, Vjesnik reported. (See related items in the Russian section) -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [09] BELGRADE MASS RALLY DENOUNCES SERBIAN PRESIDENT.

    Up to 10,000 people gathered in downtown Belgrade on 9 August to participate in a mass rally against Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, international media reported the following day. The rally, attended by nationalist political leaders and members of the Serbian Orthodox clergy, held Milosevic personally responsible for the defeat of rebel Serb Krajina forces and for the "loss" of rebel-held Croatian territory. Protesters called Milosevic "a second Tudjman" and "ustasha." Officials from the Orthodox Church, which called for Milosevic's ouster following Croatia's victory, blessed the gathering. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [10] MILOSEVIC REPLIES TO KARADZIC.

    Serbian President Milosevic on 9 August responded to Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic's statements the previous day denouncing Milosevic for allegedly selling out Serbian national interests by "abandoning" Krajina, Tanjug reported. Milosevic charged that Karadzic and the Krajina Serb leadership were responsible for the "loss" of Krajina because of their "war-mongering" and unwillingness to accept internationally mediated peace plans. "The results of rejecting talks are a great loss of life, the loss of Krajina, and an exodus of the population," Milosevic said. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [11] ECOLOGISTS URGE SHUTDOWN OF SLOVENIAN NUCLEAR FACILITY.

    The Austrian ecological group Global 2000 on 8 August called for the closure of Slovenia's power plant in Krsko, AFP reported the following day. The plant is located some 30 kilometers from the Croatian capital, Zagreb. The group said that in view of recent developments in the region, it may become the source of a major ecological disaster. It noted that "Serbia has a military potential sufficient to unleash a nuclear disaster in the region, which, even increased surveillance of the power station would not help avoid." Serbian units were not far from the plant during their 1991 invasion of Slovenia but did not cause damage. The plant was built jointly by Croatia and Slovenia, which share its output. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [12] ROMANIA OPENS FERRY-BOAT SERVICE TO TURKEY.

    Romania on 9 August opened its first ferry-boat service to Turkey, Western agencies reported. The new service, which links Romania's main Black Sea port of Constanta with Samsun, will operate twice a week. The ferry-boat can take aboard 40 freight trucks and 70 cars. Transportation charges are expected to be up to 25% lower than by road. Romania and Turkey, which are members of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation association, want to increase economic ties. -- Dan Ionescu, OMRI, Inc.

    [13] BULGARIA, ROMANIA DISAGREE ON BRIDGE SITE.

    Transport Ministry experts from Bulgaria and Romania have failed to agree on the site for a second bridge over the Danube linking the two countries, Reuters reported on 9 August. Following two-day talks in Sofia, Bulgaria accepted the recommendation of the British consulting firm Alexander Gibb to build the bridge along the Western side of the common border, while Romania said it wants the bridge to be built further east. The two countries hope to agree on a location by mid-September and to present their proposal to the EU, which is partly financing the project. Bulgaria and Romania also disagree over financing. Sofia hopes to win financial aid from Western countries, while Bucharest is in favor of loans from international organizations. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [14] DATE SET FOR BULGARIAN LOCAL ELECTIONS.

    President Zhelyu Zhelev on 10 August set the first round of local elections for 29 October 1995, Bulgarian media reported. Under the electoral law, the second round has to take place no later than 14 days after the first. In other news, Irina Bokova was appointed deputy foreign minister on 9 August. She replaces Stanimir Aleksandrov, who asked to be relieved of his duties for personal reasons. Bokova was secretary of the Council of Ministers for European Integration and chair of the Coordinating Commission for European Integration. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [15] BULGARIA CONSULTS GERMANS OVER NATIONAL STOCK EXCHANGE.

    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Economic Development Rumen Gechev on 8 August met with the general manager of the Frankfurt stock exchange to discuss setting up a Bulgarian stock market, AFP reported the same day. The Bulgarian government, which wants foreign assisitance in this task, has also consulted with representatives of the Paris and Chicago stock exchanges. Gechev said that "under equal conditions," Bulgaria prefers to cooperate with a European partner. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [16] ALBANIAN PRESIDENT CALLS FOR "RECONSTRUCTION" OF DEMOCRATIC PARTY.

    At the fourth conference of the Tirana branch of the Democratic Party on 9 August, President Sali Berisha called for the party to be "reconstructed," for the pace of reform to be accelerated, and for the party to increase its work in the countryside, Koha Jone reported the next day. Berisha added that a dialog with voters is necessary. The Democrats are expected to run a close contest with the Socialists in the upcoming elections in April 1996. Transport Minister Albert Brojka was re-elected as head of the Tirana branch. Meanwhile, the Albanian Socialists have denied reports that they held a secret meeting with the ruling Socialist Party of Serbia in Sofia on 29 July. -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

    This material was reprinted with permission of the Open Media Research Institute, a Prague-based nonprofit organization.

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