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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 2, No. 71, 98-04-14Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 2, No. 71, 14 April 1998CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] RYBKIN IN YEREVAN, BAKU...Russian acting Deputy Prime Minister Ivan Rybkin held "very warm and comprehensive" talks with Robert Kocharyan on 9 April in Yerevan after attending the latter's inauguration, Russian agencies reported. The leaders agreed on implementing the August 1997 pact on exporting Russian gas via Armenia. The following day, Rybkin was in Baku to meet with Azerbaijani President Heidar Aliev, who criticized Russia's reluctance to pressure the Armenian leadership to return arms worth $1 billion supplied clandestinely to Armenia from 1994-1996. Rybkin said the trilateral commission created to investigate the arms shipments will convene again after the new Russian government is formed. Aliev also complained about Moscow's refusal to extradite to Baku former chief of staff Shahin Musaev, who is wanted for his alleged role in a 1994 coup attempt. Also 10 April, the Azerbaijani parliament voted to ratify the treaty on friendship and cooperation with Russia, signed in July 1997, Turan reported. LF[02] ...AND TBILISIFollowing his talks with Rybkin in Tbilisi on 10 April, Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze played down the recent tensions over the Russian military presence in Georgia and vowed that the two countries will co-exist as good neighbors with an interest in each other's stability, Russian agencies reported. Shevardnadze said that Rybkin shares his views on how best to resolve the conflicts in South Ossetia and Abkhazia; in particular, both are in favor of meetings between Shevardnadze and the leaders of both regions. Rybkin suggested that the upcoming CIS summit may agree to Tbilisi's demand to expand the role of the CIS peacekeeping force in Abkhazia, according to an RFE/RL correspondent in the Georgian capital. LF[03] ARMENIAN PRESIDENT NAMES NEW PRIME MINISTERRobert Kocharyan on 10 April named 33-year-old Finance and Economy Minister Armen Darpinyan to head the new government. A graduate of Moscow State University, Darpinyan was appointed first deputy chairman of the Armenian Central Bank in 1994 and finance minister in May, 1997, Noyan Tapan reported. Meeting on 13 April, Darpinyan and Kocharyan affirmed their commitment to economic reform and industrial revival, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported. They also discussed the "structure and principles" of forming the new cabinet. Also on 13 April, the parties belonging to the pro- Kocharyan Unity and Justice bloc continued discussing the president's proposal to create a consultative council on which all major political groups would be represented. But there is disagreement within that bloc over the expediency of holding early parliamentary elections. The Dashnak Party favors such a vote, but the Yerkrapah parliamentary group has voiced its opposition, Noyan Tapan reported. LF[04] OSCE SLAMS ARMENIAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONSIn its final assessment released on 10 April, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's observer mission in Yerevan concluded that last month's presidential poll did not meet the OSCE standards "to which Armenia committed itself in the Copenhagen Document of 1990," Turan and Reuters reported. While conceding that the poll was an improvement over the seriously flawed elections of 1995 and 1996, the statement said the 1996 vote is not an appropriate yardstick against which to assess this year's ballot. The statement noted ballot-stuffing, discrepancies in the vote count, and the presence of unauthorized persons at polling stations. It also claimed that one mobile polling station crossed the frontier into neighboring Azerbaijan in order to enable Armenian troops there to vote. But the statement did not say whether the registered violations fundamentally affected the outcome of the poll. LF[05] MORE SHOOTINGS IN ABKHAZIASeven members of the CIS peacekeeping force deployed in Abkhazia and an Abkhaz police officer were injured on 11 April when unidentified assailants opened fire on their armored personnel carrier in Gali Raion, Russian agencies reported. Meeting the same day in Tbilisi with visiting Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Khandoga, Georgian Foreign Minister Irakli Menagharishvili welcomed Kyiv's repeated offer to join the UN Secretary- General's Friends of Georgia group, which is seeking to mediate a political settlement of the Abkhaz conflict. Ukraine also offered again to send observers and a peacekeeping force to the region. LF[06] UZBEK PRESIDENT WAITS FOR RUSSIAN INVITATIONIslam Karimov, speaking at a joint press conference with visiting Turkish Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz on 13 April, said if he receives an invitation, he will go to Moscow in May to meet with Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Interfax and dpa reported. Referring to recent political events in Russia, Karimov said the government shake-up was a "sign of instability of society and state." But he noted that "a Russia run by Yeltsin appeals to me but a Russia run by [Communist leader Gennadii] Zyuganov does not." Turning to his own country's political future, Karimov said Uzbekistan will do everything in its power to ensure the "spiritual revival of the nation in accordance with [Kemal] Ataturk's call." During Yilmaz's visit, agreements on economic cooperation, copyright protection, and preventing the smuggling of cultural artifacts were signed. BP[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[07] DJUKANOVIC URGES WEST TO 'BAR WAY' TO MILOSEVICMontenegrin President Milo Djukanovic told AFP on 13 April that the international community should "bar the way" to Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. Djukanovic charged that "Milosevic is tragically behind the times in his assessments, and is always embarking on new political failures." The Montenegrin leader said that Milosevic's upcoming referendum against foreign mediation in Kosova is "the collective suicide...he proposes for the Serbian people." Djukanovic urged the international community to back his "efforts to form a block of reformist forces [in Yugoslavia] capable of barring the way to the damaging policies that Milosevic personifies." The Montenegrin president warned Belgrade that he may find it necessary "to open the country up to new perspectives" if Milosevic continues to treat Montenegro as a junior partner rather than as an equal. PM[08] DJINDJIC CALLS FOR UNITED OPPOSITIONZoran Djindjic, the leader of Serbia's Democratic Party, told a 12 April convention of the Citizens' League of Serbia in Belgrade that the opposition throughout federal Yugoslavia should unite on the basis of a common platform. Vesna Pesic, the president of the league, endorsed Djindjic's proposal, an RFE/RL correspondent reported from the Serbian capital. She added that Serbia needs democratization, economic reform, and an opening to the outside world. Pesic stressed that those goals cannot be achieved as long as Milosevic remains in power. Previous attempts to unite the opposition to Milosevic have been thwarted by personal rivalries and by Milosevic's divide- and-rule tactics. Nor has the Serbian opposition succeeded in convincing the Kosovars to join with them against Milosevic. PM[09] KOSOVARS CONTINUE PROTESTSBetween 5,000 and 10,000 ethnic Albanians staged peaceful demonstrations in Prishtina from 11-13 April. Thousands more marched in several smaller towns as well, an RFE/RL correspondent reported from the Kosovar capital. All protests took place without incident. The current series of daily marches began in Prishtina last week, when 30,000 ethnic Albanians demonstrated against Serbian police repression and for an independent Kosova (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 9 April 1998). On 10 April, Serbian media reported that masked gunmen in Duha badly wounded an ethnic Albanian official of Milosevic's Socialist Party of Serbia. PM[10] OGATA MAKES REFUGEE PLANS IN MACEDONIASadako Ogata, who is the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said in Skopje on 11 April that contingency plans are being made for a possible refugee influx into Macedonia from Kosova if conditions there further deteriorate. "At the present time, there are no refugees from Kosova in Macedonia, [but] the possibility of an emergency is something that we have to be prepared [for]." She added that "there is no emergency, but to prepare for this is the best prevention." Kosovar officials recently told "RFE/RL Newsline" in Tirana that some Kosovar refugees have gone to Macedonia since the Serbian police crackdown began on 28 February. The officials stressed that Kosovars are much more likely to flee to Macedonia, where many have friends and relatives, than to Albania should the repression intensify. PM[11] MACEDONIAN ALBANIAN PARTY TO BOYCOTT GOVERNMENTSpokesmen for the Democratic Party of Albanians, which is one of the largest ethnic Albanian parties in Macedonia and one of the two represented in government bodies, said in Skopje on 13 April that its members who hold government posts will resign those positions. Eight members of the parliament are affected, along with nine mayors, and 240 town council members in numerous municipalities. The boycott comes in response to a recent ruling by the Skopje appeals court that Gostivar Mayor Rufi Osmani must serve a seven-year jail term for illegally flying the Albanian flag from his town hall last July (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 11 July 1997). The court ruled that Osmani not only failed to obey a court order to take down the flag during the riots on 9 July but that he also incited national, racial, and religious hatred. FS[12] BELGRADE, ZAGREB PRESS CHARGES AGAINST SAKICYugoslav state prosecutors have filed charges in Buenos Aires against Dinko Sakic, pro-Milosevic media reported on 13 April. Three days earlier, Croatian Justice Minister Miroslav Separovic said in Zagreb that he has launched proceedings for Sakic's extradition to Croatia. On 6 April, Sakic said on Argentinean television that he was a commander at Jasenovac, Croatia's largest concentration camp, from 1942-1944. Sakic denied that he knew anything about murders of Serbs, Jews, and Roma there. Sakic, who arrived in Argentina in 1947, went into hiding following the broadcast. Estimates of the number of deaths at Jasenovac range from several tens of thousands to 500,000. Sakic was 20 years old in 1942. PM[13] WESTENDORP WARNS NATIONALISTSA spokesman for Carlos Westendorp, who is the international community's chief representative in Bosnia, said in Sarajevo on 10 April that Westendorp will continue to remove from office nationalist officials who block the implementation of the Dayton peace agreement. The spokesman added that Westendorp may also ban such individuals from running in the general elections slated for 12-13 September. PM[14] ALBANIAN GUNMAN SHOOTS DOCTORA gunman badly wounded a doctor at the Shkoder pediatric hospital on 10 April. Police said the attacker was seeking revenge for the death of his daughter in the same hospital a few days earlier after an unsuccessful operation. The following day, some 1,500 medical personnel demonstrated in Shkoder for better police protection. There were several shootings at Albanian hospitals during the anarchy last year. Meanwhile on Mount Dajti, near Tirana, a masked gunman wounded two British diplomats on 12 April in an apparent robbery attempt. Gunmen have recently made several attempts in the Tirana area to steal cars belonging to foreign officials. FS[15] GREEKS CLOSE BORDER TO ALBANIAN MUSICIANSGreek border guards at Kakavia denied entry to 73 Albanian musicians on 11 April, even though the Albanians had a valid visa to perform at a concert in Athens the following day, "Koha Jone" reported. The border guards explained that the Greek government had banned all cultural activities for three days following the death of a Greek Orthodox archbishop. The Tirana daily and the Greek embassy in the Albanian capital organized the concert, which was intended primarily for the large number of Albanians working in Greece. The border incident reflects the often brittle nature of relations between the two neighbors, an RFE/RL correspondent reports from Tirana. FS[16] ROMANIAN COALITION AGREES ON ECONOMIC PLANPrime Minister-designate Radu Vasile said on 13 April that his government will put Romania on the "road of no return" toward economic reforms, Reuters reported. Vasile said that his center-right coalition has agreed on a program that involves restructuring the economy and privatizing major industries. Under a revised privatization plan, several large state firms would be privatized, to varying degrees, by certain deadlines this year. A document detailing the plan said that fiscal spending will remain "prudent." A joint session of the bicameral parliament is to vote on the plan on 15 April. PB[17] VASILE DROPS MINISTER FOR BEING 'TURNCOAT'Romanian Prime Minister-designate Radu Vasile removed his proposed agriculture minister on 11 April after the press had called the nominee a "political turncoat," Reuters reported. Vasile said "morality is just as important to me as professionalism" in removing Alexandru Bogdan. According to the newspaper reports, Bogdan was formerly affiliated with leftists. He is currently a member of Vasile's National Peasant Party Christian Democracy party. Vasile replaced Bogdan with Dinu Gavrilescu, who served as agriculture minister under the previous government. PB[18] COALITION TALKS CONTINUE IN MOLDOVADumitru Diakov, the leader of the For a Democratic and Prosperous Moldova Bloc (PMDP), said on 11 April that negotiations with both the Communists and the centrist parties on forming a government are continuing, Infotag reported. The PMDP, which has 24 seats in the newly elected Moldovan parliament, is the only one of the three other parties in the new parliament that the Communist Party is considering as a coalition partner. It is also being courted by the Alliance of Democratic Forces and the Democratic Convention of Moldova to form a three-party coalition. If such a coalition was formed, the Communists -- who won the elections last month and have 40 deputies in the parliament -- would be left alone in opposition. Diakov said that so far, negotiations "with the Right were more constructive." PB[19] TRANSDNIESTER LEADER STILL AILINGIgor Smirnov's press service says that the separatist leader is recovering at home but that his condition is "unsatisfactory," Basa- PRESS reported on 11 April. Smirnov is reported to be suffering from a "difficult influenza," although Transdniester officials do not deny that Smirnov recently suffered a heart attack. Smirnov was unable to meet with Igor Morozov, Russian President Boris Yeltsin's newly appointed representative to the Moldovan-Transdniestrian talks. Morozov held talks on 10 April with Moldovan Foreign Minister Nicolae Tabacaru. PB[20] BULGARIAN, ROMANIAN, GREEK FOREIGN MINISTERS PLEDGE COOPERATIONNadezhda Mihailova, Andrei Plesu, and Theodoros Pangalos ended two days of talks on the Greek island of Santorini on 11 April having agreed they must cooperate to ensure peace in the Balkans, an RFE/RL correspondent reported. Talks centered on the conflict in Kosovo. Mihailova said the concern is that "the countries in the region not be isolated by the conflict." The three ministers also discussed setting up a Balkan rapid deployment force. The Santorini meeting was the fourth tripartite meeting of the countries. PB[C] END NOTE[21] ARMENIA'S NEW PRESIDENT: NOT A HAWK BUT A PRAGMATISTby Liz FullerIn a lengthy interview with "Izvestiya" on 8 April and in his inauguration address the following day, Armenian President Robert Kocharyan outlined his domestic and economic policy priorities. He also stressed his preferences for resolving the Karabakh conflict and for developing relations with Russia and the CIS. Speaking at his inauguration ceremony, Kocharyan described the next five years as a period of "consolidating the foundations of our state," resolving social problems, and creating conditions for the population to exercise fully its constitutional rights and freedoms. Those tasks, he stressed, will require "internal unity and consent and constructive political dialogue." Kocharyan said sweeping constitutional amendments are "imperative" in order to provide for a more balanced interaction between the president on the one hand, and the government and National Assembly on the other. And the basic law must also be changed to redefine the responsibilities of the Constitutional Court, he said. Taking a swipe at the previous leadership, Kocharyan argued that "everyone, from the president to ordinary citizens, should be equal before the law." He went on to say that all reforms, whether political or economic, should be geared to existing conditions and their possible social impact taken into consideration. In this context, he observed that it is now clear that the state should not have given up its regulatory role in the sphere of economic relations, especially since market institutions to replace the state have not been established. The resulting vacuum, Kocharyan continued, has above all damaged the agricultural sector, which badly needs state support. Kocharyan advocated economic policies aimed at establishing favorable conditions for attracting investment and for the development both of industry and of small and medium-sized businesses, with the goal of creating new jobs. He had told "Izvestiya" that Armenia has "the most open economic policy" of any CIS state, and he predicted that the optimal development of the country's technological capacity and its potential as a net exporter of energy could mean 45,000-50,000 new jobs over the next two or three years. Asked whom he would select to implement his economic program, Kocharyan said only that "we know what needs to be done and how to do it." He said the idea of a coalition government is "unacceptable," but he did not exclude the inclusion in the new cabinet of "professionals" prepared to set aside their party affiliation. Finance and Economy Minister Armen Darpinyan, whom Kocharyan named prime minister on 10 April, has also painted a rosy picture of Armenia's financial prospects. In an interview with "Respublika Armeniya" last month, he predicted foreign investment totaling $200 million this year. He also said he believes that by August, Armenia will receive an international credit rating that is "no lower than the best in the CIS." Turning to foreign policy, Kocharyan pledged that Armenia will strive for "dynamic and mutually beneficial relations with our neighbors and with those states that have traditional strategic interests in the region" (meaning, above all, Russia). He also stressed that Yerevan will abide by the international agreements it has signed. He noted the importance of "a strong and disciplined army" as a guarantor of national security. And he underlined that it is "a responsibility of our generation" to ensure the active participation of the Armenian Diaspora in the social, political and economic life of the country, specifically through the introduction of dual citizenship. As for Karabakh, which had precipitated the resignation of his predecessor, Levon Ter-Petrossyan, Kocharyan termed it a "pan-national issue" that should be resolved peacefully and "with dignity." A solution to the conflict, he added, must entail international recognition of the right of the people of Karabakh to self-determination and must guarantee the region's development within secure borders and "in constant geographical connection" with Armenia. That formulation implies demilitarization and international control of the strategic Lachin corridor linking Karabakh with Armenia. Kocharyan discussed the Karabakh conflict in greater depth in his interview with "Izvestiya." Declaring that "I'm not a hawk-- I'm a pragmatist," the president again rejected Ter-Petrossyan's equation of his resignation with the advent to power of the "party of war." Kocharyan suggested that the differences between Armenia and Azerbaijan are so great that the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's Minsk Group is unlikely to succeed in mediating a solution to the Karabakh conflict, especially as Baku's offer of broad autonomy for Nagorno-Karabakh is "unacceptable." At the same time, he affirmed his readiness for direct talks with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Heidar Aliev. Arguing that the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic is already de facto independent, Kocharyan proposed that its future status be defined in terms of either a federation or a confederation with Azerbaijan or of establishing "equal, horizontal relations." But Kocharyan stressed that making such a decision is the prerogative of the Karabakh leadership. 14-04-98 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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