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Serbia Today 96-08-27
Serbia Today
27 August 1996
CONTENTS
[01] YUGOSLAV STATE AND BUSINESS DELEGATION VISITING SARAJEVO AND BANJA LUKA
[02] A TWO BILLION DOLLARS TRADE VOLUME IS EXPECTED
[03] EXPERTS ARE DRAFTING A TRADE AGREEMENT
[04] EU WELCOMES THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN FR YUGOSLAVIA AND CROATIA
[05] CONTRIBUTION TO REGIONAL STABILITY
[06] 105 REFUGEES RETURNED TO CROATIA
[07] VIOLENCE STAGED BY SDA
[01] YUGOSLAV STATE AND BUSINESS DELEGATION VISITING SARAJEVO AND BANJA LUKA
A Yugoslav state and business delegation, headed by Federal
Deputy premier Nikola Sainovic, and including representatives of
the chambers of economy, managers from the major business systems
and companies, visited yesterday Sarajevo, and met with the
officials of the Moslem-Croatian Federation to discuss mutual
business cooperation. Although it was not on the agenda, at the
end of the visit, Deputy Premier Sainovic met with President
Alija Izetbegovic. As Mr. Sainovic stated after the encounter,
activities intended to help the realization of the Dayton
Agreement were discussed and mutual readiness to endorse them has
been stressed. Both sides also stressed the importance of the
elections in Bosnia, and particular attention has been given to
the economic cooperation that should rely on contacts between
businessmen to promote the stabilization of the peace process,
enhance the freedom of movement of people, goods and capital. Mr.
Sainovic also revealed that the two sides agreed that cooperation
in the sphere of infrastructure (defined by an agreement signed
in Belgrade a month ago) business cooperation should be expanded
to include food products and consumer goods. During the talks,
the delegations discussed in particular the renewal of traffic
between Yugoslavia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the
head of the Yugoslav negotiating team, regular air traffic
between Belgrade and Sarajevo could be established in the next
ten days. Mr. Sainovic said that "economic development and
cooperation should be the cement bonding the peace agreement",
and the dialogue is the "best chance to compensate all the losses
in the crisis".
(Politika, August 27, 1996)
[02] A TWO BILLION DOLLARS TRADE VOLUME IS EXPECTED
During yesterday s talks with the Ukrainian ambassador to
FR Yugoslavia Vadim Primachenko, Federal Prime Minister Dr.
Kontic, stressed the traditional friendship between the two
countries and nations and the constructive contribution Ukraine
gave to the settlement of the crisis in former Yugoslavia. Both
sides remarked that Ukraine is one of the most important economic
Yugoslav partners. The trade volume might soon reach some two
billion dollars. Along with the classic forms of cooperation, the
two countries indicated readiness to promote higher and modern
forms of cooperation in production, joint investments and common
appearance on third markets. Dr. Kontic said that the Yugoslav
side accepted the Ukrainian initiative for the signing of a
general political agreement on friendship and cooperation between
the two countries. It is expected that the agreement on
scientific and technical cooperation will also be formulated
imminently, as well as documents on prevention of double
taxation, protection and incitement of investments in road and
river transports, and cooperation in public health care.
(Borba, August 27, 1996)
[03] EXPERTS ARE DRAFTING A TRADE AGREEMENT
Expert teams formed by the Yugoslav and Macedonian
Government will work together today and tomorrow to formulate the
trade agreement between the two neighboring countries. It has
been stated that this agreement should "ensure the expansion of
economic cooperation and enhance trade development." Skoplje
expects that the agreement will promote a progressive
liberalization of mutual trade, the final objective being to
establish a free trade zone between FRY and Macedonia.
(Politika, August 27, 1996)
[04] EU WELCOMES THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN FR YUGOSLAVIA AND CROATIA
The European Union hailed the signing of the
Yugoslav/Croatian agreement on the normalization of relations and
mutual recognition and stressed that that this is "a constructive
contribution to peace and stability in the region". According to
the official statement, "EU is awaiting with impatience for the
agreement to become effective". Such a development represents a
constructive contribution to peace and stability in the region,
especially bearing in mind the readiness displayed by both sides
to settle the remaining controversies through negotiations
inspired by the UN Charter, the EU governments stressed. All this
helps the EU efforts induce all the former Yugoslav republics to
accept its concept of prospective regional cooperation, which was
obstinately refused by the political leadership in Zagreb.
(Politika, August 27, 1996)
[05] CONTRIBUTION TO REGIONAL STABILITY
China warmly congratulated the two parties on the agreement
for the normalization of relations between FR Yugoslavia and
Croatia. Circles in Beijing remarked that this is not in the
interest of the two nations but also an important contribution
to peace and stability in the region and Europe as a whole. The
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Shen Guofeng told the TANJUG
correspondent that the signing of the agreement will also affect
positively the normalization of the relations between all the new
countries in former Yugoslavia. The Chinese Government always
believed that independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity
of all countries shaped within former Yugoslavia have to be
respected, and that all the states in the region have to accept
mutual recognition - Mr. Guofeng said.
(TANJUG, August 27, 1996)
[06] 105 REFUGEES RETURNED TO CROATIA
With the help of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, 105
refugees returned to Croatia from FR Yugoslavia since June - said
UNHCR Belgrade Office representative Ms. Tina Andersen. I have
accompanied a group of ten people to Knin, and the others
returned to Petrinja, Zagreb, Vinkovci and Split, said Ms.
Andersen stressing that in Knin strong tensions exist between
the repatriated Serbs and the Croats settled into Serbian homes
with the help of the Croatian Government. The UNHCR office in
Knin is "monitoring" the situation faced by the Serbs that
returned to the town with our help, and for the time being
everything seems to be all right - she added. According to the
same UNHCR official, Knin looks like a ghost town, there is still
no electricity and the destruction is visible everywhere.
(Borba, August 27, 1996)
[07] VIOLENCE STAGED BY SDA
Yesterday, the French Government newly warned that as the
general elections in Bosnia draw near, the international
community has to act with greater determination to ensure the
conditions for the elections to be held. French analyses give
prime importance to the behavior of Izetbegovic s Moslem
Democratic Action Party (SDA). According to the French Foreign
Ministry, this party is imposing "an atmosphere of intimidation,
and even violence" in the elections campaign. The Paris daily "Le
Mond" remarks that SDA "insists on a religious - Islamic Bosnia",
while French correspondents that toured the so-called Bosnian
Republic indicate that "there is only Izetbegovic s SDA on the
political scene". One of the reporters stresses that this party
advocates secessionism based mostly on violence and Koran. IN
this regard he quotes the example of the elections rally staged
two days ago in Capljina - with the slogan "Jihad is Salvation,
the Koran is our Constitution". The Mayor of Tuzla - Selim
Beshlagic has been quoted to say that "SDA does not want a
multi-ethnic Bosnia" and this is why it "obstructs the work of
multi-ethnic parties". Consequently some parties have already
threatened that they will boycott the elections - the French
newspapers stress.
(Ekspres Politika, August 27, 1996)
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