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Voice of America, 00-02-23Voice of America: Selected Articles Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Voice of America <gopher://gopher.voa.gov>CONTENTS
[01] KOSOVO FRANCE (L-ONLY) BY JIM RANDLE (PENTAGON)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259503 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: The French Defense Minister says his country is prepared to send another six or seven hundred troops to help quell violence in Kosovo. V-O-A's Jim Randle reports, top NATO officials will consider sending up to a total of two-thousand fresh soldiers to the troubled Serbian province. TEXT: French Defense Minister Alain Richard says his nation will do `whatever it takes' to reduce violence between ethnic Serbs and ethnic Albanians in the northern city of Mitrovica. He says France already has 47-hundred soldiers patrolling that portion of Kosovo, and will send more if they are needed. /// RICHARD ACT ////// END ACT ///NEB/JR/TVM/PT 23-Feb-2000 18:28 PM EDT (23-Feb-2000 2328 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America [02] HOLBROOKE ON MITRIOVICA (L-ONLY) BY BRECK ARDERY (UNITED NATIONS)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259504 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: The American Ambassador to the United Nations said tonight (Wednesday) that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic is attempting to partition Kosovo by encouraging ethnic violence in the city of Mitrovica. V-O-A Correspondent Breck Ardery reports from the United Nations. TEXT: Speaking briefly to reporters, Mr. Holbrooke confirmed reports that top U-S and NATO officials believe Mr. Milosevic is infiltrating people into the Kosovo in an attempt to inflame ethnic violence in Mitrovica. There have also been reports of radio links between Serbian officials and Serb militants in Mitrovica. Mr. Holbrooke says it is part of plan by Mr. Milosevic to create a partition of Kosovo, and undermine U-N Security Council resolutions that authorized international peacekeeping troops and a U-N civil administration. /// HOLBROOKE ACT ////// END ACT ///NNNN Source: Voice of America [03] TURKEY / KURDS / MAYORS (L-ONLY) BY AMBERIN ZAMAN (ANKARA)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259486 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: Turkish leaders are reacting angrily to calls from Western European governments for the release of three ethnic Kurdish mayors detained over the weekend. As Amberin Zaman reports from Ankara, Turkish President Suleyman Demirel said Wednesday that the arrests of the mayors had -- in his words -- nothing to do with the European Union. TEXT: President Demirel described the arrests of
Feridun Celik of Diyarbakir, Selim Ozalp of Siirt and
Feyzullah Karaaslan of Bingol as what he called "a
legal procedure." Nobody, Mr. Demirel said, has the
right to commit crimes.
Mr. Demirel's statement followed calls from the
European Parliament and the Strasbourg-based Council
of Europe, of which Turkey is a founding member, to
release the mayors immediately.
The mayors from the largely Kurdish southeastern
provinces were detained and have been undergoing
interrogation in the provincial capital, Diyarbakir,
over their alleged ties to the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party, known as the P-K-K.
The mayors appeared before a special state security
court in Diyarbakir Wednesday for further
interrogation amid mounting tensions in the southeast
region. Under Turkish law, prosecutors are authorized
to extend the pre-trial detention period by a further
week before the mayors appear in court.
The mayors are members of the pro-Kurdish People's
Democracy Party, known as Hadep. Hadep officials deny
any links with the separatist rebel group and its
captured leader, Abdullah Ocalan. But their party is
facing closure over charges that it is acting as a
political front for the P-K-K.
Prosecutors are demanding up to three years in jail
for Hadep party leader, Ahmet Turan Demir, on charges
of making separatist propaganda during a speech last
year in which he called for the introduction of
constitutional guarantees for the Kurds' ethnic
identity.
Western diplomats in the capital, Ankara, say the
arrests will likely undermine Turkey's efforts to join
the European Union. One of the conditions set down by
the European Union is that Turkey grant its estimated
12-million Kurds cultural rights, including the right
to broadcast and educate in the own language.
Visiting Luxembourg Foreign Minister, Lydie Polfer,
told reporters that the European Union had what she
called, "great difficulty," understanding the
detention of the mayors and that she had told her
Turkish counterpart, Ismail Cem, as much during talks
with him in Ankara.
Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit earlier rejected
such criticism as an unacceptable intrusion in
Turkey's internal affairs. Mr. Ecevit said Europe
needed to understand what he termed Turkey's warnings
with regard to how membership negotiations with the
European Union would work.
Western diplomats say Turkey will have to heed
Europe's warnings as well if it wants to become a full
member of their club. (Signed)
NEB/AZ/GE/ENE/JP
23-Feb-2000 11:17 AM EDT (23-Feb-2000 1617 UTC)
[04] CHINA-EU-W-T-O (L ONLY) BY ROGER WILKISON (BEIJING)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259475 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: China and the European Union are holding a third day of critical talks aimed at securing a trade deal that will lead to Beijing's entry into the World Trade Organization. VOA correspondent Roger Wilkison reports European diplomats say that -- so far -- the two sides have been unable to achieve a breakthrough in the negotiations. TEXT: Though the European Union mission in Beijing
and the Chinese Foreign Trade Ministry have imposed a
news blackout on the talks, diplomats from two E-U
member countries say little progress has been made
toward striking a deal.
The diplomats say the main obstacles continue to be
China's refusal to meet E-U demands that Beijing allow
greater access to the Chinese market for European
insurance and telecommunications firms.
Negotiators have broken up into two groups to try to
reach what one diplomat calls technical agreements in
different fields. But he says that - based on the
discussions so far - there is little chance that E-U
Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy will be traveling to
the Chinese capital anytime soon to nail down a final
accord.
China needs the consent of all of the W-T-O's 135
members to join global trade's rule-making body. The
E-U is the most important of those members that have
not yet signed such a pact with Beijing.
On Tuesday, China signed a trade deal with India,
leaving the E-U and 12 other W-T-O members to finalize
agreements with Beijing.
Before the latest round of China-E-U trade talks began
on Monday, E-U officials listed telecommunications and
financial services --including insurance -- as the
main points of contention. They also said the E-U
would seek lower tariffs on certain goods produced by
individual E-U member countries, such as English gin,
Scotch whisky, French cosmetics and Italian leather
products. (SIGNED)
[05] SECRETARY OF STATE TO VISIT EUROPE (L-ONLY) BY KYLE KING (STATE DEPARTMENT)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259498 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: U-S Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has announced plans to visit the Czech Republic and Bosnia during a week-long European trip that will include stops in Portugal and Belgium. From the State Department, V-O-A's Kyle King reports. TEXT: Ms. Albright's first stop will be Lisbon, Portugal, where she will take part in the U-S -- European Union ministerial meeting on March 3rd. The Secretary is also expected to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov for talks likely to include recent developments in Chechnya. Ms. Albright, who was born in Czechoslovakia, will be in Prague from March 5th to the 8th, to take part in celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of the first Czechoslovak President. State Department spokesman James Rubin says Ms. Albright will also visit Bosnia, March 8th and 9th to discuss progress in bringing further unity to the ethnically polarized country. /// RUBIN ACT ////// END ACT ///NNNN Source: Voice of America [06] SPAIN / VIOLENCE (L-ONLY) BY LAURIE KASSMAN (LONDON)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259479 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: Spain is mourning the death of a regional politician and his bodyguard who were killed Tuesday by a car bomb in the Basque city of Vitoria. Correspondent Laurie Kassman reports the bombing has sparked widespread condemnation. TEXT: The demonstrations across Spain are aimed at the Basque separatist group, known as ETA, which Spanish authorities are blaming for Tuesday's car bombing in Vitoria. It is the second terrorist attack since ETA ended its cease-fire 14 months ago and comes just three weeks before Spain's general elections. Spaniards are not the only ones to condemn the violence. European leaders like Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair have voiced their concerns. /// BLAIR ACT ////// END ACT ///NNNN Source: Voice of America [07] CLINTON-SPAIN (L-CQ) BY DEBORAH TATE (WHITE HOUSE)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259492 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: Spain's King Juan Carlos has strongly condemned a bomb attack that killed a Socialist politician in his country's semi-autonomous Basque region. He spoke at the start of a state visit to the White House, where President Clinton praised him for his efforts to resist terror. Correspondent Deborah Tate reports. Text: King Juan Carlos expressed his "shock and utmost rejection," of the car bomb assassination of local Socialist Party leader Fernando Buesa and his bodyguard. Authorities believe the bombing - which took place Tuesday in Vitoria, the capital of the Basque region - is the work of the separatist group ETA. Mr. Buesa had been an outspoken critic of the group. The Spanish monarch spoke through an interpreter during welcoming ceremonies on the south lawn of the White House. /// End Act ////// Clinton Act ////// End Act ////// Clinton Act ////// End Act ///NEB/DAT/JP 23-Feb-2000 13:55 PM EDT (23-Feb-2000 1855 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America [08] N-Y ECON WRAP (S&L) BY ELAINE JOHANSON (NEW YORK)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259501 CONTENT= VOICED AT: /// See also CR 2-259494 ///INTRO: U-S stock prices were mixed today (Wednesday), as the chief U-S central banker delivered no surprises in his testimony on the U-S economy to a congressional banking committee. V-O-A correspondent Elaine Johanson reports from New York: TEXT: The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 79 points, less than one percent, closing at 10-thousand- 225. The Standard and Poor's 500 index gained eight points. The technology-weighted Nasdaq composite, after a two- day slump, rose sharply, with its largest single-day point gain ever. It went up nearly four percent, closing at a record high. Federal Reserve Board chairman Alan Greenspan repeated last week's message that interest rates will probably be going up again to try to slow the U-S economy. But he indicated a gradual approach to those hikes. That calmed the stock market. The Dow Jones pared its losses. The Nasdaq index soared. Mr. Greenspan is the most carefully-watched figure among Wall Street analysts. He has the power to roil financial markets with a single comment. /// REST OPT ////// CASHIN ACT ////// END ACT ///NNNN Source: Voice of America [09] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=U-S EDITORIAL DIGEST NUMBER=6-11695 EDITOR=ASSIGNMENTS TELEPHONE=619-3335 CONTENT= INTRO: Editorial pages around the United States this Wednesday are focused on new tension between China and Taiwan as the island's election nears and China rattles its sabers again. The Iranian election victory for reformers also is a popular topic, as is Senator John McCain's double win in the Michigan and Arizona presidential primary elections. Other topics include additional comments on politics, the U-S labor movement's changing policy on illegal workers, and the high price of oil. Now, here with a closer look is __________ and today's Editorial Digest. TEXT: China has just released a hard-line position paper on its view of relations with Taiwan, which will soon hold a presidential election. China essentially says it will not wait indefinitely for Taiwan to rejoin the mainland, and will not rule out the eventual use of force to achieve reunification. The tone of the paper is clearly worrying many editorial writers, but not those at the Honolulu Star-Bulletin in Hawaii, who see it as calculated bluster. VOICE: ... the policy paper was evidently timed to affect campaigning for the election, but it's unlikely to produce dramatic changes in the candidates' positions. Public opinion on Taiwan is strongly opposed to unification - - and Taiwan, unlike China, is a democracy, with free elections. ... The new policy statement from Beijing must be considered a tactic of psychological warfare rather than an indication of a real intention to initiate an attack on Taiwan. TEXT: The Chicago Tribune is more upset and suggests a course of action for the United States. VOICE: China ... has upped the ante by lowering the threshold for what it would consider a justified use of force against Taiwan. Now Taiwan not only must forego any move toward independence, but it must negotiate on Beijing's timetable. That's unacceptable. The Clinton administration ought to respond in the most unequivocal manner that threats of force, and the use of force against Taiwan, also will not be tolerated. So far, White House reaction ... hardly rises to the level the occasion warrants. /// OPT ///TEXT: The Kansas City Star agrees: VOICE: China's outrageous saber-rattling over Taiwan calls for an extremely tough response from the United States. ... It may well be time to send in the carriers again, and to squeeze China in other ways as well. ... Past experience shows that efforts to appease China are particularly dangerous. /// END OPT ///TEXT: In the Middle East, the big parliamentary election victory of reformers over conservatives in Iran continues to draw comment. In Oklahoma, The Tulsa World is pleased, but cautious. VOICE: The . elections prove that the majority of Iranians are ready for their first big political change since the hard-line Islamics took over the country in the 1979 revolution. But [President Mohammad] Khatami and his allies still face formidable odds. The supreme religious ruler, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, still outranks the parliament and the president. ... TEXT: Change will not come easily despite the reformers' victory, in the opinion of today's Florida Times-Union from Jacksonville. VOICE: Even with a reformist president and parliament, change will not come easily. The hard- line Guardians Council must approve all legislation, [Ayatollah] Khamenei has final say in all matters and hard-liners control the judiciary. But the hard- liners must be careful. ... If they are too passive, [they] ... risk losing their remaining power. If they are too aggressive, they risk a counter-revolution. /// OPT ///TEXT: Lastly on Iran, Ohio's [Akron] Beacon Journal says: VOICE: [President] Khatami's hand is significantly strengthened by the newly elected parliament. His challenge, with this strong, popular support, will be to press the advantage to loosen the grip of the clergy on Iran's political and judicial institutions, repair relations with the West as well as restore to Iranians a semblance of personal freedoms. /// END OPT ///TEXT: Domestically, the victory of Arizona Senator John McCain in both the Michigan and Arizona Republican presidential primaries Tuesday is drawing immediate reaction. First, this appraisal from The Detroit Free press, the state's largest daily. VOICE: There are many ways to read John McCain's victory ... and none of them bode well for George Bush. ... With many big-state primaries yet to come, this race is far from over, but Republicans who lined up early and shelled out often for [Mr.] Bush have to be wondering if the Texas governor is really ready for prime time. TEXT: The Detroit News adds that: "Senator McCain is now poised to make the case to Republicans that he would make the most electable candidate against Democrats in the fall." Calling it "Mr. McCain's Michigan Surprise," The New York Times says the senator's wins in Michigan and Arizona: VOICE: ... scramble the Republican presidential race, and portend more blistering battles to come with Governor George W. Bush. ... At some point, Mr. McCain will have to ... draw majority support among members of his own party and also convert a reluctant party leadership if he hopes to roll to the nomination. And ... Mr. Bush ... sooner or later must show that he has the ability to win without being propped up by local bosses. TEXT: In Democratic Party politics, the Houston Chronicle was not overly impressed with the spirited debate between Vice President Al Gore and former Senator Bill Bradley Monday night in New York's Harlem, calling it "old-time political theater." VOICE: The showmanship and bluster -- and, many would add, the pander to the audience -- were the story of the night. Voters, unfortunately, came away with very little, other than how either of the candidates holds up under the sort of fire they were pouring upon one another. TEXT: Another domestic issue is the complete reversal of the large trade union confederation, the A-F-L - C- I-O, on the issue of granting amnesty for the estimated six-million illegal immigrants in the United States. The organization has dropped its opposition, and now favors the proposal, eliciting this from the Fresno [California] Bee: VOICE: Big labor's new direction puts it in sync (agreement) with much of the U-S business community, which has complained for years that it cannot find enough qualified workers. Whether that combined pressure will be enough to sway a majority in Congress is questionable, given fears among many lawmakers ... that a blanket amnesty would only provoke more illegal immigration. TEXT: The [Trenton, New Jersey] Times has this to say about the dramatic rise in oil and gasoline prices: VOICE: The recent increase in energy prices, which has seen home heating oil hit two dollars a gallon [approximately 52 cents a liter] this month and has thrust gasoline and diesel fuel costs into similarly high altitudes, should serve as a wake-up call to the nation. It has definitely captured the attention of Alan Greenspan, chairman of the Federal Reserve, who fretted aloud to Congress last week over low oil supplies and the "substantial negative consequences" of high oil prices -- a pretty clear signal that the Fed will strongly consider another increase in interest rates to forestall inflation. /// OPT ///TEXT: In Connecticut, The Waterbury Republican- American is angered by the price rise, and its cause. VOICE: Who's the superpower around here, anyway? Why is the biggest dog in the yard letting all the toy poodles and Pomeranians push him around? It seems incomprehensible that our leaders can't put the arm on [Editors: pressure] OPEC [Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries] and insist upon a comfort level for all sides. /// END OPT ///TEXT: In today's [Minneapolis, Minnesota] Star Tribune there is praise for a just concluded peace forum sponsored by five Lutheran colleges of Norwegian heritage in that state, where the concept of peace is studied to avert further violence. VOICE: Northern Ireland's embattled Unionist leader, David Trimble, ... was the star guest. But the flock that gathered at St. Olaf College included many other lesser-known peacemakers ... who believe theater can change the world -- educators who believe English can be taught "so ... people stop killing each other"; Catholic and Protestant women who believe peace can grow in Northern Ireland's gardens and clinics. ... It's lovely to think ... that ordinary souls can make peace as readily as [Editors: understood, not stated "Nobel"] prize winners. TEXT: With that, we conclude this sampling of comment
from the editorial pages of Wednesday's U-S press.
[10] U-S SPY NETWORK (L) BY KYLE KING (STATE DEPARTMENT)DATE=2/23/2000TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-259495 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: The United States is denying allegations by a British journalist that it has been using a world wide electronic spy system for industrial espionage in Europe. From the State Department, V-O-A's Kyle King reports. TEXT: The allegations of U-S industrial espionage have provoked calls for the European Union to set up a committee of inquiry to look into the issue. The demand emerged (Wednesday) as a European Union parliamentary committee studied a report by British Journalist Duncan Campbell. Mr. Campbell's report claims the United States, Britain and other key allies have, since the cold war, maintained a sophisticated electronic spy network called "Echelon." His report says the network of spy satellites and electronic eavesdropping equipment can monitor phone conversations, faxes, and electronic mail. The report calls the surveillance network a threat to civil liberties and alleges it has been used to collect economically sensitive information that provides a commercial advantage to U-S companies. State Department spokesman James Rubin refused to comment on the existence of the system, but he denied U-S intelligence agencies are engaged in industrial espionage. /// RUBIN ACT ///U-S intelligence agencies are not tasked to engage in industrial espionage, or obtain trade secrets for the benefit of any U-S company or companies. /// end act ///NNNN Source: Voice of America Voice of America: Selected Articles Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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