MILS NEWS 17/05/96

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From: "Macedonian Information Liaison Service" <mils@mils.spic.org.mk>

CONTENTS

[01] COSTIS STEFANOPOULOS: 'THE NAME OF SKOPJE WITHOUT THE TERM MACEDONIA'

[02] MACEDONIA-NATO COOPERATION REGULATED ON JUNE 12

[03] MACEDONIAN-ROMANIAN TALKS ON COOPERATION IN DEFENSE

[04] MUHAMED HALILI - AMBASSADOR TO DENMARK

[05] FAO AND WORLD BANK MISSION IN MACEDONIA

[06] TALKS ON IMPROVING THE ECONOMIC COOPERATION BETWEEN MACEDONIA AND FRY

[07] MAD COWS IN ALBANIA?

[08] 171,548 VALID REQUESTS FOR SCHEDULING EARLY ELECTIONS

[09] LAW ON PUBLIC ROADS PASSED

[10] LAW ON DENATIONALIZATION - MYSTERIOUS

[11] DISCREDITING THE PRESIDENT AND THE COUNTRY

[12] BOOKS ON MANAGEMENT PROMOTED

MILS SUPPLEMENT

[13] 'Royter about Macedonia: Worried about The Kosovo Events'

MILS NEWS

Skopje, 17 May 1996

[01] COSTIS STEFANOPOULOS: 'THE NAME OF SKOPJE WITHOUT THE TERM MACEDONIA'

Meanwhile, Macedonian Radio reported the statement of the Greek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos that his meeting with the Macedonian Foreign Minister Ljubomir Frchkovski, although it had been postponed, is still included in the Greek projects, but not in the most urgent ones. He said the current level in the Macedonian-Greek relations in the trade cooperation, opening of the border, circulation of people, etc., was being carried out without any problems at all.

Pangalos stressed that, on the other hand, the part of the Accord which refers to the name dispute is being negotiated in the UN, and that Skopje should make efforts to find an acceptable solution, as Greece considers it had fulfilled its part of the agreement.

'Your position to keep the name you have and not showing readiness to accept other name does not allow any further discussion, which means that the other part of the Accord remains unfulfilled,' told Theodoros Pangalos to the reporter of Macedonian Radio in Brussels.

[02] MACEDONIA-NATO COOPERATION REGULATED ON JUNE 12

The same sources said that as soon as the mandate of the UNPREDEP forces in Macedonia ends, the presence of the US soldiers in the country would have to be regulated on a bilateral basis. The goal of Macedonia is to increase the American troops out of the UNPREDEP contingent, comments MTV.

[03] MACEDONIAN-ROMANIAN TALKS ON COOPERATION IN DEFENSE

[04] MUHAMED HALILI - AMBASSADOR TO DENMARK

[05] FAO AND WORLD BANK MISSION IN MACEDONIA

[06] TALKS ON IMPROVING THE ECONOMIC COOPERATION BETWEEN MACEDONIA AND FRY

The promotion flight of 'JAT' to Skopje brought the delegation of the Yugoslav Chamber of Commerce, led by the President Vlajko Stoiljkovic, who meet with the Macedonian entrepreneurs in the Macedonian Chamber of Commerce.

The subject discussed was the improvement of the bilateral economic cooperation and exchange, which reached the value of $2.5 billion in 1987, as President of the Macedonian Chamber of Commerce Dushan Petreski reminded the guests, but was reduced to a half during the sanctions period. According to Petreski, the exchange at the beginning of this year was only 20% of the previous.

Interceding for solving the problems in the goods exchange and for institutionalization of the economic relations, Macedonian and FR Yugoslav entrepreneurs stressed the need to develop the exchange freely, without customs duties or other limitations. It was said that if the governments wanted to have customs protection of the products, it should be at the lowest possible level or the regimes only for a small number of products should be kept.

Macedonian Television also informed that FR Yugoslav Prime Minister Radoe Kontic will visit Macedonia next week to sign several bilateral agreements.

[07] MAD COWS IN ALBANIA?

Today's issue of 'Vecer' informs that, due to this, the Macedonian Veterinary Administration has informed the border authorities to block the entering of Albanian cattle and dairy products in Macedonia, even for transit purpose. The danger can not be, however, fully excluded, as it is known that live cattle is being smuggled to Macedonia from Albania, which the Veterinary Administration also does not neglect.

[08] 171,548 VALID REQUESTS FOR SCHEDULING EARLY ELECTIONS

The documentation will be submitted to the Macedonian Parliament today, and the MPs will have to decide on holding a referendum for early elections till June 4 this year latest. The next session of the Parliament is scheduled for May 29.

[09] LAW ON PUBLIC ROADS PASSED

The Proposals to form Commissions that would examine the budget spending by the Ministries and the Government, and that would establish the responsibility on the import of tomatoes and cucumbers in 1994 and 1995, were withdrawn from the Agenda by the Liberals. Deputy Ace Kocevski (LP) explained this with the fact that all the amendments of SDSM were always adopted, while all the initiatives of the Liberals were blocked. SDSM deputy Ljupcho Popovski, characterizing the initiatives of the Liberals as 'party marketing moves', said the SDSM deputies would have voted for the initiatives if they were not withdrawn.

The initiative for interpellation of Internal Affairs Minister Tomislav Chokrevski, signed by 25 MPs of the Liberal Party, entered the Parliamentary procedure. The interpellation reads that 'keeping Chokrevski at his current position is a serious threat to the realisation and functioning of the democracy in Macedonia, as well as to the stability of the country.'

[10] LAW ON DENATIONALIZATION - MYSTERIOUS

Ms. Vikentievic asked the Government whether this Law was still a condition to obtain a $ 42 million credit from the World Bank. She pointed out three other things which showed the 'will' of the Government to resolve the denationalization process: sale of the property which would be a compensation for the citizens interested (such as the sale of 500 public flats); as for the Law on Privatization, it is still not known if there are and how many contracts there are between the Agency and the enterprises about reserving property for the previous owners; and that it is obvious that the usurping of the property which should be returned is being rushed up.

[11] DISCREDITING THE PRESIDENT AND THE COUNTRY

SDSM finds the attacks to Gligorov were a product of political forces which try to draw public attention by promoting different kinds of extremism, such as by serving in other countries' electoral campaigns, which conforms with the latest statements of certain persons in neighbouring countries.

[12] BOOKS ON MANAGEMENT PROMOTED

'Management Lexicon' contains 250 new terms and phrases of the management, and was also estimated a great help for the economy students and for those who already work in that field.

MILS SUPPLEMENT

[13] 'Royter about Macedonia: Worried about The Kosovo Events'

('Dnevnik', 17 May 1996)

The recent bloodshed in the Serbian Province of Kosovo, the newest crisis spot in the Balkans, alarmed the ethnic Albanians in neighbouring Macedonia and increased the fear from a wider regional conflict.

'In case clashes take place in Kosovo, we could not sit still and watch the development of the situation on TV. It would be a fight of all Albanians,' says Menduh Tachi from the Party for Democratic Prosperity of Albanians (PDPA). He claims that many people feel obliged to fight together with the Kosovo Albanians, although western diplomats in the Macedonian capital, Skopje, think that the help would probably consist of sending food and medicines.

Tachi says there are illegal Albanian groups that support the violent resistance to the Serbian authorities, but that his party does not contact with them. He says these groups are not an organized form of power.

However, Tachi and other politicians of the ethnic Albanians are worried about the fact that many young people will join those groups in case Macedonia and Serbia continue to reject the requests of the Albanian minority for a bigger autonomy or equality.

'Both here and in Kosovo, the stand of the leaders of Albanians is to be against the violence and for a peaceful dialogue. Unfortunately, it did not seem to give any results to date, and people have started to seek other ways,' says Arben Dzaferi, President of PDPA. He says the Albanians are frustrated with the small improvement they have achieved since the independence of Macedonia, i.e. since 1991.

'In case conflicts take place in Kosovo, Skopje and Belgrade will most probably try to close the mutual border to prevent the volunteers from going north. They will also try to prevent the Kosovo refugees from coming to Macedonia, as it might de-stabilize Macedonia,' says a high diplomat in Skopje.

The problems of the Albanians in Macedonia shadow the long- term stability of the country.

'Macedonian Government competes with the time to make the Albanians feel that they have the same rights as Macedonians do,' says the same diplomat.

The illegal university in Tetovo is the hottest issue, which was proved by the recent reactions to President Kiro Gligorov's claim that only the extremist separatists support this institution. 'This university is of life importance for us. We have the right to study in our mother tongue. The fact that the university is not recognized is a terrible discrimination', says the Director of the university Fadil Suleimani. 'We do not have a political agenda, we just want to educate our people,' says Suleimani, whose 'university' has 1,300 students and carries out the studying with the help it obtains from the Albanian community donations.

'Macedonian Government pushes us to make a state in a state by refusing to give us the linguistic and constitutional rights we had even at the time of the communism,' says Dzaferi.

'The problem is that both Macedonians and Albanians feel a greater loyalty towards their ethnic group than towards the state. That is a very dangerous thing,' adds PDPA leader.

(end)

mils news 17 May 1996

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