Yugoslav Daily Survey 96-09-16

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From: Yugoslavia <http://www.yugoslavia.com>

CONTENTS

[01] SERBIAN PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVES U.S. ENVOY HOLBROOKE

[02] SERBIAN PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVES KORNBLUM

[03] KORNBLUM ASSESSES ELECTIONS IN BOSNIA AS POSITIVE

[04] LILIC EXPECTS BOSNIA ELECTIONS TO CONFIRM VALUES OF DAYTON ACCORDS

[05] CREATION OF NEW BALKAN STATES HAS ENDED

[06] BELGRADE EXPECTS FORMAL LIFTING OF SANCTIONS

[07] TALKS ON PROMOTION OF CULTURAL COOPERATION BETWEEN FRY AND PR CHINA

[08] YUGOSLAV PARLIAMENTARIANS ARRIVE IN PEKING TO ATTEND IPU CONFERENCE

[09] YUGOSLAV FOREIGN MINISTER HOLDS TALKS AT RUSSIAN PARLIAMENT

[10] YUGOSLAV FOREIGN MINISTER ENDS TWO-DAY VISIT TO RUSSIA

[11] PLAVSIC SAYS SERB SIDE WILL RESPECT BOSNIA'S COMMON BODIES

[12] CLINTON WELCOMES BOSNIAN ELECTIONS

[13] HOLBROOKE: BOSNIAN ELECTIONS WERE INCIDENT-FREE

[14] HOLBROOKE SAYS IFOR SHOULD STAY IN BOSNIA NEXT YEAR

[15] FROWICK: NO IRREGULARITIES AT BOSNIA ELECTIONS

[16] KINKEL: BOSNIA POLLS COULD MARK BEGINNING OF POLITICAL NORMALISATION

[17] SOLANA SAYS BOSNIA ELECTIONS WILL HELP STABILITY

[18] BILDT EXPRESSES SATISFACTION WITH BOSNIAN ELECTIONS

[19] JOULWAN PLEASED WITH IFOR'S ROLE IN BOSNIAN ELECTIONS

[20] COUNTING OF VOTES STARTS IN BOSNIA

[21] SERB FROM EAST SLAVONIA AND CROATIA DISCUSS AGRICULTURE AND ECONOMY

[22] TALKS ON SCHOOL PROGRAM IN EASTERN SLAVONIJA BEGIN

[23] HAGUE TRIBUNAL ISSUES WARRANT FOR ARREST OF A CROAT FROM BOSNIA

[01] SERBIAN PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVES U.S. ENVOY HOLBROOKE

The holding of free elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina is the best confirmation of the success of Peace Accords reached in Dayton, Ohio, in November 1995, it was stated in the talks.

Bodies elected in this way on the level of two Entities, the Bosnian Serb Republika Srpska and the Moslem-Croat Federation, as well as on the Federal level, are fully legitimate. Moreover, conditions will be created for all steps and decisions in the future to be taken by these legitimate bodies alone, it was stated in the talks.

Milosevic said that all legitimately elected bodies at the political scene were expected to focus efforts on a speedy economic recovery of the entire war-devastated Region and to establish successful cooperation. There are many reasons to be optimistic regarding the future development of the Region, he said.

Expectation was voiced that bodies elected by citizens would be set up once the election returns had been released, which, it was said, would contribute to a speedier normalisation of overall relations in these lands and to the strengthening of peace and stability in the Region.

The talks were attended also by Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic, U.S. Charge d'Affaires Richard Miles and other officials.

[02] SERBIAN PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVES KORNBLUM

Satisfaction was voiced in the talks with the fact that Saturday's elections in Bosnia had ended successfully, confirming in the best possible way the success of Peace Accords struck in Dayton, Ohio, in November 1995. The elections mark a new stage in the speedy normalisation of the situation in Bosnia and the building of confidence among its peoples, as well as in stabilising peace and creating conditions for the protection of citizens' freedoms and equality, it was stated in the talks.

Readiness was expressed to further promote bilateral relations between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the United States which were improving daily, it was stated.

The talks were attended also by Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic, U.S. Charge d'Affaires in Belgrade Richard Miles and other officials.

[03] KORNBLUM ASSESSES ELECTIONS IN BOSNIA AS POSITIVE

Kornblum told reporters he held regular consultations with Milosevic on the situation in Bosnia and other events in the Region, adding that this time talks focused on activities following the elections. These were economic cooperation, building of joint institutions, arms control and easing of tensions, he said. Cooperation was important in joint institutions and in building joint economic structures in Bosnia, said Kornblum, laying stress to the need for all elected representatives of all three sides in Bosnia to cooperate in joint institutions.

Kornblum said the lifting of the sanctions against Yugoslavia after the elections, as envisaged by U.N. Resolution 1022, was also discussed.

Ways of using the Peace Process in Bosnia to build a more comprehensive peace in the Region was another topic in the talks, said Kornblum.

[04] LILIC EXPECTS BOSNIA ELECTIONS TO CONFIRM VALUES OF DAYTON ACCORDS

Speaking for the British WTN TV Channel, Lilic said the day of the elections, September 14, was an important date for the entire progressive and democratic world.

The Dayton Agreement, to whose signing and implementation Yugoslavia has largely contributed, has created realistic conditions for war to be replaced by peace in Bosnia, for devastation to be replaced by reconstruction and for all ultranationalists and ultranationalism that are a sole cause of all suffering in and outside these lands to be replaced by people who will be able to communicate with the world and who will act in the interest of the peoples in the Region, he said.

The elections in Bosnia should primarily pave the way for an overall democratisation in the former Yugoslavia both in the sphere of economic relations and regional cooperation as well as in the sphere of human rights and mutual respect, he said.

Lilic said Yugoslavia was firmly committed to this course, saying that the course was in the country's interest and was its goal. Moreover, it is a confirmation of the correctness and farsightedness of the U.S. and President Bill Clinton's policy.

The elections are expected to confirm all values of the Dayton Agreement and are a condition for its full implementation, he said. Any other course of action would have unforeseeable consequences that would not be felt in this Region only, he said.

[05] CREATION OF NEW BALKAN STATES HAS ENDED

Speaking about the future of the Yugoslav Federation and relations between its Republics of Montenegro and Serbia, Bulatovic said that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had note merged through the will of certain political groups and individuals, but as a result of the democratically expressed will of two Nations. Bulatovic ruled out the possibility that citizens may support political forces which act against Yugoslavia. He said that Yugoslavia had its political perspective and that Montenegro would invest efforts aimed at ensuring that Yugoslavia is a stable and democratic union of equal peoples.

Describing the bosnia elections as crucial for the stabilization of the political situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina and elsewhere, Bulatovic said that the old, well-known national leaders might win the elections again. 'However, we are not afraid of this,' Bulatovic said and added that the old leaders, should they be elected, would not be able to behave like they had, because the external and internal conditions in which they would have to act had changed.

Speaking about the Adriatic Promontory of Prevlaka, which is on the border between Yugoslavia and Croatia, Bulatovic said that the issue had not been resolved yet, but that the two countries had normalized their relations on the basis of mutual compromise. Croatia agreed to have a provision saying that Prevlaka was a question outstanding included into the Agreement on the Normalization of the Yugoslav-Croatian relations, Bulatovic said and added that Croatia had also agreed that U.N. military observers remain on Prevlaka until the issue was resolved.

[06] BELGRADE EXPECTS FORMAL LIFTING OF SANCTIONS

In an interview with Radio Yugoslavia, he said that Yugoslavia had made an essential contribution to the preparation of Bosnia elections, which are a crucial part in the implementation of the Dayton Accords.

Bulajic said there were no more reasons for delaying Yugoslavia's membership in the OSCE and the United Nations, given Yugoslavia's growingly successful cooperation with these Organizations, confirmed by talks held by Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic and talks by Montenegrin President Momir Bulatovic with U.S. and U.N. officials.

He said that the shortly expected integration of Yugoslavia into International Financial Institutions, primarily the IMF, the World Bank, the Paris and London Clubs, would allow Yugoslavia to begin 1997 with an open market and adjust its regulations to the European Union and regain its foreign investors and capital.

[07] TALKS ON PROMOTION OF CULTURAL COOPERATION BETWEEN FRY AND PR CHINA

The Delegation held separate talks with the Federal Minister for Development, Science and the Environment Janko Radulovic and with the Deputy Yugoslav Minister for Foreign Affairs Radoslav Bulajic.

The Delegation talked about the promotion of traditionally good Yugoslav-Chinese cultural cooperation with the Serbian Minister of Culture Nada Popovic Perisic and the officials of a number of important cultural institutions in Serbia.

[08] YUGOSLAV PARLIAMENTARIANS ARRIVE IN PEKING TO ATTEND IPU CONFERENCE

The Yugoslav Delegation is to meet with parliamentarians from a large number of countries, including China that hosts the Conference, and is to inform them about the Yugoslav leaders' and Parliament's efforts in restoring peace to the former Yugoslavia.

The Conference will deal with the protection of human rights, especially those of women and children, exercising the right to food and combating famine in the world.

FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA - RUSSIA

[09] YUGOSLAV FOREIGN MINISTER HOLDS TALKS AT RUSSIAN PARLIAMENT

Possibilities for Inter-Parliamentary cooperation were also discussed and special attention was paid to the Russian Parliamentarians' role in the regulation of Yugoslavia's status in the OSCE and other European structures.

Alexei Andreyev, who represents the Southern Russian Krasnodar Region in the Federal Parliament, participated in the talks and invited Yugoslav construction firms and agrarian organizations to restore their business positions in the Region.

Andreyev appealed to Yugoslav businessmen to speed up the restoration of communications with the Region in order to renew economic cooperation as soon as possible.

[10] YUGOSLAV FOREIGN MINISTER ENDS TWO-DAY VISIT TO RUSSIA

Milutinovic and his associates ended a two-day official visit to the Russian Federation on Friday afternoon.

In an interview with Tanjug and the Serbian Radio and Television (RTS), Milutinovic said that the talks had dealt with all issues of importance to bilateral relations as well as the position of Yugoslavia, the present situation, which will be solved after the Bosnia elections. We had extensive and substantial talks on our economic ties and cooperation. At our demand, the Russian Government has already adopted certain decisions in that sphere, Milutinovic said.

The Milutinovic-Bolyshakov talks focused on bilateral cooperation, particularly issues regarding the development of economic relations between Belgrade and Moscow.

In the field of economy, progress has been made towards more concrete understanding and settlement of economic issues remaining from the previous period and new prospects for future economic cooperation have been created.

Milutinovic said that a Russian Expert Team would visit Belgrade next week for a finalization of all political Agreements reached during the two-day talks in Moscow.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

[11] PLAVSIC SAYS SERB SIDE WILL RESPECT BOSNIA'S COMMON BODIES

Plavsic was speaking after meeting with Richard Holbrooke, Head of a U.S. Team of Monitors in Bosnia's elections, in Banja Luka. The meeting was attended also by High Representative for Bosnia Carl Bildt.

Holbrooke said he attached great importance to the meeting, because he said things had to change after the elections. This means that people who have been at war until recently will have to take part in Bosnia's common bodies, including its Common Presidency, he said.

[12] CLINTON WELCOMES BOSNIAN ELECTIONS

Relying on reports from his Elections Monitoring Team, headed by Richard Holbrooke, Clinton said that the elections had been regular and peaceful on the whole, and that the turnout had been about 70%.

He said that the United States' involvement in Bosnia would not end with the elections, where the local population had voted for their future. The United States will continue to work in Bosnia, with its new leaders, for the attainment of all that was agreed in Dayton, he added.

Clinton said he believed that the newly elected institutions would help preserve Bosnia as a single State, instead of letting it disintegrate.

[13] HOLBROOKE: BOSNIAN ELECTIONS WERE INCIDENT-FREE

According to Agence France Presse, Holbrooke said that there was no reason to annul the elections in the Bosnian Serb Republika Srpska, as demanded by Sarajevo. International monitors have seen nothing that would justify annulling the elections, Holbrooke specified.

[14] HOLBROOKE SAYS IFOR SHOULD STAY IN BOSNIA NEXT YEAR

Agence France Press quoted Holbrooke as saying Bosnia needed the pressure of International Security Forces next year as well. You cannot pass from 60,000 soldiers to zero without the risk of rapid disintegration, Holbrooke said.

Holbrooke said the future forces need not have the same structure as IFOR, adding that would be decided after the elections.

[15] FROWICK: NO IRREGULARITIES AT BOSNIA ELECTIONS

According to initial information, about 20,000 Muslims and Croats crossed into the Bosnian Serb Republika Srpska and about 4,000 Bosnian Serbs crossed into the Muslim-Croat Federation to vote, Frowick said.

[16] KINKEL: BOSNIA POLLS COULD MARK BEGINNING OF POLITICAL NORMALISATION

Expressing satisfaction with the fact that no incidents had been registered during the elections, Kinkel said they had not been held in line with democratic standards, but said those who had believed that things would be perfect had expected impossible to happen.

A statement circulated among German and foreign reporters quoted Kinkel as saying that a democratic reconstruction of Bosnia should be completed by the end of the year through the holding of Municipal Polls that had been postponed.

[17] SOLANA SAYS BOSNIA ELECTIONS WILL HELP STABILITY

Solana said IFOR had done a very good job in Bosnia, although it was a challenge, and that it had visibly demonstrated that allies, jointly, had at their disposal an extraordinary political and military instrument if and when they decide to use it. He said that 'peace is fragile and we must avoid a regression.' This requires the presence of the International Community in bosnia and Herzegovina, he added.

[18] BILDT EXPRESSES SATISFACTION WITH BOSNIAN ELECTIONS

Asked what the next step would be in the implementation of the Dayton Accords, Bildt said that representative bodies would be formed within six weeks of the elections.

Responding to remarks by some foreign journalists that Brcko had been a multi-ethnic town before the war and should remain one, Bildt said that there would be no dictating to the people what to chose, because they had the right to chose where they want to live. However, this is not a problem of Brcko alone, but of all of Bosnia, he added.

Speaking at a News Conference in Sarajevo, Bildt repeated his assessment that the elections were dignified and without major incidents, which was a good sign that the Peace Process in Bosnia-Herzegovina was continuing. Bildt specified that he had assured himself of this while monitoring elections in two towns in the republika srpska, Banja Luka and Brcko, together with U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke.

[19] JOULWAN PLEASED WITH IFOR'S ROLE IN BOSNIAN ELECTIONS

Joulwan told reporters he was proud of the job done by IFOR troops. He added that a political decision on what was to follow should be taken within the next three months.

[20] COUNTING OF VOTES STARTS IN BOSNIA

Quoting the OSCE, the Agence France Presse news agency said that the ballots should be taken to 144 Counting Centres. The counting has still not started in all centres since some Polling Stations closed late, OSCE representative Jeff Fischer told AFP.

The first post-war elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina started at 7 a.m. (0500 gmt) on Saturday and most of the 4,650 Polling Stations closed at 7 p.m. (1700 gmt). The 2.9 million-strong electorate in the Bosnian Serb Republika Srpska and the Muslim-Croat Federation could choose between 24 political parties, five coalitions and three independent candidates. The voters had to elect the Members of the Presidency and Parliament of Bosnia- Herzegovina, the Muslim-Croat Federation Parliament and the Republika Srpska President, Vice President and Parliament.

About 1,000 International Observers monitored the elections in the presence of 50,000 Bosnia peacekeepers. Initial results are expected on Monday.

CROATIA - SERBS

[21] SERB FROM EAST SLAVONIA AND CROATIA DISCUSS AGRICULTURE AND ECONOMY

The Region's U.N. administrator Jacques Klein, who mediated the talks, said that it should be done according to the model of the Djeletovci Oil Fields incorporation into the Croatian Oil Company INA. Klein said that a structure was being considered where Serbs would have direct participation in the administration process.

The Region's Agriculture Secretary Sima Sijan said that the Djeletovci model was unsuitable and inefficient. He explained that INA currently was employing only 60 of the 700 former workers in the fields before INA had taken over. He added that production had practically ceased.

After a discussion that lasted for several hours, a Joint Task Force was set up to draft a Memorandum of Understanding in the field of agriculture.

[22] TALKS ON SCHOOL PROGRAM IN EASTERN SLAVONIJA BEGIN

In the talks, which were held through the mediation of U.N. administrator Jacques Klein, the Croatian side proposed their School Plan Draft and the Serbs will present theirs by October 15. It is certain that there will be many issues on which stands will differ, but our main objective is to create a good system of education for the future, Klein said after the talks.

Quality school plans for Serb schools should be made for all educational institutions. This will require a lot of time, Local Education Secretary Djuro Podunavc said.

Expressing satisfaction that she had the opportunity to get acquainted with the Serb demands, Croatian Education Minister Ljilja Vokic announced that the program for the Region would differ from the one for Croatia in certain subjects - Serbian language, history, geography, music, and religion.

THE HAGUE TRIBUNAL

[23] HAGUE TRIBUNAL ISSUES WARRANT FOR ARREST OF A CROAT FROM BOSNIA

At the same time, the Hague Tribunal has determined that Croatia had been directly involved in the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, that its regular units had participated in the war, and that it had helped and assisted the Croatian Defense Council (HVO), military formation of Croats in Bosnia.

Rajic was charged in August 1995, for ordering the massacre of Muslims in the village of Stupni near Vares as Commander of the Second Operational HVO Group, during Muslim-Croat clashes in Central Bosnia and Herzegovina. On that occasion at least 16 civilians were killed, the village was burned down, and the remaining population expelled.

Rajic, as has been determined in the investigation conducted by The Hague Tribunal at the beginning of 1996, not only commanded the criminal action, but was also an active participant in the elimination of the Muslim population.

According to a statement, issued Friday by the Criminal Tribunal in The Hague, there is concrete proof of the presence of units of the Army of the Republic of Croatia in Bosnia from the end of 1992 until March 1994, as well as proof that the units were sent there by the Croatian Government, to fight on the side of Bosnian Croats, against the legal Bosnian Government in Sarajevo.

The Criminal Court considers there is sufficient evidence proving that the Bosnian Croats had acted in the interest of the Republic of Croatia in the conflicts with the Army of the Muslim Government in Central and Southern Bosnia from fall 1992 till spring 1993.

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