Yugoslav Daily Survey, 98-06-22

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Yugoslav Daily Survey

CONTENTS

[01] YUGOSLAV PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION TO LEAVE FOR STRASBOURG

[02] FRENCH WEEKLY BLASTS MEDIA MANIPULATION OF KOSOVO*METOHIJA ISSUE

[03] WEST HAS DOUBLE STANDARDS ON KOSMET

[04] IZVESTIYA: HATAB'S MUSLIM FANATICS ALREADY IN KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

[05] FRENCH AUTHOR CRITICISES LCI NEWS CHANNEL FOR ITS KOSOVO REPORTS

[06] DISARMAMENT REVIEW CONFERENCE ENDS IN VIENNA

[07] TERRORISTS ATTACK POLICE AND CIVILIANS

[08] ETHNIC ALBANIAN TERRORISTS ABDUCT FIVE PERSONS NEAR PEC AND KLINA

[09] MACEDONIA HAILS THE MOSCOW JOINT STATEMENT

[10] SOLANA: MOSCOW MEETING CREATES CONDITIONS FOR A PEACEFUL SOLUTION

[11] U.N. SECRETARY*GENERAL HAILS THE YELTSIN*MILOSEVIC MEETING IN MOSCOW

[12] KINKEL URGES ETHNIC ALBANIANS TO RESTRAIN THEIR MILITANT FORCES

[13] IVASOV: USE OF FORCE IN KOSOVO WOULD LEAD TO NEW COLD WAR

[14] YUGOSLAV DIPLOMAT GIVES TRUTH ABOUT KOSOVO*METOHIJA TO U.S. PUBLIC

[15] PREMIER BULATOVIC IS CONVINCED THAT THERE WILL BE NO MILITARY INTERVENTION

[16] FOREIGN MINISTER JOVANOVIC RECEIVES RUSSIAN ASSISTANT FOREIGN MINISTER

[17] TERRORISTS KILL ANOTHER SERB

[18] FOREIGN MINISTER JOVANOVIC: YUGOSLAV POSITIONS ARE NOW BETTER UNDERSTOOD

[19] YUGOSLAV AND LUXEMBOURG FOREIGN MINISTERS CONDEMN TERRORISM IN KOSMET

[01] YUGOSLAV PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION TO LEAVE FOR STRASBOURG

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

A Yugoslav Parliamentary Delegation will leave for Strasbourg, France, o n Monday to attend a session of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assem bly.

The Delegation, led by head of the Lower House Foreign Relations Commit tee Ljubisa Ristic, includes also Upper House MP Milan Bozic, Lower Hous e MP Slobodan Krapovic, the Committee's Secretary Dusan Maksic and Ambas sador in the Yugoslav Foreign Ministry Branko Brankovic, the Yugoslav Pa rliament said in a statement.

The Delegation will attend the session at the invitation by the Assembl y's President Leni Fischer, the statement said.

[02] FRENCH WEEKLY BLASTS MEDIA MANIPULATION OF KOSOVO*METOHIJA ISSUE

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

A French weekly in its latest issue raises its voice against the manipul ation of the issue of Kosovo*Metohija and gives the genesis of the proble m in that southern Province of the Yugoslav republic of Serbia.

Alain Griotteray, the author of the text in "Le Figaro Magazine" entitl ed "Kosovo Between the Cross and the Crescent," writes that the moment th e Kosovo*Metohija problem appeared, NATO increased its pressure on Belgr ade.

Griotteray, one*time French minister and member of Parliament, writes t hat the world public has been conditioned to see the Serbs as the bad guy s and the ethnic Albanians as the good guys.

He goes on to say that in this manipulation of the problem, stress is la id on "ethnic cleansing" allegedly practised by the Serbian army, whereas total silence reigns about murders committed by ethnic Albanian movement s terrorising the local villages.

In the name of historical truth, Griotteray writes that Kosovo*Metohija is the Serbs' Jerusalem and the cradle of Serbian civilisation.

He goes on to mention the Battle of Kosovo against Ottoman invasion in 1389, which put the local Christians under Ottoman subjugation for five centuries.

The moment Ottoman rule was established, Albanians from the south of th e Balkans felt themselves to belong to the victor race and were encourag ed to immigrate to Kosovo, while the Serbs were forced to leave the land of their ancestors in droves, he says.

Noting further high points in Kosovo*Meothija's history, he mentions the rule of the late Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito, period during which everything was done to weaken the Serbs.

He does not omit, either, the year 1981, when ethnic Albanians set fire to Serbian monasteries in the province, including the Pec Patriarchate, which he describes as the historic see of the Serbian Christian Orthodox Church.

Speaking about recent developments in Kosovo*Metohija, the author has n o doubts about who is to blame for the crisis, or about the character of the ethnic Albanian terrorist organisation calling itself the "Kosovo Lib eration Army".

In late 1997, the Iran*trained "KLA" resorted to terrorist operations an d carried out some one hundred killings, says Griotteray.

Analyzing global divisions about Kosovo*Metohija, he notes that Orthodo x Christian Greece and Russia are on the side of Belgrade, while Turkey, which is playing on the card of its influence with the Muslim community i n the Balkans, supports ethnic Albanians.

The author holds the United States and Europe, France included, respons ible for putting the blame for the Kosovo*Metohija situation on the Serbs.

[03] WEST HAS DOUBLE STANDARDS ON KOSMET

Tanjug, 1998-06-19

NATO military exercises near the province of Kosovo and Metohija (Kosmet, 1998) "are not a responsible action, because while the west is demandin g that Yugoslavia not use force in Kosmet, it is itself using force," it was heard on Friday in a 30*minute broadcast by central Chinese televisio n on developments in this southern Serbian province.

The fact that Yugoslavia is using force to curb terrorism in Kosmet is " absolutely its internal affair," said Zhu Gungiao, an expert on European issues of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"I understand the plan of western powers militarily to intervene as the wish of an outsider to settle, without invitation, the internal problems of others, which is contrary to logic," said Zhu in the show which was br oadcast via satellite.

Zhu said he believed such actions by the West showed clearly that the ma nner of resolving world conflicts had still not been defined since the en d of the cold war, that the "policy of force" was still in effect.

The key of the problem is that Western forces must primarily respect the state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Yugoslavia, he said. The interested sides in Yugoslavia should then discuss resolving the problems , said Zhu.

"There can be no negotiations if ethnic Albanians are demanding secessio n, and the result will be an escalation of the conflict," Zhu warned. Wit h respect for the sovereignty and integrity of Yugoslavia, the two sides can discuss issues such as an expansion of autonomy or some others, he sa id.

[04] IZVESTIYA: HATAB'S MUSLIM FANATICS ALREADY IN KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

Tanjug, 1998-06-19

Already in Kosovo and Metohija have arrived Muslim fanatics of the notor ious commander Hatab, of Jordanian descent, whose Islamic fundamentalists are known for their unseen brutality towards Russian soldiers in Chechny a, "Izvestiya" said on Friday, referring to data of the Russian Defense M inistry intelligence.

Hatab is still organizing provocations in Russia, especially in regions bordering with Chechnya.

Reacting to information that Hatab's people were now in Kosovo, Chechen Deputy Premier Movladi Udugov said there was no available data about the departure of any citizen of Ichekerya to the Balkans, admitting however t hat the government was unable to control the movement of every citizen.

The Chechen Deputy Premier also advised journalists to inform themselves about the statement of the Chechen leadership about developments in Koso vo. The document is interesting among other things because the Chechen di plomacy does not once use the word "Albanians", and calls the Albanian re sidents of Kosovo and Metohija "Muslims".

"Izvestiya" recalled that the "Chechen trail" in Kosovo was mentioned al so by the U.S. Foreign Secretary envoy Robert Gelbard who at a seminar in Washington said that according to their information Muslim fundamentalis t groups, including Iranian and Chechen, were offering their aid to Alban ians in Kosovo.

Bearing in mind NATO threats of military intervention in Kosovo, "Izvest iya" said, it turns out that the armies of Western democracies could find themselves in the same camp with Iranian, Arab and Chechen religious fan atics.

Another Russian journal, "Rosiskaya Gazeta", writes about the same topi c under the headlines 'Chechnya in the center of Europe'.

"Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, with the help of Moscow, is try ing to save the old continent from a limited war with unforeseeable conse quences," the journal said.

Critisizing press reports that the agreement reached in Moscow by the Pr esident of Russia and Yugoslavia was insufficient, the journal noted that the Moscow summit meeting and the role of Boris Yeltsin and Slobodan Mil osevic were most adequately assessed by politicians.

Recalling that the results of the Moscow talks were welcomed by Bill Cl inton, Klaus Kinkel and Havier Solana, the official journal of the Russia n Government poses the question "why the sudden unanimity."

It seems, the Russian journal said, that is because "no*one needs the Ru ssian phantom in the center of Europe."

The journal cites the recent "melancholic" thinking of a BBC commentato r that while the Western media covered with enthusiasm the "fight for th e independence of Chechnya", a few could imagine that the Chechens, once their acquired independence, will start to earn for their livelihood by b anditry and robbery, kidnapping hostages, including Western citizens, and that official Chechnya would persistently and openly violate all the acc ords with Moscow.

"The same thing is happening now with Kosovo Albanians," "Rusiskaya Gaze ta" said, warning that the after the Moscow agreement the ethnic Albania n representative said that they would not resume negotiations with Belgr ade, "until the complete withdrawal of Serbian security forces from Kosov o."

Citing the assessment of the Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov that the stand of President Milosevic on the issue was fully justified an d that the security forces would withdraw in the measure as terrorism dim inishes, the journal said that the Yugoslav President had to be supported in that by the West.

Of course that in Albania they are disappointed by the reactions of the international community and that they call upon NATO to bomb Serbian secu rity forces in Kosovo, when we have in mind that Muslim mercenaries from Bosnia and from other Muslim countries who expect NATO air support are fighting on the Albanian side in that Serbian province, the commentary sa id.

"Because when fighting Serbs in Bosnia they were saved by the air strike s, now they want to repeat the Bosnian experience in Kosovo, in order to form "together with Bosnia a powerful Muslim federation in the Balkans," the Russian journal said.

[05] FRENCH AUTHOR CRITICISES LCI NEWS CHANNEL FOR ITS KOSOVO REPORTS

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

Patrick Besson, a renowned French author, has strongly criticised the Fr ench Television One LCI News Channel for its biased reporting on developm ents in Serbia's southern Province of Kosovo and Metohija.

Speaking in an interview published on Saturday by the Paris weekly "Le F igaro Magazine", Besson said LCI reports were only about ethnic Albanian s.

He said the channel made no reference to Serbs who are killed by the et hnic Albanian terrorist organisation that calls itself "Kosovo Liberation Army", saying it had been the same during civil war in Bosnia*Herzegovin a when no mention had been made to Serb civilians and Serb victims.

Besson said LCI had interviewed no Serb intellectual in Kosovo and Metoh ija or shown Serbian Orthodox monasteries and monks that are cut off by f ighting.

He said TV viewers could nothing but criticise LCI journalists for faili ng to act as professionals and for their biased reports on such a serious conflict.

The French are asked to condemn without knowing what it is all about, h e said adding that, perhaps, the time had come for the French to find out what it was all about before they condemned.

[06] DISARMAMENT REVIEW CONFERENCE ENDS IN VIENNA

Tanjug, 1998-06-19

The First Review Conference on Disarmament Results ended on Friday at th e Vienna headquarters of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE, 1998) after the participants assessed the implementation s o far of the Agreement on Subregional Arms Control in former Yugoslavia, on the grounds of Art. 4 of the Dayton Accords.

Vienna talks on the agreement lasted several months, and then represent atives of Yugoslavia, Republika Srpska, the Muslim*Croat Federation, Bos nia*Herzegovina, and Croatia signed a document in Florence in June 1996.

The First Review Conference ended after five days of work with the adopt ion of a three*part closing document. The first part is a statement on im plementation so far, the second pertains to guidelines for future work, a nd the third are the conference decisions.

All sides have met in full their obligations undertaken by signing the F lorence Agreement. They expressed readiness to continue implementing the articles of this document, the OSCE chairman's personal envoy for the imp lementation of the Agreement on Subregional Arms Control in former Yugosl avia, Gen. Carlo Jean, told a press conference after the closing of the c onference in Vienna.

Gen. Jean said the successful implementation of the agreement, as the bi ggest success of the OSCE, would be included among the historical documen ts of this international institution.

He pointed out that about 6,600 pieces of heavy weaponry had been destro yed in former Yugoslavia so far, and that 200 inspections had been carrie d out without any incidents.

Gen. Jean also said the successful realization of the Agreement on Subre gional Arms Control in former Yugoslavia had set all the necessary precon ditions for the onset of negotiations on Art. 5 of the Dayton Accords on measures for stabilization in the wider region.

Ambassador Dragomir Djokic, who headed the Yugoslav delegation to the Vi enna conference, expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the meeting, saying its results had met expectations.

It was agreed that the agreement on Art. 4 of the Dayton Accords had bee n implemented successfully and correctly. The document was affirmed as a factor of stability, confidence and cooperation in the region, just as it should have been, Djokic told Yugoslav reporters.

Djokic said there had also been controversial issues which would be sett led later in keeping with developments and the situation concerning confi dence in the region. He said he was satisfied outstanding issues had not jeopardized the fulfilment of the agreement articles and its basic functi on.

"At the next meeting of the Consultative Commission, we shall discuss t hese outstanding issues," Ambassador Djokic said, explaining one of these was a different understanding of which weapons and systems should be rec orded. He said it had been impossible to specify all details in the agree ment, but only to determine the frameworks.

"I believe good decisions have been adopted, which presents a basis for the further implementation of the agreement and the successful realizatio n of all issues identified as points which require further work," head of the Republika Srpska delegation Maj.*Gen. Dusan Kukobat told Yugoslav re porters.

"The agreement is of lasting value, although preparations are already un der way for the start of negotiations on the agreement on regional arms c ontrol," Maj.*Gen. Kukobat said.

"I believe the number of countries which will participate in the negotia tions on Art. 5 of the Dayton Accords has already been determined. They a re all the states of the former Yugoslavia, the neighbours of the former federation, and several countries, such as Spain, the Netherlands, Turkey , and member*states of the Contact Group," he said, adding these negotiat ions might begin in late September this year.

It was also agreed at the Vienna OSCE headquarters that the next Review Conference on the agreement on subregional arms control should be held in June 2000, and that expert teams would continue to meet regularly to con sider the implementation of the reached agreements.

[07] TERRORISTS ATTACK POLICE AND CIVILIANS

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

Armed ethnic Albanian terrorists early on Sunday fired at a police unit and civilian houses in the village of Kijevo, on the Pec*Pristina road, p olice sources say. After trading fire with police for several hours, the terrorists retreated. There are no reports of casualties.

The Media Center in Pristina reported the attack on Kijevo, and said th at terrorists blocked the Pec*Kijevo road. Kijevo is inhabited by around 60 Serbian families, mainly women and children.

Ethnic Albanian terrorists attacked with automatic rifles and hand grena des the Serbian villages of Bica, Grabac, Jelovac, Dusevic and hamlets ar ound the town of Klina, on Saturday night.

The shooting, which lasted several hours, was successfully fended off. There were no casualties, municipal authorities in Klina said.

As fighting has been perpetual in the area over the past few days, women and children have been evacuated.

A police station in the village of Rudnik near Srbica was attacked with automatic guns on Saturday, the Media Center reports. Police returned fir e, and the assailants withdrew after two hours of shooting.

[08] ETHNIC ALBANIAN TERRORISTS ABDUCT FIVE PERSONS NEAR PEC AND KLINA

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

Ethnic Albanian terrorists kidnapped five persons in villages near Pec a nd Klina, Serbia's southern province of Kosovo and Metohija, on Saturday, Pec police sources told Tanjug.

The terrorists abducted Vucic Vukovic (35, 1998), in the village of Tubo vik near Pec, and Ralgip Gutic and Novica Vujisic (17, 1998), in the vill age of Zlopek.

The persons in question had returned home, which they had recently fled before an attack by ethnic Albanian terrorists, to pick up some personal belongings and no one has heard from them since.

Dragoljub Vostic (69, 1998), and Radomir Vostic (67, 1998), from the vil lage of Jelova near Klina were also reported to be missing. They were la st seen in the field near their house.

[09] MACEDONIA HAILS THE MOSCOW JOINT STATEMENT

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

Macedonian President Kiro Gligorov has hailed the spirit of the joint st atement on Kosovo and Metohija made last Tuesday by presidents of Yugosla via and Russia.

Gligorov praised in particular the commitment to a political solution to the crisis in the province, continuation of negotiations and protection of civilians, Serbian Radio and Television said on Saturday evening.

In a meeting with Russian Ambassador in Skopje Pyotr Dobroseldov, Gligo rov reiterated Macedonia's interest for a peaceful solution to the crisis , by dialogue and political means.

Gligorov said that the Macedonian public welcomed Russia's constructive contribution toward a political solution to the problem, and thereby tow ards peace and stability in the region.

[10] SOLANA: MOSCOW MEETING CREATES CONDITIONS FOR A PEACEFUL SOLUTION

Tanjug, 1998-06-19

The results of Moscow's meeting between Presidents Boris Yeltsin of Russ ia and Slobodan Milosevic of Yugoslavia have created prerequisites for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Kosovo and Metohija, Russia's Itar *TASS news agency quoted NATO Secretary*General Javier Solana as saying i n Tallinn on Friday.

Briefing the press about the results of his one*day visit to Estonia, So lana said that it would take some time for the agreements reached in Mosc ow to start working. He added that NATO would continue the role of an obs erver of the situation in the Balkans.

[11] U.N. SECRETARY*GENERAL HAILS THE YELTSIN*MILOSEVIC MEETING IN MOSCOW

Tanjug, 1998-06-19

U.N. Secretary*General Kofi Annan on Friday welcomed the recent meeting in Moscow between Presidents Boris Yeltsin of Russia and Slobodan Milosev ic of Yugoslavia as a major effort to resolve the tense situation in the Yugoslav republic of Serbia's Kosovo and Metohija province by diplomatic means.

According to a written statement read out by his Spokesman at a regular U.N. press briefing, Annan voiced hope that these efforts would yield fr uit and also that a threat of using force would be eliminated.

Annan urged both sides to restore talks on the settlement of the Kosovo and Metohija problems as soon as possible.

[12] KINKEL URGES ETHNIC ALBANIANS TO RESTRAIN THEIR MILITANT FORCES

Tanjug, 1998-06-20

German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel on Saturday urged ethnic Albanians in Serbia's southern province of Kosovo and Metohija to restrain their mi litant forces.

In a message to ethnic Albanian leader Ibrahim Rugova, Kinkel called fo r an end to ethnic Albanian attacks and escalation of violence.

Kinkel urged Rugova to accept the position of Germany and other members of the six*nation Contact Group which should lead to a solution based on the respect for the ethnic Albanians' legitimate interests without jeopar dising Yugoslavia's territorial integrity.

He said only those ready to open dialogue under such terms could count on Germany's support.

Kinkel also called on Rugova to exert influence on those responsible for violence and to point out to them the pointlessness of such activity. He was evidently referring to ethnic Albanian terrorists whose continuous a ttacks lead to the deterioration of the situation in the province.

He stressed that all parties must make an effort to help end violence an d find a peaceful solution through talks, which is Bonn's unequivocal ans wer to the latest war*mongering statement by the ethnic Albanian terroris t organisation Kosovo Liberation Army and its call for a general uprising.

[13] IVASOV: USE OF FORCE IN KOSOVO WOULD LEAD TO NEW COLD WAR

Tanjug, 1998-06-19

If NATO decides to use force in Kosovo and Metohija without the approval of the U.N. Security Council, that would lead to a new cold war in Europ e, the Russian Defense Ministry's International Military Cooperation Main Board Chief Leonid Ivasov said on Friday.

"Russia will proceed from that" and in the case of such a development "M oscow will not stand aside," General Ivasov said.

"Europe does not want to go back where it was several years ago, but som eone is pushing it there, and it is not Russia, the General said.

Assessing that "all the political means have not been exhausted," Ivasov said: "there are a thousand ways for a peaceful resolution of the confli ct, and only the thousand and first would be a military one, which must n ot be allowed."

Asked if Russia's main military representative in NATO, General Viktor Zavarzin, would return to Brussels from where he was recalled because of NATO pact military exercises near Kosovo, Ivasov said: "It is unlikely t hat he will return there in the near future."

Ivasov also said that "there are many issues around which stands have to be taken and corrected with respect to Russia's approach to the NATO pac t, following the latest developments."

[14] YUGOSLAV DIPLOMAT GIVES TRUTH ABOUT KOSOVO*METOHIJA TO U.S. PUBLIC

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

Yugoslavia's diplomat in the United States gave the true picture of deve lopments in the Yugoslav Republic of Serbia's Kosovo*Metohija Province to the U.S. public on television on Sunday.

Chief of Yugoslav diplomatic mission to the United States Nebojsa Vujov ic was speaking to the millions*strong U.S. television audience on Sunday 's prime*time Washington Journal programme on the capital's political ne ws channel.

The programme was conceived as a political duel between Vujovic and Alb anian Ambassador in Washington Petrit Bushati.

Vujovic seized the chance to paint a compelling and authoritative pictu re of the true situation in Kosovo*Metohija which, because of the biased reporting of the local press, is hard to get to the man in the street. H e quoted arguments to rebut all false accusations by the Albanian Ambassa dor, who used the well*known propaganda jargon to try to picture the prob lem as alleged repression of the Albanian minority in the Serbian Provinc e.

Vujovic stressed that at the core of the Kosovo*Metohija problem was an ethnic Albanian militant separatist movement and strong terrorist activi ty, supported from abroad, mostly from Albania.

He warned that the separatists were terrorising civilians and trying to provoke a foreign intervention, and that NATO and the international commu nity should not encourage the separatists.

This prompted an avalanche of questions from the audience who, obviousl y intrigued by his statements, asked why the world was in fact interferin g in Kosovo*Metohija when it was part of Serbia, as a Pennsylvania profe ssor put it.

A number of questions were used by the Albanian Ambassador to level acc usations at the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia for alleged "ethnic cleans ing" in Kosovo*Metohija.

Vujovic explained that all "ethnic cleansing" practised in the Province in the past thirty*five years had been directed against the Serbs, not a gainst the ethnic Albanians.

In substantiation, he quoted demographic facts and explained the politi cal reasons behind the expulsions of Serbs from Kosovo*Metohija.

The Albanian Ambassador said the world must take urgent action in order to prevent the Kosovo*Metohija conflict from spilling over, to which the Yugoslav diplomat quoted facts to show that the problem was at present s o grave precisely because of outside interference.

Vujovic gave facts about the smuggling of arms and terrorists from Alban ia into Kosovo*Metohija and the impermissible war*mongering policy pursue d by Tirana.

A spectator asked the Albanian Ambassador why Albania had never recogni sed that Kosovo*Metohija was part of Serbia and Yugoslavia.

Obviously avoiding to give a straight answer, Bushati replied it was not up to him to say where a particular territory belonged.

This prompted a series of questions as to why an Ambassador of Albania, which was another country and a neighbour of Yugoslavia, was taking part in a programme about the Yugoslav Republic of Serbia's Province of Kosov o*Metohija in the first place.

Despite this mood in the audience, Bushati had the audacity to end his a ppearance in the programme by appealing to the world to intervene urgentl y in Kosovo*Metohija and apply the strictest sanctions and punitive measu res against Serbia and Yugoslavia.

Judging from the reaction and questions from the audience, the politic al duel has brought the truth about Kosovo*Metohija closer to the U.S. pu blic.

At the end, the Yugoslav diplomat made clear the Government position th at Kosovo*Metohija is Serbia's internal affair and its inseparable part, and that tension and problems can be cleared up only by political means a nd without outside interference.

[15] PREMIER BULATOVIC IS CONVINCED THAT THERE WILL BE NO MILITARY INTERVENTION

Tanjug, 1998-06-19

Yugoslav Prime Minister Momir Bulatovic said in Podgorica on Friday that he was certain there would be no foreign military intervention in Kosovo or in other parts of Serbia, but pointed out the constitutional obligati on of the armed forces and every citizen of the Federal Republic of Yugos lavia to defend the country from possible outside aggression.

"In any case, a military intervention cannot settle, but only complicate problems in Kosovo. We are doing everything in our power to prevent a fo reign military intervention," said Bulatovic.

"We especially welcome the success of the talks held by Presidents Slobo dan Milosevic of Yugoslavia and Boris Yeltsin of Russia," he said. "We ar e happy that such a danger has been removed with a joint statement and ad opted programme of measures, which were welcomed by all centres of world power," Bulatovic told a press conference.

"Should an intervention nevertheless take place, in spite of our power a nd will, every citizen of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is obliged u nder the constitution to defend himself," said Bulatovic.

[16] FOREIGN MINISTER JOVANOVIC RECEIVES RUSSIAN ASSISTANT FOREIGN MINISTER

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

Yugoslav Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs received on Sunday Russian Assistant Foreign Minister Nikolai Afanasyevski, who was a working visit to Yugoslavia.

The talks held on that occasion underscored the great importance of the Joint Statement of President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Slobo dan Milosevic and President of the Russian Federation Boris Yeltsin on a political resolution of the situation in Kosovo and Metohija through dire ct and unconditional dialogue. The Statement reaffirmed the need for an i mmediate resumption of the political dialogue as the only viable way of f inding solutions to the current problems in Kosovo and Metohija.

Positive assessment was made of the organized efforts of the Government of the Republic of Serbia aimed at developing and implementing specific measures to remove the consequences of terrorist actions, in particular t o allow the return home of people who have been temporarily displaced.

Cooperation between the Government authorities and aid organizations in Serbia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, on the one hand, and inte rnational aid agencies, especially the UNHCR and the ICRC, on the other, was also positively assessed.

It was emphasized that the Joint Statement of the two Presidents also p rovided strong impetus to the further comprehensive development of bilate ral relations and cooperation in all areas of mutual interest. It was ass essed that the talks of the two Presidents would contribute in particular to the promotion of mutual political dialogue, further exchange of visit s at all levels and to an even more successful development of economic an d all other forms of cooperation.

[17] TERRORISTS KILL ANOTHER SERB

Tanjug, 1998-06-21

A Serb, who was wounded in an attack launched by ethnic Albanian separat ists on a village near Klina, Kosovo and Metohija, at around 1 p.m. local time on Sunday, died on the way to hospital, the Pristina*based Media Ce ntre said.

Residents of the village of Dusevic, situated east of Klina managed to d efend themselves from the separatists without anybody's help but Oliver Z ajic (18, 1998), was seriously wounded.

This is the third attack on the village by armed ethnic Albanians over t he past 24 hours.

[18] FOREIGN MINISTER JOVANOVIC: YUGOSLAV POSITIONS ARE NOW BETTER UNDERSTOOD

Tanjug, 1998-06-20

Yugoslavia's Foreign Minister said late on Saturday that his recent visi ts to Belgium and Luxembourg had improved the understanding for Yugoslavi a's position on Kosovo and Metohija and wish for a democratic settlement of problems.

Speaking for Serbian state radio and television, Minister Zivadin Jovan ovic said that Tuesday's joint statement of the Yugoslav and Russian pres idents, Slobodan Milosevic and Boris Yeltsin, had been fully upheld in al l talks during the visits.

It was seen as an important and constructive step forward in stimulating a political settlement for the Kosovo and Metohija * province of the Yug oslav republic of Serbia * and dialogue which was at present interrupted , Jovanovic said.

Top government officials in Belgium and Luxembourg supported dialogue a s the way to a settlement, together with respect for the territorial int egrity of Serbia and Yugoslavia and the universal principles of human and minority rights, he added.

He went on to say that all his partners in talks had clearly condemned a ll forms of terrorism and separatism in Kosovo and Metohija. "These visi ts have rounded off five months of ministerial*level contacts with Europ ean Union states, which has considerably stepped up our relations with th e E.U. members," he stressed.

He again said that neighbourliness, Europe, cooperation and equality*ba sed relations with all countries which approached the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia on the same principle remained the main directions of the for eign policy strategy.

[19] YUGOSLAV AND LUXEMBOURG FOREIGN MINISTERS CONDEMN TERRORISM IN KOSMET

Tanjug, 1998-06-19

Foreign Ministers Zivadin Jovanovic of Yugoslavia and Jacques Poos of Lu xembourg agreed in Luxembourg on Friday that the issue of the Yugoslav re public of Serbia's Kosovo and Metohija province must be solved by peacefu l means alone.

Jovanovic and Poos stressed the importance of respect for the inviolabi lity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia's sovereignty and territorial integrity and also strongly condemned separatism and terrorism in Kosovo and Metohija.

The two ministers were speaking at a joint news conference on Friday aft ernoon after talks and lunch which Poos organized for his Yugoslav counte rpart.

Jovanovic underscored that a joint statement signed in Moscow by Preside nts Slobodan Milosevic of Yugoslavia and Boris Yeltsin of Russia was an e xtremely important positive step toward the political settlement of the K osovo and Metohija issue.

He said that the government was determined to continue political dialog ue with representatives of Kosovo and Metohija's ethnic Albanians and al so stressed that this was the only way to solve the issue peacefully and by political means.

Jovanovic said Yugoslavia believed in dialogue alone, adding that he wa s optimistic about the resumption of dialogue and also about the reaching of a stable and lasting solution to the Kosovo and Metohija problem.

He most strongly condemned terrorist attacks and separatism in Kosovo a nd Metohija, reiterating that Kosovo and Metohija was Serbia's and Yugosl avia's internal matter.

Jovanovic highly praised Friday's talks with Poos, saying their exchang e of views had been deep, frank, open and very useful.

He specified that the talks had focused on bilateral relations and the s ituation in southeastern Europe and in Kosovo and Metohija. He added that he had informed his host about Yugoslavia's stands on European orientati on.

Jovanovic said that Yugoslavia believed that it was important to inform the Luxembourg Government about its strategy of European orientation, bec ause Luxembourg played a significant role in European institutions, espec ially in the European Union, in which Yugoslavia had major interest.

He said he expected help in Yugoslavia's readmission into the Organisat ion for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE, 1998), as Yugoslavia w as one of the OSCE founders, and also voiced hope that Yugoslavia would soon be admitted to the Council of Europe, as it had officially applied f or membership.

For his part, Poos described the talks with his Yugoslav counterpart as mutually open and stressed that, due to the crisis in Serbia's province o f Kosovo and Metohija, Jovanovic's visit to Luxembourg came at a very imp ortant moment in the history of Europe and the Balkans.

He called for a democratic, just and lasting solution to Kosovo and Met ohija's problems through peaceful means.

Poos especially stressed the fact that Luxembourg recognized the border s of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, adding that his country disappro ved of secession and strongly opposed terrorist action in Kosovo and Meto hija.

He described as balanced conclusions of the E.U. summit in Cardiff, say ing that a statement on Kosovo and Metohija released there contained cal ls to both Belgrade and ethnic Albanian representatives in Kosovo and Met ohija.

Poos called for foreign mediation in the dialogue on Kosovo and Metohija and also for the presence of international observers on the borders with Albania and Macedonia.

Jovanovic left Luxembourg for Belgrade later in the day.

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