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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 2, No. 106, 98-06-04Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 2, No. 106, 4 June 1998CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] BEREZOVSKII MEDIATES IN SUKHUMI...CIS Executive Secretary Boris Berezovskii held talks in Sukhumi on 3 June with Abkhaz President Vladislav Ardzinba, Interfax reported. Berezovskii told journalists before the meeting that "vast potential" for resolving the conflict exists, given that both Ardzinba and Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze have demonstrated the "political will" to do so. Ardzinba, for his part, said he is ready to meet with Shevardnadze, but without preconditions. Shevardnadze has said such a meeting is contingent on Abkhazia's compliance with the 25 May protocol on a cease-fire and on the return of Georgian fugitives to Gali Raion. Also on 3 June, the Abkhaz and Georgian special envoys continued talks in Moscow aimed at preparing the agenda for an Ardzinba-Shevardnadze meeting. LF[02] ... AND TBILISIFollowing talks with Berezovskii in Tbilisi later the same day, Shevardnadze said that the CIS executive secretary's ability to influence the outcome of the conflict is limited as "the CIS peacekeeping force in the region is not subordinate to him," Caucasus Press reported. Shevardnadze added that Berezovskii was appointed to his present position solely in order to prepare for the CIS fall summit and that "if even [just] one president has any complaints to make," Berezovskii will be fired. In Moscow, Russian First Deputy Foreign Minister Boris Pastukhov hinted that the CIS peacekeepers will be withdrawn after their mandate expires on 31 July if there is no political progress toward a settlement and if they continue to be subjected to "slander and lies." Georgia has claimed that the peacekeeping force supplied Abkhaz Interior Ministry troops with heavy artillery, while Abkhazia says they failed to curtail the activities of Georgian guerrilla units in Gali. LF[03] U.S. TO GIVE AID FOR GEORGIAN DISPLACED PERSONSFollowing a meeting in Tbilisi on 3 June with Shevardnadze, U.S. Special Envoy to the Newly Independent States Stephen Sestanovich said the U.S. will give Georgia $3.1 million in aid for the ethnic Georgians forced to flee their homes in Gali during the recent fighting. Sestanovich said the replacement of the CIS peacekeeping force in Gali is impossible without the written agreement of both Georgia and Abkhazia. (Abkhaz special envoy Anri Djergenia said on 1 June that Sukhumi will not request the CIS peacekeepers' withdrawal.) Sestanovich also said he does not believe a Bosnia-style peace enforcement operation is appropriate to resolve the Abkhaz conflict, according to Interfax. LF[04] KARABAKH PRESIDENT TO ACCEPT PREMIER'S RESIGNATIONArkadii Ghukasian told journalists in Stepanakert on 3 June that he will shortly accept Prime Minister Leonard Petrosian's resignation, which the latter tendered several weeks ago, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported. Ghukasian said that Petrosian's decision to resign was prompted by differences with other cabinet members over economic policies, rather than by personal friction. Armenian media had claimed that Karabakh Defense Minister Samvel Babayan had pressured Petrosian to resign because of his own ambition to become prime minister (see "RFE/RL Caucasus Report," Vol. 1, No. 14, 2 June 1998). Ghukasian said that most government members want him to combine the posts of president and prime minister, but he has not yet decided whether to do so. LF[05] KARABAKH DIPLOMACY UPDATEEU Commissioner for Foreign Relations Hans van den Broek and U.S. special envoy Sestanovich met separately with Armenian President Robert Kocharian in Yerevan on 2-3 June, respectively, to discuss the OSCE Minsk Group's attempt to mediate a settlement of the Karabakh conflict, Russian and Armenian agencies reported. Both officials expressed support for direct talks between Baku and Stepanakert. Meeting on 30 May in Beirut with Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian, French President Jacques Chirac expressed support for Armenia's insistence on a "package" peace plan rather than the "phased" variant proposed last year by the Minsk Group co-chairman, Noyan Tapan and "Nezavisimaya gazeta" reported. Turan on 2 June quoted Azerbaijani Presidential adviser Vafa Gulu-zade as hinting that Azerbaijan might accept a "package" peace plan that preserved the country's territorial integrity. LF[06] AZERBAIJAN REBUKES FRANCE OVER GENOCIDE RESOLUTIONMeeting on 3 June with a visiting French government delegation, Azerbaijani President Heidar Aliev expressed his displeasure at the resolution passed on 29 May by the French National Assembly recognizing the 1915 genocide of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Interfax and Reuters reported. Aliev termed the French parliament vote "unfair" and reprehensible, given France's position as one of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmen. He said that the 1992 killing of Azerbaijanis by Armenians in the village of Khojali similarly constituted "genocide." LF[07] KAZAKH COURT UPHOLDS RULING AGAINST OPPOSITION LEADERThe Almaty city court on 3 June upheld a district court ruling sentencing a leader of Kazakhstan's Workers Movement, Madel Ismailov, to one year in jail (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 8 April 1998), ITAR- TASS reported. Ismailov was found guilty of insulting the honor and dignity of the country's president, Nursultan Nazarbayev. BP[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[08] REFUGEES CONTINUE TO POUR INTO ALBANIAThousands of Kosovar refugees continue to stream into Albania to escape the artillery barrage leveled against several villages in northwestern Kosova over the last five days. Milaim Cengo, an official of the Tropoje region, said there is a constant flow of people arriving in the region. The Kosovar refugees are now being forced to go to Bajram Curri because Tropoje is overwhelmed with people. "Koha Jone" reported that some 10,000 Kosovars fled to Albania by 3 June. "Shekulli," however, quotes an unnamed Interior Ministry official as saying that 15,000 have arrived so far and that tens of thousands more are on their way. The same day, a government delegation headed by Deputy Prime Minister Bashkim Fino left for northern Albania to assess the needs of the refugees. FS/PB[09] ALBANIAN PREMIER CALLS ON NATO FOR HELP...In a letter sent to NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana on 3 June, Albanian Prime Minister Fatos Nano asked the alliance to step up its involvement in northern Albania. Nano asked for NATO to supply food and medicine to refugees who have crossed into Albania. He added: "I am convinced that the time has now come in which the international community must not only share our concerns but also act united and with force to ensure the protection of Kosova's innocent citizens and of peace in the region." Nano also said that "Serbian commando teams" have made incursions into Albania to "scout the area." Meanwhile, the Socialist Party's Foreign Relations Secretary, Maqo Lakrori, told a press conference in Tirana the same day that the armed resistance of Kosova Albanians is "legitimate self-defense against Serbian repression and massacres" and the only protection against "ethnic cleansing of Kosovar Albanians," "Koha Jone" reported. FS/PB[10] ...WHILE ALLIANCE SAYS THOROUGH PLANNING NEEDEDSolana said on 3 June that NATO is keeping "all options open" in regard to the tense situation in Kosova. The alliance's 16 permanent ambassadors, meeting in Brussels, agreed they will send reconnaissance teams to Macedonia and Albania to review plans for any troop deployment but that any military operation will have to be thoroughly planned, AFP reported. NATO defense ministers will meet in Brussels on 11 June for further discussions. At a meeting in Palermo, the foreign ministers of 12 European countries warned Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to stop the killing. German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel said Milosevic "has to learn that he will be hit with strong measures." U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen said at a press conference in Washington with his British counterpart, George Robertson, that military action is a "last resort" for dealing with the crisis. U.S. State Department spokesman James Rubin said that the U.S. could reimpose some economic sanctions if the violence continues. PB[11] RUGOVA APPEALS TO ITALY FOR HELPKosovar Albanian shadow-state President Ibrahim Rugova was in Rome on 3 June for talks with Italian officials. Rugova was reportedly trying to get Rome to put pressure on Yugoslav President Milosevic to stop the violence. Skender Hyseni, a Rugova spokesman, said the renewed violence is a "bad omen" that ethnic cleansing has begun. In Geneva, the International Committee of the Red Cross asked Serbian authorities on 3 June for "immediate and unimpeded access" to the Decan area of Kosova, where most of the violence took place. Reports from refugees arriving in Albania claim that thousands of people are either walking toward the border or hiding in the forests. PB[12] BELGRADE-PRISHTINA TALKS TO CONTINUE?Fehmi Agani, the head of the Kosovar Albanian negotiating team, said on 3 June that talks between ethnic Albanian Kosova leaders and Yugoslav officials could begin on 5 June. But he added that the talks and hopes for finding a peaceful solution to the crisis are jeopardized by the deterioration of the situation since the latest Serbian offensive in the Decan region, Beta reported. PB[13] UN SECRETARY-GENERAL WANTS FORCE IN MACEDONIA STRENGTHENEDKofi Annan said in a report to the UN Security Council on 3 June that he recommends "an expanded international presence in the region." Annan noted that in light of the upsurge in violence in Kosova, the 750 UN troops in Macedonia have increased patrols along the border with the Serbian province, established around the clock observation posts, and started boat patrols on the Ohrid and Prespa lakes. He said such increased activity cannot be sustained over a long period at the present troop strength. PB[14] BOSNIAN SERB, MUSLIM-CROAT POLICE SIGN COOPERATION ACCORDMuslim-Croat Federation Interior Minister Mehmet Zilic and his Bosnian Serb counterpart, Milovan Stankovic, pledged on 3 June that their respective police forces will jointly fight organized crime and uphold all Bosnians' rights. The accord, signed in the presence of Elizabeth Rehn, the UN envoy to Bosnia, envisages cooperation in providing security for all citizens and "preventing infringements of freedom of movement and civil rights." Stankovic said the two police forces will cooperate in breaking up country- wide crime syndicates but will not be involved in the apprehension of war crimes suspects. PB[15] ROMANIAN COALITION RESUMES BICKERINGThe leadership of the ruling National Peasant Party Christian Democratic (PNTCD) on 2 June debated friction within the party after Prime Minister Radu Vasile complained last week that groups within the PNTCD want the government "to have the same fate as the cabinet headed by [Victor] Ciorbea." Vasile's remarks were later criticized by PNTCD deputy chairmen Mircea Ciumara and Remus Opris. PNTCD leader Ion Diaconescu said criticism is permitted within the leadership, but he added that once a decision is reached, all members must respect it, while those who fail to do so must face disciplinary action. The leadership also discussed tense relations with the Democratic Party, following the decision taken last week by Industry and Trade Minister Radu Berceanu to replace the heads of several utilities companies with professionals. Leading members of the PNTCD have complained that the move violated the coalition agreement, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. MS[16] FUTURE OF ROMANIAN SOCIALIST PARTIES' ALLIANCE QUESTIONEDAlliance for Romania (APR) deputy chairman Marian Enache told journalists on 3 June that the envisaged merger between his formation and the Social Democratic Party (PSDR) will be possible only if the PSDR quits the ruling coalition, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. The PSDR National Council on 31 May approved a resolution to continue talks with the APR on the eventual merger of the two formations. MS[17] ROMANIAN SENATE TO DEBATE TUDOR'S PARLIAMENTARY IMMUNITYJustice Minister Valeriu Stoica on 3 June asked Senate chairman Petre Roman to convene the house to debate lifting the parliamentary immunity of Greater Romania Party Chairman Corneliu Vadim Tudor. Tudor is accused of insulting President Emil Constantinescu and of slandering Roman, another senator, and several other persons. MS[18] TRANSDNIESTER LEADERSHIP ATTACKS NEW MOLDOVAN GOVERNMENTGrigorii Marakutsa, chairman of the Transdniester Supreme Soviet, has said Ion Ciubuc's cabinet is aiming at "Romanianizing the Moldovan Republic and unifying it with Romania," RFE/RL's Chisinau bureau reported on 3 June . Marakutsa said "key ministerial posts" in Chisinau are now "occupied by those responsible for the outbreak of the armed conflict in 1992." He added that this "explains why the Moldovan side is rejecting our proposal for a mutual reduction of forces." He said Moldovan expectations of "setting up a unitary state" on both banks of River Dniester have "no chance" because they ignore the fact that the "Transdniester Republic has been existing for several years." Marakutsa warned that if Chisinau does not renounce "its insistence on a joint indivisible state," the separatists might "renounce our confederate state program and orient ourselves to setting up a fully independent state." MS[19] STOYANOV SAYS BALKAN FUTURE DEPENDS ON KOSOVA SOLUTIONBulgarian President Petar Stoyanov on 3 June told journalists after a meeting of the National Security Council that the future of the whole Balkan region depends on a peaceful solution to the conflict in Kosova, Reuters reported. He said the council concluded that there is "no direct threat" of Bulgaria's being drawn into the conflict. But it noted that the conflict itself poses "numerous dangers, including ethnic and religious strife and an upsurge in crime," and endangers the Balkans' economic development and integration into the EU and NATO. MS[20] BULGARIAN ROMA END PROTESTThe group of Bulgarian Roma protesting against discrimination and non- payment of unemployment and family benefits reached an agreement with the authorities on 3 June following a 10- day fast, AFP reported. Under the agreement, benefits owed since the beginning of the year will be disbursed immediately. Jobs will also be created for unemployed Roma in the town of Lom, where the protest took place. In other news, Trade Minister Valentin Vasilev on 3 June announced that Bulgaria will join the Central European Free Trade Agreement next month, Reuters reported. MS[C] END NOTE[21] A RENEWED SOURCE OF NATIONALISMby Paul GobleEnvironmental disasters--some left over from Soviet times, others the product of the actions of weak new governments, and still others the result of the activities of foreign firms--may reignite nationalist passions in many post-Soviet states. There are three reasons behind this somewhat surprising conclusion. First, as a recently released poll shows, citizens in the post-Soviet states appear even more concerned about the environment than are residents of other countries around the world. Second, the leaders of many of the national movements in these countries started as environmental activists in Soviet times and thus are now simply returning to their roots as a result of new ecological disasters . And third, the media have focused increasing attention on such disasters, especially when corrupt local officials or foreign firms appear to be to blame. The United States Information Agency last month released the results of two surveys its researchers conducted in late 1997 in Russia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan on popular attitudes toward environomental issues. Those polls found that majorities in all three countries--including more than 65 percent in Russia--said they favored protecting the environment even if doing so meant that they would have to put up with slower economic growth. Such support for environmental activism would be impressive anywhere; it is especially striking in countries whose economic situation is anything but good. In addition, the survey showed that the citizens of these three countries were extremely critical of what their respective governments were doing to clean up environmental pollution. Some 70 percent of Kazakhs, 85 percent of Russians, and a similar percentage of Ukrainians felt their national governments were doing a poor job in this respect. Not surprisingly, politicians both in power and in opposition are sensitive to such attitudes, seeing them either as a threat or an opportunity. And that is particularly the case with those political figures who began their careers as spokesmen for ecological causes in Soviet times. In the 1960s and 1970s, environmental concerns were among the few issues that opposition groups, especially in the non-Russian regions, could raise without falling afoul of the Soviet state. Many of these environmental activists subsequently became active in the preservation of historical monuments when that became possible. And later still, they adopted an openly nationalist agenda as the Soviet state crumbled around them. Now in the post-Soviet environment, these same people are drawing strength from others appalled by the environmental degradation visited upon them by past Soviet practices, by the failure of their own governments to prevent new disasters, and by the poor ecological record of many Western firms now operating in these countries. And just as in Soviet times, they are focusing attention not so much on the environment in general but rather on conditions in their own country or even in one part of it. According to the USIA poll, only one person in 50 was concerned about global climate change, but virtually everyone was worried about more immediate environmental degradation. The media in these countries are playing up these issues, frequently with an increasingly nationalist gloss directed either at the Soviet past, an uncaring and corrupt local regime, or foreign firms. Recently, for example, the press in Kyrgyzstan has called attention to the environmental disaster visited on that country's Lake Issyk-Kul by a Kyrgyz-Canadian gold-mining concern. Ukrainian media have continued to discuss the fallout from the Chornobyl nuclear accident, a disaster made all the worse by Soviet policies and the West's unwillingness to help. And the Georgian media have raised questions about the consequences for that country if Turkey builds a dam on the border between the two countries. Many both in the West and in these countries may be inclined to dismiss such concerns as relatively unimportant to the political life of this region. But the experience of these countries in the past and the intense feelings that environmental issues can still arouse point to a different conclusion. They suggest that future environmental disasters in this region may quickly lead to a nationalist response, particularly if those responsible are individuals and groups from abroad. That conclusion, in turn, indicates that anyone seeking to do business with those countries must be especially environmentally responsible to avoid unleashing a popular movement that no one will be able to control. 04-06-98 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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