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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 4, No. 144, 00-07-28Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 4, No. 144, 28 July 2000CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] SENIOR NATO OFFICIAL VISITS ARMENIAOn a working visit toYerevan on 26-27 July, NATO Deputy Secretary-General for Political Issues Klaus Peter Kleiber discussed with Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian the ongoing efforts to resolve the Karabakh conflict and the relevance to that process of conflict resolution in the Balkans, Armenpress and Noyan Tapan reported. The two men also discussed Armenia's relations with Russia and Turkey, NATO-Russian relations, the proposed South Caucasus Security Pact, and preparations for NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson's planned visit to Armenia in September. LF [02] PROMINENT ARMENIAN WAR VETERAN UNDER INVESTIGATIONArmenianpolice have opened a criminal investigation against Ruben Gevorgian, a parliamentary deputy and prominent member of the Yerkrapah Union of Veterans of the Karabakh war, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported on 27 July. Gevorgian is suspected of having coerced two men to admit to an armed robbery which police believe was committed by Gevorgian's nephew. In a program broadcast last week by Armenian state television, the two men said Gevorgian had promised them a large sum of money for admitting to the crime and serving a short jail sentence. Gevorgian has denied those accusations, which he termed persecution by the Armenian government because of his political views. Gevorgian had hinted at the complicity of President Robert Kocharian in the 27 October Armenian parliamentary shootings. LF [03] ARMENIANS IN SOUTH RUSSIA APPEAL TO PUTIN FOR PROTECTIONTheArmenian community of the Apsheron and Tuapse Raions of Russia's Krasnodar Kari have addressed an appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin expressing "profound concern" at efforts by local media to incite tensions between Russians and non-Russians, Noyan Tapan reported on 25 July. The Armenians affirm support for Russia's war in Chechnya and call on Putin "as the president of a great power" to promote "a balanced ethnic policy" and to strengthen friendly relations between all peoples of the Russian Federation. LF [04] FORMER KARABAKH DEFENSE MINISTER ENDS HUNGER STRIKESamvelBabayan has abandoned the hunger strike he began on 17 July to demand that his trial be held not in the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic but in Armenia. However, he has not retracted that demand, Armenpress reported on 27 July (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 20 July 2000). Babayan faces charges, which he denies, of masterminding the 22 March assassination attempt on Karabakh President Arkadii Ghukasian. Meanwhile the office of the Nagorno-Karabakh Prosecutor-General has agreed to Babayan's request that three lawyers from Armenia be allowed to defend him, Groong quoted Snark as reporting on 25 July. Meanwhile Babayan's sister Anush has appealed for political asylum in a number of Western countries, saying that she is subject to political persecution and has been threatened with eviction from her Stepanakert apartment, Snark reported. LF [05] AZERBAIJAN, GEORGIA DISCUSS GAS EXPORT PLANSGeorgianInternational Gas Corporation President Aleksei Gotsiridze told journalists in Tbilisi on 27 July that Azerbaijan plans to begin construction before the end of this year of a pipeline across Georgia to export to Turkey gas from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz deposit, Interfax reported. That 250 kilometer pipeline will link up with an existing pipeline in Azerbaijan, and have an initial throughput capacity of 5 billion cubic meters per year, rising to 16-24 billion cubic meters. Gotsiridze said that a group of companies operating in Azerbaijan, including BP/Amoco, has agreed to provide $500-700 million toward the estimated total $1.5 billion construction costs. Caucasus Press reported on 24 July that Valekh Alesqerov, who heads the Foreign Investments Division at Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR, would travel to Turkey on 26 July to discuss Turkish purchases of Azerbaijani gas. The decision to begin work on the Azerbaijan-Georgia pipeline casts further doubts on the prospects for construction of a Trans-Caspian pipeline to export Turkmen gas to Turkey. LF [06] GEORGIAN GOVERNMENT APPROVES 2001 DRAFT BUDGETGeorgianFinance Minister Zurab Nogaideli told journalists in Tbilisi on 26 July that the draft budget for 2001 approved by the government the previous day envisages revenues of 1.049 billion lari ($503 million) and expenditures of 1.45 billion, Caucasus Press reported. The resulting 440 million lari deficit is equal to 6.5 percent of projected GDP. Speaking at the 25 July government session that approved the draft, President Eduard Shevardnadze said that it demonstrates that the economic crisis is over. Three weeks ago, a budget sequester had been introduced (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 10 July 2000). LF [07] KAZAKHSTAN'S PRESIDENT MEETS WITH POLITICAL PARTIESNursultan Nazarbaev held talks at his Almaty residence on 27July with representatives of several political parties and movements, RFE/RL's bureau in the former capital reported. LF [08] JAPAN TO DEVELOP INFRASTRUCTURE OF NEW KAZAKH CAPITALKazakhand Japanese government representatives signed a protocol in Astana on 26 July whereby Japan's International Cooperation Agency will draft plans for the water -supply and sewage systems in the new capital, Interfax reported. The corporation will also design a road system that will take into account the anticipated increase in the city's population from the present 320,000 to 490,000 in 2010 and to 690,000 in 2020. LF [09] KYRGYZ, RUSSIAN PRESIDENTS SIGN ETERNAL FRIENDSHIPDECLARATIONAskar Akaev and Vladimir Putin signed a declaration on Eternal Friendship between their two countries and a 10-year economic cooperation program in Moscow on 27 July. Speaking later at a joint press conference, Akaev stressed that Kyrgyzstan has always regarded its "strategic partnership" with Russia as a foreign-policy priority. He expressed gratitude for Russia's military assistance last year in expelling Islamic militants from Kyrgyzstan. Putin, for his part, again expressed appreciation for the Kyrgyz parliament's decision to raise Russian to the status of an official language (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 26 and 29 May 2000). He also noted Kyrgyzstan's unfailing support for integration processes within the CIS. Putin stressed that military, military-technical and humanitarian cooperation will figure prominently in future bilateral relations, according to Asia Plus--Blitz. Akaev also met the same day with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov, who affirmed Russia's readiness to "stabilize the economic situation, fight poverty and create conditions for economic growth" in Kyrgyzstan, ITAR-TASS reported. Russia is Kyrgyzstan's main trade partner. LF [10] UN WARNS TAJIKISTAN'S POPULATION THREATENED BY DROUGHTTheUN-funded World Food Program and Food and Agriculture Organization warned on 27 July that half of Tajikistan's 6 million population faces hunger and under-nourishment and possibly even death from starvation as a result of the ongoing drought, Reuters and AP reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 6 June 2000). They note that cereal production has plummeted because of a shortage of quality seed and the breakdown of agricultural and irrigation equipment. The two agencies appealed to the international community for assistance. LF [B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[11] MONTENEGRIN PRIME MINISTER SAYS 'NO' TO MILOSEVIC'SELECTIONSFilip Vujanovic said in Niksic on 27 July that the governing coalition stands by its previous decision not to participate in any federal legislative or presidential elections held under Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's new constitutional amendments and electoral legislation (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 July 2000). "The governing coalition in Montenegro has no reason to participate in these elections since participation would strengthen Milosevic and help keep him in power," "Pobjeda" reported. Vujanovic added that he "expects" the army to do its constitutional duty and stay out of politics. Elsewhere, President Milo Djukanovic's adviser Miodrag Vukovic stressed that the Montenegrin authorities will not let Milosevic use the elections to provoke domestic unrest in Montenegro, Reuters reported. In Belgrade, Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Vojislav Seselj said that the federal elections will go ahead in Montenegro whether Djukanovic chooses to participate or not. PM [12] SERBIAN OPPOSITION LEADER STRESSES REFUSAL TO TAKE PART INVOTESerbian Renewal Movement leader Vuk Draskovic told the BBC's Serbian Service from Budva on 27 July that the federal elections are meaningless without Montenegro. He added that elections without the participation of "official Montenegro" will serve to undermine the unity of Yugoslavia, including Kosova as well as Serbia and Montenegro. Vojislav Kostunica of the Democratic Party of Serbia said in Belgrade that he hopes that the Montenegrin leaders and Draskovic will change their minds, Reuters reported. A spokesman for the Otpor (Resistance) student movement argued that "with a boycott, everything will be lost" to Milosevic. Democratic Party leader Zoran Djindjic said that he is "optimistic" that the opposition can "forge an agreement on a joint electoral appearance," AP reported. PM [13] U.S. 'CHALLENGES' MILOSEVICState Department spokesmanPhilip Reeker said in Washington on 27 July that "with the announcement of a September 24th date, we challenge Milosevic to hold free and fair elections and to allow independent media to operate freely and to permit outside international and domestic observers to monitor the election process.... [In this way] this election process will give the people of Serbia the opportunity to determine their leader through a free and fair contest at the ballot box," an RFE/RL correspondent reported. PM [14] MILOSEVIC'S MINISTER BLASTS OPPONENTSYugoslav InformationMinister Goran Matic said in Belgrade on 28 July that Milosevic' opponents are "a frustrated bunch unable to rally the rest of the world behind a policy of pressure. There is no higher expression of democracy than a popular vote, the democratic ideal. What [Milosevic's opponents] don't like is the fact the people of Yugoslavia will choose freely in the elections and that...Slobodan Milosevic has a tremendous advantage [in popularity that] no opposition candidate could ever match." Matic added that "Djukanovic is a classic stooge who goes around and badmouths his own country to Western leaders. Djukanovic and his policies will collapse at the elections, [and] his behavior [sic] will be defeated and punished by the people," AP reported. Matic concluded by arguing that "the will of our people is peace, freedom and prosperity...and Milosevic is the symbol of all these. The West has to come to terms with that." PM [15] MILOSEVIC PLANNING TO REORGANIZE MILITARY?Milosevic plans tostreamline the military command structure before the end of 2000 by eliminating the air force, anti-aircraft defense, and navy as separate commands, "Vesti" reported on 28 July. The entire Yugoslav military will be grouped together in one general staff under the command of army General Nebojsa Pavkovic, who regards the changes as a rationalization measure, the daily added. Observers note that Milosevic has never fully trusted the military and long built up the paramilitary police as his own Praetorian guard. The navy and air force are relatively small organizations designed for reconnaissance against and harassment of any invader. PM [16] MONTENEGRO SET TO TAKE CONTROL OF FINANCESThe governmenthas drafted a bill to establish a new Central Bank of Montenegro independent of the Yugoslav National Bank, dpa reported on 27 July. The Podgorica authorities view the National Bank as a destabilizing influence and fear a new round of hyperinflation after the elections. The German mark is already legal tender in Montenegro alongside the Yugoslav dinar. PM [17] CLINTON, SCHROEDER TAKE STOCK OF THE BALKANSIn a jointarticle in the "International Herald Tribune" on 28 July, U.S. President Bill Clinton and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder summed up the achievements of the international community in the Balkans in the past 12 months. They concluded that "we will continue to work with the democratic opposition in Serbia, to help it unite around a common platform, to support nongovernmental organizations and the independent media, and to back President Milo Djukanovic...until all those who have suffered under Mr. Milosevic's rule can take their place in Europe. We have no illusions about the hard work that remains, but the progress made thus far gives us confidence that it can be completed. Together we can do for Southeast Europe what was done for Western Europe after World War II and Central Europe after the collapse of communism: integrate it into a democratic, undivided Europe in which the prospect of yet another terrible war is unthinkable." The two leaders stressed that the international community must remain firm and united. PM [18] MACEDONIAN GOVERNMENT REORGANIZEDThe parliament on 27 Julyapproved measures to cut the size of the cabinet from 27 to 17 seats in keeping with recommendations from the EU and World Bank, the private MIC news agency reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 July 2000). Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski announced the new cabinet line-up, the fourth since he was elected in 1998. Among the changes is that Ljuben Paunovski moves from the culture portfolio to defense, where he replaces Nikola Kljusev. Georgievski stressed that his government's priorities remain the same, namely to press for integration into NATO and the EU. The breakdown of the new cabinet is: Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization: prime minister plus seven seats; Democratic Alternative: Deputy Prime Minister Vasil Tupurkovski and four seats; and Democratic Party of the Albanians: Deputy Prime Minister Ernat Fejzulahu and three seats. Opposition Social Democratic deputy Georgi Spasov said that Georgievski missed an opportunity to rid himself of unnamed ineffective ministers and bring in new faces. PM [19] TURKEY SOURING OVER KOSOVA ROLEForeign Minister Ismail Cemsaid in Ankara on 27 July that his government will take unspecified steps to show its disapproval if the UN's civilian administration does not act to make the Turkish language equal to Serbo-Croatian and Albanian in Kosova, AP reported. The UN has been willing to use Turkish as an official language in areas where the 15,000-strong Turkish minority is strong, but Ankara wants Turkish to be official throughout the province, the news agency added. Turkey provides both an aid program and 1,000 peacekeepers to Kosova. PM [20] BOSNIA, CROATIA SIGN AGREEMENTSCroatian Prime MinisterIvica Racan and his Bosnian counterpart, Spasoje Tusevljak, signed agreements on repatriation and on customs arrangements in Sarajevo on 27 July (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 25 July 2000). They also agreed that citizens of the two countries may cross their common border by showing only their internal identity card rather than a passport, RFE/RL's South Slavic Service reported. Racan said that he was "unpleasantly surprised" by criticism from Muslim leader Alija Izetbegovic of Racan's decision to meet separately with representatives of the ethnic Croatian community. Racan stressed that "a stable Croatia can only exist along with a stable, single, and sovereign Bosnia-Herzegovina. Croatia is determined to strengthen its relations with Bosnia," Reuters reported. PM [21] CROATIAN LEADERS TO U.S.U.S. Ambassador to Croatia WilliamMontgomery said in Zagreb that Racan and President Stipe Mesic will visit Washington from 8-10 August, "Jutarnji list" reported on 28 July. Among the leaders they will meet with are President Clinton and Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. The exact itinerary of the trip has not yet been completed. PM [22] ROMANIAN LIBERALS TO BE OUSTED FROM CDR?National PeasantParty Christian Democratic (PNTCD) Deputy Chairman Ioan Muresan said on 27 July that the National Liberal Party will "expel itself" from the Democratic Convention of Romania (CDR) if it fails to attend a meeting of CDR leaders scheduled for 1 August, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. The CDR statutes stipulate that if a formation fails to attend two consecutive CDR leadership meetings, it will be automatically excluded from the alliance. MS [23] HUNGARIAN OFFICIAL SAYS MINORITY FATE IS KEY TO RELATIONSWITH ROMANIAAddressing the annual Balvanyos Summer University in Baile Tusnad on 27 July, Zsolt Nemeth, political secretary in the Hungarian Foreign Ministry, said Hungarian-Romanian relations are primarily determined "by what happens in Romania itself," Mediafax reported. He said the participation of the Hungarian Democratic Federation of Romania (UDMR) in the government since 1996 has been a "turning point" in Budapest's relations with Bucharest and that the future of those relations depends on Bucharest's attitude toward the Hungarian minority in Romania. Peter Eckstein-Kovacs, who is minister in charge of minority affairs in the Bucharest cabinet, denied that in the UDMR leadership there are "pro-communist forces" ready to collaborate with the Party of Social Democracy in Romania, as claimed by UDMR "radical wing" member Tibor Torro on 24 July at Balvanyos. MS [24] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT PROMULGATES PARLIAMENTARY REPUBLIC LAWPetru Lucinschi on 27 July promulgated the law transformingMoldova into a presidential republic, RFE/RL's Chisinau bureau reported. Lucinschi said that "as of the moment the law becomes effective, responsibility for the over-all situation in Moldova falls on the parliament's shoulders." Lucinschi on 20 July vetoed the law but was overridden by the legislature the next day. He said he still "vehemently" opposes the bill but had no choice but to promulgate it, otherwise he would have violated the constitution. He once more called on the parliament to call a referendum on his proposal to increase the presidential powers. MS [25] OSCE TO SEND PEACEKEEPING FORCE TO TRANSDNIESTER?Chairmanof the State Commission on the Transdniester Yevgenii Primakov and OSCE rotating chairwoman Benita Ferrero- Waldner have held "preliminary talks" on the possibility of deploying an OSCE peace-keeping force in the separatist region, OSCE Secretary-General Jan Kubis told an RFE/RL correspondent on 27 July. Primakov and Ferrero-Waldner met in Vienna earlier this week. Kubis confirmed that the Russians are again attempting to link the full withdrawal of their troops from the region to the conclusion of an agreement between Chisinau and Tiraspol on the future status of the Transdniester. He said the OSCE agrees that the region should have a special status but insists on the territorial sovereignty of Moldova as a whole. MS [26] BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT SACKS DEPUTY SPEAKERThe parliamenton 27 July approved a resolution proposed by the ruling Union of Democratic Forces on removing deputy speaker Blagovest Sedonov from that post. Sedonov recently co- signed a letter to the Israeli parliament praising the decision of the Jewish National Fund to replace a memorial to King Boris III with one that hails the role played "by Bulgarians" in saving Jews during World War II (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 18 and 21 July 2000). The vote was 130 in favor with 80 against and 16 abstentions. The resolution said Sedonov had "discredited Bulgaria's parliament and people and damaged Bulgaria's image abroad." Sedonov, an independent, was elected to the parliament on the lists of the opposition Socialist Party, which said the government is ignoring the country's history and "glorifying the wartime monarchist regime." MS [C] END NOTE[27] PUTIN TO MEET OLIGARCHSBy Donald JensenIn recent weeks, Russian President Vladimir Putin has seemingly begun to carry out his election promise to reduce the influence of the notorious "oligarchs," who grew rich during the Boris Yeltsin era owing to their close ties to government officials and easy access to public funds. So far, however, he has largely settled scores with the Kremlin's political and business opponents, leaving magnates close to him untouched. His meeting with a group of leading oligarchs on 28 July may be a first step toward the creating a fairer economic playing field or toward reasserting the role of the state. But it is unlikely to address a more fundamental problem-- namely, the relationship between property and political power. Putin's rhetoric notwithstanding, he does not have the power, nor has he so far revealed the intention, to seek to break the link between the two. Putin has moved against several leading business empires, including Media-MOST, LUKoil, and Norilsk Nickel, whose owners have been accused of crimes ranging from embezzlement to tax evasion. Media-MOST owner Vladimir Gusinskii has long been critical of the government, especially the war in Chechnya, and last year he supported the Fatherland movement of Yevgenii Primakov and Yurii Luzhkov, at the time both rivals of Putin. LUKoil's Vagit Alekperov is close to powerful Tatarstan President Mintimer Shamiev and also backed Fatherland, while Norilsk Nickel owner Vladimir Potanin has never been close to this Kremlin. By contrast, Kremlin "bankers" Roman Abramovich and Aleksandr Mamut, who financed Putin's election campaign, have been spared by the president. In fact, several of Putin's steps so far have benefited their business interests. Accusations of tax evasion against LUKoil, for example, may have been intended in part to eliminate it from the running for the state-controlled oil-company ONAKO, Russia's 12th largest oil producer, whose majority stake went on sale on 21 July. Abramovich's Sibneft company and Transneft, controlled by Semyon Vainshtok, another pro-Putin oligarch, are said to be considering strong bids. While there has been much ado about Boris Berezovskii's public break with the president and his intention to create an opposition party, Berezovskii himself recently installed his daughter on the board of Russian Public Television, which remains in his control. The state-owned Vneshtorgbank, for its part, indicated it may lend Berezovskii $85 million to operate the channel. Putin's strong-arm tactics have relied on the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Federal Security Service (FSB), the tax police, and the prosecutor-general--rather than the courts--to bring the oligarchs to heel. The "Family"--the Kremlin group that includes former Yeltsin speechwriter Valentin Yumashev, Yeltsin's daughter, Tatyana Dyachenko, and presidential administration chief Aleksandr Voloshin, as well as Mamut and Abramovich--reportedly favors maintaining a few large oligarchic empires that are independent but close to the Kremlin (Prosecutor-General Vladimir Ustinov is reported to be an ally of The Family). A second group, concentrated in the FSB and the newly empowered Security Council, would prefer to wipe out the oligarchs and transform Russia's large businesses into state companies headed by proteges of the president. Putin does not appear to have firmly committed to either option to date. Even if the most notorious oligarchs were removed, however, it would do little to untangle the interpenetration of business and politics that is a fundamental aspect of the Russian political scene. Alliances between governors and regional oligarchs--sometimes forged against the will of better known magnates from Moscow--are common. At the federal level, ministries routinely engage in commercial activities. And even presidential administration head Voloshin qualifies as an oligarch in his own right. Perhaps more significantly for Putin, the security services on which he relies have long been as much motivated by money as by serving the public interest. Many large firms employ former FSB intelligence officers, and ties undoubtedly remain strong between the latter and Lubyanka. Interior Minister Vladimir Rushailo, one of Russia's major law enforcement officers, was reported to have been extensively involved in entrepreneurial activity when he headed Moscow's organized crime directorate in the early 1990s. Among his alleged activities was providing protection to major Moscow firms in exchange for corporate contributions. In the regions, governors and the firms that support them often supplement the federal salaries of law enforcement officials out of their own pocket--a telling indicator of their lacking loyalty to the Kremlin. Among the 18 business officials invited to attend Putin's 28 July meeting with business leaders are Alekperov, Gazprom chief Rem Vyakhirev, and Yukos head Mikhail Khororkhovskii, as well as an executive from the telecommunication company Vympelcom. Berezovskii and Gusinskii reportedly have not been invited. Union of Rightist Forces faction leader Boris Nemtsov, who along with Voloshin pressed for the meeting, has predicted that business leaders will propose a three-point declaration in which the Kremlin agrees to stop investigations into past privatization deals and get rid of corrupt bureaucrats, "beginning with the Prosecutor-General's Office." In return, the oligarchs would agree to "play by the rules"--that is, pay all taxes and obey the law. Predictably, Kremlin sources have said it is unlikely that any agreement will be signed. The author is associate director of RFE/RL's Broadcasting Division. 28-07-00 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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