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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 5, No. 145, 01-08-02Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 5, No. 145, 2 August 2001CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] ARMENIAN, AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENTS MEET ON SIDELINES OF CIS SUMMITRobert Kocharian and Heidar Aliev met in Sochi on 1 August to continue their ongoing discussions on approaches to resolving the Karabakh conflict. Aliev told journalists after that meeting that various approaches were discussed, but Kocharian admitted that "it would be wrong to say that we have reached a common denominator," Turan and RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported. Kocharian added, however, that he and Aliev agreed to continue their dialogue and to refrain from "trying to score points through the media." Aliev said no one in Azerbaijan besides himself is aware of the content of his talks with Kocharian. LF[02] AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT, DEFENSE MINISTER RULE OUT USE OF FORCE IN DISPUTE WITH IRAN...Speaking at Baku airport before his departure for Sochi, President Aliev affirmed that Azerbaijan wants "friendly and good neighborly" relations with neighboring states, Turan reported. He downplayed the recent violations by Iranian aircraft and gunboats of Azerbaijani airspace and territorial waters as "minor incidents" which, he said, will not have an impact on the scheduling of his much-delayed visit to Tehran. Also on 1 August, Defense Minister Colonel General Safar Abiev told journalists that "Azerbaijan's air defense system is ready to repulse an air attack at any time," but that Azerbaijan would not resort to shooting down Iranian aircraft as "Iran is not a hostile country," Turan reported. Abiev confirmed that his deputy Gorkhmaz Garaev has been dismissed, but denied that he is suspected of corruption (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 31 July 2001). The independent ANS-TV reported late on 1 August that an Iranian war plane twice entered and overflew Azerbaijani airspace over the Caspian Sea earlier that afternoon, ITAR-TASS reported. LF[03] ...WHILE PRESIDENT'S SON DOES NOTMaking his first public appearance on 1 August after being incapacitated for six weeks by a sports injury, President Aliev's son Ilham, the first vice president of the state oil company SOCAR, said that "Baku will have to take similar measures if the threat of force is made" in the ongoing standoff with Iran, Turan and Reuters reported. Ilham Aliev also said that SOCAR will insist that BP continues its exploratory surveys at the Araz- Alov-Sharg deposit from which two survey ships were warned away on 23 July by an Iranian military vessel (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 24 July 2001). A BP spokesman said after that incident that the company will not resume survey activities until the Azerbaijani and Iranian governments reach agreement on the dividing line between their respective sectors of the Caspian Sea (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 25 July 2001). LF[04] RUSSIA WANTS AZERBAIJAN TO DOUBLE OIL EXPORTS VIA RUSSIAN TERRITORYDuring an Internet press conference in Moscow on 1 August, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Khristenko said Russia would like to see Azerbaijan increase oil exports via the Baku-Novorossiisk pipeline from the current 2.5 million tons to 5 million tons in 2002, Interfax reported. He suggested that the two countries sign a long-term agreement on the volume of future exports. Transneft President Semen Vainshtok offered in January to cut transport tariffs for SOCAR crude exported via the Baku-Novorossiisk pipeline if Azerbaijan guaranteed the export of a minimum of 5 million tons per year. LF[05] FBI OFFICIAL ARRIVES IN GEORGIA TO ASSIST IN INVESTIGATION OF JOURNALIST'S MURDERAn official from the FBI's office in Ankara has arrived in Tbilisi at the invitation of President Eduard Shevardnadze to assist in the investigation of the murder of Georgian TV journalist Giorgi Sanaya, Caucasus Press reported on 1 August. After meeting the same day with Interior Minister Kakha Targamadze to hear an update on the investigation, Shevardnadze told journalists that if necessary more FBI agents will be invited to join the investigation. LF[06] UN SECURITY COUNCIL EXTENDS MANDATE OF OBSERVER FORCE IN GEORGIAUN Security Council members voted unanimously on 1 August to extend for a further six months, until 31 January 2002, the mandate of the 103-man observer force deployed in western Georgia, ITAR-TASS reported. The Security Council again expressed concern at the hiatus in talks between Abkhazia and the central Georgian government following the killings of five Abkhaz last month (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 16 July 2001). LF[07] OPPOSITION BOYCOTTS GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT VOTE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENTThe Georgian parliament passed the draft bill on elections to local councils proposed by President Shevardnadze in the first reading on 1 August by 127 votes in favor, with one abstention, Caucasus Press reported. Opposition deputies boycotted the vote, despite having earlier agreed to support the presidential draft, which provides for the election on the majoritarian principle of local and city councils and of mayors of five major cities, but not those of Tbilisi and Poti, who are appointed by the president. The opposition had earlier demanded that all city mayors be elected. On 1 August, they demanded that the disputed election code be debated simultaneously with the draft law on local elections on the grounds that fair elections cannot be guaranteed until the criteria for appointing members of the central and local electoral commissions are established (see "RFE/RL Caucasus Report," Vol. 4, No. 24, 28 June 2001). LF[08] EMBATTLED GEORGIAN BUSINESSMAN SUES LOCAL GOVERNOR FOR LIBELIrakli Mgaloblishvili, the former chairman of the board of the Chiatura Manganese Plant, has brought a libel suit against Imereti Governor Temur Shashiashvili and is demanding 500,000 laris ($240,000) in damages, Caucasus Press reported on 1 August. At a government session last month, Shashiashvili accused Mgaloblishvili and parliament deputy David Bezhuashvili of engaging in machinations intended to bankrupt the plant (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 24 July 2001). LF[09] GEORGIA HEADS FOR NEW BUDGET CRISISOutgoing IMF representative in Tbilisi Christopher Lane told journalists on 1 August that he advocates cutting planned Georgian budget expenditures by a minimum of 40-60 million laris in light of the revenue shortfall so far this year and the lower-than-anticipated funds raised from privatization, Caucasus Press reported. Parliament majority faction leader Niko Lekishvili, however, told Caucasus Press the same day that neither his faction nor the opposition would support a cut in budget spending, at least until the IMF presented "convincing arguments" for doing so. Opposition Union of Revival faction leader Giorgi Targamadze warned that if a budget sequester is announced, his faction will demand the resignation of Minister of State Giorgi Arsenishvili, Finance Minister Zurab Nogaideli, and Tax Minister Mikhail Machavariani, Caucasus Press reported on 2 August. LF[10] LOCAL KYRGYZ AUTHORITIES CONFIRM, MINISTRIES DENY SECOND CLASH ON TAJIK BORDERLocal officials in Osh and Batken oblasts in southern Kyrgyzstan on 1 August confirmed reports of a two-hour exchange of fire early the previous day in the Kadamjai district of Batken Oblast, some 40 kilometers inside Kyrgyzstan, between Kyrgyz government troops and a group of some 10 gunmen whose identity was not specified, RFE/RL's Bishkek bureau reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 1 August 2001). But spokesmen for the Defense and Interior ministries said in Bishkek the same day that no such exchange of fire took place, according to Interfax. Also on 1 August, Prime Minister Kurmanbek Bakiev convened a special meeting at which Security Council Secretary Misir Ashyrkulov and National Security Service secretary, General Bolot Djanuzakov, reported on the security situation in the south of the country. LF[11] IMF OFFICIAL LAUDS TAJIK GDP GROWTHDuring talks on 31 July with Tajik President Imomali Rakhmonov, IMF representative Robert Christiansen positively assessed macroeconomic trends in Tajikistan for the first six months of 2001, Asia Plus-Blitz reported the following day. Tajikistan registered GDP growth of over 10 percent in that period (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 17 July 2001). Christiansen's assessment reflects an IMF statement of 11 July summing up the fund's second annual review of Dushanbe's compliance with the conditions for release of further funds under its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility Program. That review specifically noted GDP first quarter growth and falling inflation, and lauded the Tajik government's efforts to elaborate a medium-term strategy to reduce the country's high foreign debt. LF[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[12] BREAKTHROUGH REPORTED ON LANGUAGE ISSUE IN MACEDONIAN TALKSEU negotiator Francois Leotard said in Ohrid on 1 August: "We have obtained...an agreement from the four political parties on the question of language, but this accord is conditional on the continuation of the political discussions, notably on the issue of the police. Therefore, it is a conditional agreement. We will resume talks on the police issue on Friday morning," RFE/RL reported. The agreement reportedly makes Albanian an official language in the parliament -- where simultaneous translation will be provided -- and in communities where Albanians make up at least 20 percent of the population (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 July 2001). Citizens may communicate with the central government in Albanian, in which laws will be published, as well as in Macedonian. Macedonian will remain the sole language for government meetings and in external relations. U.S. envoy James Pardew said: "This is a good deal for everyone, but I am not euphoric. There's a lot of tough work ahead. This is not the end of the negotiations," AP reported. PM[13] POLICE ISSUE TO DOMINATE MACEDONIAN TALKS' NEXT ROUNDThe next session of the Macedonian political talks in Ohrid is expected to center on demands by ethnic Albanians regarding the police, RFE/RL's South Slavic Service reported on 2 August (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 July 2001). The Albanians have reportedly conceded that ultimate control over the police must remain with the central authorities, "The Washington Post" noted. Talks will deal with the best way to quickly introduce more Albanians into the police force, in which they are greatly underrepresented. Macedonian politicians are expected to rule out Albanian proposals that disarmed members of the National Liberation Army (UCK) be allowed to join the force. Moreover, Imer Imeri, one of the top ethnic Albanian negotiators, said that all UCK fighters should be amnestied, "The New York Times" reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 31 July 2001). PM[14] MACEDONIAN HARD-LINERS STILL THINKING OF VIOLENT SOLUTION?Interior Minister Ljube Boskovski said that the "only optimistic option is to defeat the terrorists [in order] to achieve peace, and we have enough force" to do so, "The Washington Post" reported from Berlin on 2 August. Observers note, however, that the Macedonian military has shown itself to be unable to defeat the UCK and lacks basic counterinsurgency forces. The UCK, members of which Macedonian politicians and media usually call "terrorists," generally does not employ classical terrorist tactics. The UCK more often takes control of population centers and holds them in pitched battles. The government's response is to bombard the guerrillas with artillery and tanks, and to send jet aircraft and helicopters overhead. PM[15] MACEDONIAN PARLIAMENT SPEAKER: NO PEACE UNTIL LAST GUERRILLA IS DISARMEDStojan Andov said in Krusevo on 2 August that the "talks [will] be completed, but peace will only be possible when the last terrorist is disarmed," AP reported. He stressed that the majority of citizens are determined "to preserve our homeland, our Macedonia." Andov spoke at ceremonies to mark a national holiday, namely the anniversary of the Ilinden uprising against the Ottoman Turks in 1903. PM[16] DOES THE U.S. OWE SERBIA SOMETHING?Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic said on state television in Belgrade on 1 August that he wants more assistance from the U.S. and for Washington to reschedule part of Belgrade's debt, RFE/RL's South Slavic Service reported. He argued that, so far, the U.S. has not "put itself out" for Serbia compared to what "European countries" have done (see "RFE/RL Balkan Report," 17 October 2000 and 15 May 2001). He made the remarks of the eve of a meeting in Washington between Secretary of State Colin Powell and Yugoslav Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic and Finance Minister Bozidar Djelic. PM[17] SERBIAN PRIME MINISTER WANTS 'SPECIAL STATUS' FOR SERBS IN KOSOVAOn the eve of a meeting between Serbian and Yugoslav government leaders to discuss Kosova, Djindjic said in Belgrade on 1 August that the province's Serbian minority -- about 8 percent of the population -- must have a special status. "The Albanians had been saying for 10 years they didn't feel safe and therefore needed a special status. Fine, now Serbs don't feel safe in Kosovo, and we'll ask for the same thing for them," Djindjic told Reuters. PM[18] HAGUE TRIBUNAL CONVICTS BOSNIAN SERB OF GENOCIDEThe Hague-based war crimes tribunal convicted former Bosnian Serb General Radislav Krstic of genocide, CNN reported on 2 August (see "RFE/RL Newsline, " 1 August 2001). Krstic was accused of the crimes in connection with the 1995 massacre in Srebrenica, which is widely regarded as the single largest massacre of civilians in Europe since the end of World War II. It is this tribunal's first conviction on charges of genocide. He could have faced up to life imprisonment, but instead received a sentence of 46 years. PM[19] PETRITSCH SCUTTLES PACT BETWEEN SERBIA AND BOSNIAN SERBSHigh Representative Wolfgang Petritsch said in a note to Bosnian Serb Prime Minister Mladen Ivanic on 1 August that the 12 July military cooperation agreement between the Republika Srpska and Yugoslavia is invalid because the two parties did not follow proper legal procedures, RFE/RL's South Slavic Service reported. PM[20] CROATIAN SERB LEADER SAYS MORE MUST BE DONE FOR RETURNEESMilorad Pupovac, who heads Croatia's Serbian National Council (SNV), told "Jutarnji list" on 2 August that much of the money earmarked to help returning Serbs has not been paid out. He noted that many returnees do not have electricity in their homes. Others are unable to move into their property because it is occupied by Croats, who still have other homes elsewhere. Some 20,000 applications for home reconstruction and 5,000 applications for the return of property remain unprocessed, Pupovac argued. Pupovac remained a mainstream Serbian civilian leader in Croatia throughout the 1991-1995 war. PM[21] CROATIAN PRIME MINISTER SAYS COUNTRY CANNOT BE 'HOSTAGE'Ivica Racan told Croatian Radio on 1 August that his government's decision to cooperate with The Hague-based tribunal was the correct one, "Novi List" reported. He argued that, otherwise, there would have to be a politically divisive discussion over the case of each and every indicted individual. The nationalist opposition has sought -- so far unsuccessfully -- to mobilize popular opinion against the government's decision. Polls suggest that most citizens agree with the government's move and are more interested in bread-and-butter issues that in ones related to the war. PM[22] RICOP FUNDS FREED BY ROMANIA'S SIDEX PRIVATIZATIONOn 1 August, Simon Mordue, the coordinator of pre-accession programs for the European Commission (EC) delegation in Bucharest, said that the EU has freed $45 million previously earmarked for the RICOP (Enterprise Restructuring and Employment Conversion) program for industrial restructuring and will further free up another $50 million by 31 March 2002, Mediafax reported. The move was facilitated by the recent privatization of SIDEX, a steel mill in Galati. The RICOP program had been significantly delayed during 2000 and completely suspended after last November's general elections. On 13 June, the Romanian government and the EC agreed in principle to extend by one year the timetable for fulfillment of the RICOP conditions, as well as contracting and disbursement deadlines. The EU's financial support to Romania on an annual basis now represents some $581.6 million. LB[23] MOLDOVAN MINISTERS SACKED 'TO IMPROVE GOVERNMENT DISCIPLINE'On 1 August, Prime Minister Vasile Tarlev stated at the National Press Club that the dismissals of Foreign Minister Nicolae Cernomaz and Energy Minister Ion Lesanu on 27 July "were necessary and were performed to improve governmental discipline," Flux reported. Earlier that day, at a government meeting, Tarlev declared that he regrets the dismissals, "but this step was made because of some deep analysis that proved that these ministers did not respect their work obligations." According to Tarlev, candidates for the vacant positions have already been selected, but the new ministers will be nominated only after President Vladimir Voronin returns from the CIS summit. Tarlev also declared that rumors that there is another government reshuffle being prepared are not true. Until the nomination of the new foreign and energy ministers, the posts will be filled by the deputies, Iurie Leanca and Vasile Carafizi, respectively. LB[24] BULGARIAN PREMIER GIVES FIRST INTERVIEW TO DAILYSimeon Saxecoburggotski said that becoming premier is a "huge sacrifice" for him and his family and that he looked for "balance, competence, and professionalism" in forming his government, BTA reported. In an interview with the daily "Trud," Saxecoburggotski said it is not important if the country "is called a republic or a kingdom, it is, after all, Bulgaria; what matters is that it be a democratic country." He said his promise to markedly improve the lives of Bulgarians within 800 days can be achieved, "if everybody channels their efforts toward this objective, as the future concerns us all." As to why he signed a coalition agreement with the ethnic Turkish Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS), the premier said: "Let us view the reality in Bulgaria and the country's interests in a broad, full perspective -- and keep sight of Brussels, too. If one gives these things a second thought, one will see why I invited the DPS." PB[25] OFFICIAL: BULGARIA TO LIBERALIZE AND PRIVATIZE ECONOMYEconomy Minister Nikolai Vassilev said on 2 August in Sofia that the government will plan a new energy strategy, liberalize the energy market, and sell off major assets such as power plants, BTA reported. Vassilev, speaking at a meeting of the Council of Ministers, said this week he will work to resolve problems at the GORUBSO mining complex. He added that other firms likely to be privatized are the Varna shipyard and Bulgartabac, the country's tobacco concern. Transport Minister Plamen Petrov said the same day that the government wants to quickly hold a tender to privatize the Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC). He added that this is the government's top privatization priority. BTC has been on the market since 1995, and several near sales of the company have collapsed, the latest in August 2000. PB[C] END NOTE[26] A SPOOKY CAMPAIGN IN THE BALKANS?By Patrick MoorePress reports have appeared in Macedonia and elsewhere in the Balkans in recent weeks suggesting that NATO is actively helping the ethnic Albanian rebels of the National Liberation Army (UCK). The U.S. is often singled out as playing a particularly active role. One recent anti-NATO report claimed that a KFOR helicopter landed arms for the UCK on Macedonian territory. This story brought a protest to NATO from the Macedonian authorities -- and a swift denial from Secretary-General Lord George Robertson. He called the account "entirely and totally false." Even some Western publications have suggested that NATO's policies are not all that they seem. In its 30 July issue, the German weekly "Der Spiegel" argues in the article "The Americans' Hidden Agenda" that the U.S. is aiding the UCK. The article adds that this alleged American role in fomenting the conflict in Macedonia is irritating "the Europeans," meaning the EU or parts of its establishment. The story is cobbled together into what one German expert calls a collection of old information from the 1999 Kosova conflict, more recent statements by unnamed "leading German military personnel," and things that can politely be described as hearsay. The CIA is mentioned as playing a role, and there are other references to "secret services." The article adds that the German government in general, and Defense Minister Rudolf Scharping in particular, are upset with Washington's extensive but unpublicized support for the rebels. In yet another twist, the Serbian news agency Beta reported recently that the U.S. authorities recently approached two top Serbian officials to request a "99-year lease" on the Camp Bondsteel area in Kosova and on several Yugoslav military facilities, including a radar base. The U.S. Embassy in Belgrade and Yugoslav Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic denied the report. Unfortunately, the Beta story had already appeared as a front- page headline in "Danas," which is Serbia's most reputable newspaper. Is it by accident that all these "leaks" and stories are appearing at a time when tensions continue to mount in Macedonia -- and ethnic passions with them? Might anyone have an interest in polarizing the Macedonians -- and perhaps other Orthodox peoples of the Balkans -- against the U.S. and NATO? This kind of campaign is nothing new to the region. Following the Atlantic alliance's entry into Kosova in 1999, the propaganda machine of former President Slobodan Milosevic regularly reported on alleged collusion between Western peacekeepers with local ethnic Albanian guerrillas. One also recalls the anti-NATO and anti-U.S. "Balkan syndrome" campaign at the start of 2001. And in any event, Belgrade's propaganda mills have long played up almost every case of violence against Serbs by ethnic Albanians in the province as evidence of NATO's incompetence -- or worse. The bottom line from Belgrade, both under Milosevic and under the present leadership, is that Serbian troops should be allowed back into the province. There is very little chance of that happening in the near future, as Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Nebojsa Covic recently acknowledged. So the ongoing campaign against NATO troops and UN administrators seems to have only one purpose: to maintain and intensify tensions and polarization. Is it too far-fetched to ask if anyone in Moscow might have an interest in all this? Russia (and earlier the Soviet Union) has long regarded the Balkans as perhaps the one place where its role as a great power is unquestioned. Moscow made this clear even during the first years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, when its influence was rapidly receding everywhere else. Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov visited the Balkans in March. His message was vintage Gromyko: militantly negative and anti-Western. He stressed unswerving support for Belgrade, and has more recently expanded his message to be firmly pro-Skopje. Russia has little or no influence among the ethnic Albanians of the region, nor has it shown much interest in cultivating any. Is Moscow unwittingly making the same mistake as Gromyko made in the Middle East and allying itself so strongly with one side so as to preclude any influence with the other? Or might it believe that its future as a great power in the Balkans lies in promoting rifts between the region's Orthodox countries and the West? The idea might sound old-fashioned, but with communism dead as a exportable ideology and the Russian economy bankrupt, perhaps the Third Rome does not have any other option to pursue. 02-08-01 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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