Yugoslav Daily Survey 96-01-26

Yugoslav Daily Survey Directory

From: ddc@nyquist.bellcore.com (D.D. Chukurov)

26 January 1996

CONTENTS

[A] FROM THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA

[01] SERBIAN PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC INVITED TO VISIT UKRAINE

[02] SERBIAN PREMIER RECEIVES UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER

[03] UKRAINIAN MINISTER SEES VISIT TO YUGOSLAVIA AS USEFUL TO OVERALL TIES

[04] YUGOSLAVIA, UKRAINE SIGN AGREEMENT ON AIR TRAFFIC

[05] AGNELLI TALKS WITH MILUTINOVIC, GRANIC, SACIRBEY

[06] YUGOSLAV REPORT ON INTERNATIONAL LAWS VIOLATIONS IN CROATIA, BOSNIA

[B] INTERVIEWS

[07] MILOSEVIC: CONDITIONS SET FOR LASTING PEACE IN ENTIRE REGION

[C] BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

[08] ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP: CROAT TROOPS MAKE CROATS LEAVE NORTHERN BOSNIA

[09] MUSLIM ARMY HARASSES FELLOW COUNTRYMEN IN WESTERN BOSNIA

[A] FROM THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA

[01] SERBIAN PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC INVITED TO VISIT UKRAINE

During an open and friendly meeting, Milosevic and Udovenko agreed on the mutual interest and readiness of their countries to develop close relations and intensify top-level contacts, Milosevic's office said in a communique released on Thursday.

Both sides pointed to the need to upgrade economic cooperation in all spheres.

The communique said that Ukraine now represented one of Yugoslavia's most important trading partners because of many advantages, geographical vicinity, direct transportation on the Danube river, natural resources and positive experience in previous periods of cooperation.

Trade exchange between the two countries could soon exceed two billion dollars, said the communique.

Real prospects for an intensive development of both economies exist in the field of transportation, mechanical engineering industry, electronics, chemical industry, agriculture, agricultural engineering, manufacture of agricultural equipmentand vehicles, ship building, trade and others.

Moreover, there are fresh prospects for modern forms of cooperation - joint investments, scientific and techical cooperation and marketing in third countries, the statement added.

The statement said that both sides attached great importance to the readiness shown for the participation of Yugoslav firms in Ukrainian programmes on the reconstruction of economic capacities, transportation infrastructure and current programmes on the conversion of the military industry.

Both sides agreed on the need to upgrade cooperation in the field of culture, science and sports.

The communique said that Yugoslavia highly praised Ukraine's impartial stand towards the crisis in the former Yugoslavia. Belgrade has welcomed Ukraine's active and persistent support to Yugoslavia's efforts to have an equal position in the international community. Ukraine's support is best corroborated by a normal functioning of Yugoslav-Ukrainian diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level.

Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic also took part in the meeting, the communique said.

[02] SERBIAN PREMIER RECEIVES UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER

Both sides said that annual bilateral trade could realistically be expected to reach between 1.5 and 2 billion dollars in value now that the sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had been suspended. There is great potential for cooperation in the building industry, railway reconstruction, agriculture, ship overhaul, the engineering industry, trade, tourism, transport and the production and exchange of cars.

The two sides agreed to intensify the application of basic economic agreements, and said it was necessary to step up work on forming an inter-governmental commission on trade and economic cooperation.

Udovenko said that Ukraine would support efforts in international fora for incorporating Yugoslavia speedily in world economic and political affairs.

[03] UKRAINIAN MINISTER SEES VISIT TO YUGOSLAVIA AS USEFUL TO OVERALL TIES

Cooperation with Yugoslavia is important to Kiev, Udovenko told reporters at Belgrade airport prior to his departure for Ukraine, and stressed that there was political goodwill to expand cooperation in all fields, and particularly in the economic field. He said that he had had fruitful talks with top Yugoslav and Serbian officials, especially with Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, who he said had contributed greatly to the normalisation of the situation in former Yugoslavia.

Udovenko said he had discussed with Milosevic a number of questions of importance to the two countries, including privatisation. Udovenko said Milosevic had praised Kiev's help in lifting international sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and stressed Ukraine had always supported efforts to bring Yugoslavia back into the world community as an equal member. Ukraine will uphold Yugoslavia's swift reincorporation in world economic affairs, Udovenko added.

He said that trade between Yugoslavia and Ukraine might reach two billion dollars in value in 1996, and that prospects were especially good for cooperation in agriculture, the building, engineering and ship-building industries and trade.

[04] YUGOSLAVIA, UKRAINE SIGN AGREEMENT ON AIR TRAFFIC

[05] AGNELLI TALKS WITH MILUTINOVIC, GRANIC, SACIRBEY

Milutinovic and Granic had constructive stands towards the question of the Srem-Baranja Region, the announcement said and added that both of them sought the soonest possible despatch of U.N. peace corps to that region in keeping with the Security Council resolution of January 15.

[06] YUGOSLAV REPORT ON INTERNATIONAL LAWS VIOLATIONS IN CROATIA, BOSNIA

The report includes 40 cases of the killing of civilians, 20 cases of the killing of POWs, 18 cases of inhumane treatment of civilians, 56 cases of inhumane treatment of POWs and other prisoners, ten cases of the killing of POWs and the ill, and 20 cases of ethnic cleansing.

The report was submitted to the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, UNHCR, Special Human rights Rapporteur for the Former Yugoslavia Elisabeth Rehn and Director General of the U.N. office in Geneva Vladimir Petrovski.

The Yugoslav Government report will be an official document at the coming 52nd session of the U.N. Human Rights Commission in Geneva in March.

A separate part of the report lists and gives proof for war crimes committed during Croatia's offensives against U.N.-Protected Serb Krajina in May and August 1995. The report said that on May 1, 1995, the Croatian Army launched an offensive against western Slavonia and that Nepalese and Jordanian peacekeepers had had advance information about the offensive. About 15,000 Croatian troops attacked about 4,000 Krajina Serbs who had no heavy weapons, having placed them under U.N. control. Croatians used heavy weapons and air force in the attack, the report said.

Croatian forces attacked and killed innocent Serb civilians during the offensive. The most drastic example is the killing of hundreds of mostly women, children and the elderly, who were trying to cross the river Sava to save their lives.

Three months later, the Croatian army and police launched a large-scale offensive against the southern and northern parts of Serb Krajina, killing innocent civilians, attacking columns of refugees and destroying everything in their path.The report also lists examples and firm evidence about war crimes committed by Croats and Muslims in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

[B] INTERVIEWS

[07] MILOSEVIC: CONDITIONS SET FOR LASTING PEACE IN ENTIRE REGION

Pointing out that there were still obstacles to the peace process, he marked as the opponents of peace certain forces among Bosnian Muslims and Croats in western Herzegovina, but said he believed Croatia was mostly for peace and would manage to control these forces.

He said it would be possible to evaluate the real results of the peace process when legal institutions of power were established in the field. Only then will refugees be able to return to their homes in peace, Milosevic said.

[C] BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

[08] ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP: CROAT TROOPS MAKE CROATS LEAVE NORTHERN BOSNIA

'A group of political or military representatives have forced 105 families from the village of Majdan near Mrkonjic Grad to pack up and leave,' Komarica said in a letter to Croatian Foreign Minister Mate Granic, AFP reported.

Under the Dayton agreement, Majdan and Mrkonjic Grad should be returned to Bosnian Serbs.

In the letter, Bishop Komaric sharply condemned the inhumane practice of the Bosnian Croat army and said that Granic had promised to prevent the exodus of Catholics from western Bosnia and closing of Catholic parishes in the region.

The bishop protested with the IFOR command for northwestern Bosnia against the 'serious crime of ethnic cleansing.'

Vicar Miljenko Anicic of Banja Luka informed Croatian President Franjo Tudjman in a letter that Bosnian Croat troops were forcing Croats to leave Majdan.

[09] MUSLIM ARMY HARASSES FELLOW COUNTRYMEN IN WESTERN BOSNIA

The flow of Muslim refugees from Kuplensko camp in Croatia has diminished due to harassment by the Muslim fifth corps and special police forces, said Alexander Ivanko, news agencies report from Sarajevo.

In recent days the U.N. civilian police have received at least five complaints every day of intimidation and violence against the returning of refugees, said Ivanko, adding that 56 cases had been reported.

Ivanko cited the case of a woman whose house was surrounded by fifth corps soldiers and showered with bombs on January 11. We have reliable information that the head of the town's civil defense threw a bomb on the house of a returnee, shouting, 'you still alive', said Ivanko and added that the man had not been injured, but that a lot of damage was done to his house.

UNHCR Spokesman Chris Janowski said on Thursday that the agency knew of at least 20 cases of returnees beaten up and that Muslim special police had killed one man. Janowski said the UNHCR was concerned about the harassment of refugees returning from Kuplensko camp.