Yugoslav Daily Survey, 97-01-06

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From: Yugoslavia <http://www.yugoslavia.com>

Yugoslav Daily Survey

CONTENTS

[01] ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF RECEIVES BELGRADE STUDENTS

[02] GHALI URGES EXTENSION OF U.N. OBSERVER MISSION'S MANDATE ON PREVLAKA

[03] YUGOSLAV ASSISTANT FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS WITH OSCE OFFICIALS

[01] ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF RECEIVES BELGRADE STUDENTS

The students briefed Perisic of the aims and methods of their peaceful protest and set out their demands.

Perisic laid stress to the Army's constitutional role and tasks.

He said the current problems had to be resolved in the legal institutions of the state, as is appropriate in all democratic countries, in order that Yugoslavia may be incorporated into the international community as quickly as possible, said the statement.

Yugoslav Daily Survey, 1997-01-06 ; Tanjug, 1997-01-06

[02] GHALI URGES EXTENSION OF U.N. OBSERVER MISSION'S MANDATE ON PREVLAKA

The mission's current six-month mandate expires on January 15. Ghali proposed that its mandate be extended until July 15. the Security Council should take a decision on the matter by mid-January.

Prevlaka is a strategic promontory situated at the border between Yugoslavia and Croatia. Prevlaka was placed under control of the U.N. Protection Force in 1992.

Ghali said chances of the peaceful resolution of the Prevlaka issue were greater now that Yugoslavia and Croatia had signed an agreement on the normalisation of relations. He expressed optimism about finding a final solution to the issue.

The agreement, signed on August 23, 1996, has created conditions for the peaceful resolution of the issue, he said.

He said Croatia and Yugoslavia had taken upon themselves to settle all disputes through negotiations and in keeping with the U.N. Charter and goodneighbourly relations.

He said the situation at Prevlaka was stable but tense, which he said made the presence of U.N. observers in the area vital. Ghali said Croatia had on several occasions prevented U.N. observers from visiting some points under its control. If agreement is reached on free movement of U.N. observers, the currently 28-strong mission will have to be reinforced, he said.

Yugoslav Daily Survey, 1997-01-06 ; Tanjug, 1997-01-04

[03] YUGOSLAV ASSISTANT FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS WITH OSCE OFFICIALS

Describing meetings with ranking OSCE officials in Vienna in an interview to the Yugoslav Tanjug news agency and Serbian Radio and Television, Jovanovic said:

'As you know, we had a large number of meetings primarily with the OSCE 'three', the E.U. 'three' and a large number of European countries' permanent OSCE representatives. All these meetings took place in an atmosphere of understanding and readiness for dialogue and cooperation with Yugoslavia.

'We delivered Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic's letter in which the Yugoslav Government's positions were presented on the report submitted by Felipe Gonzalez, who headed the OSCE delegation that recently visited the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in relation to a part of results of local elections in Serbia'.

'What is important is that this document, this letter, was circulated as an official document at the OSCE headquarters and at the session of the OSCE Standing Council.'

'I believe that talks do not only confirm readiness for clearing up misunderstandings surrounding a part of local polls in Serbia but also for laying the foundation of future cooperation between Yugoslavia and OSCE on the footing of equality.'

'I consider all these talks extremely useful and fruitful, and the readiness on the part of all the officials we met, including the OSCE leadership, to continue and deepen dialogue with Yugoslavia is of utmost importance.'

Asked to comment on the conclusions of the session presented by Council Chairman Lars Vissing, Jovanovic said, 'no formal decision was taken either during or at the end of preliminary debate on the report submitted by Felipe Gonzalez, during the session of the OSCE Standing Council'.

'The Chairman commented at a news conference on the session, which was attended by a large number of delegates as we have been informed'.

'I believe it is of utmost importance that no decisions or formal conclusions were taken, that Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic's letter was circulated as an official OSCE document at the session and that the document will be discussed in a separate meeting that will be attended also by a Yugoslav representative'.

'The Chairman's proposal as well as his personal stand is that a dialogue with Yugoslavia within OSCE continue and that all spheres and modalities of broader cooperation between Yugoslavia and OSCE be reviewed'.

'It is very important that the position of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia that no arbitration or mediation is possible as regards issues concerning local polls i.e. part of local polls in Serbia - they being an internal affair of a sovereign state - and that all issues must be resolved within the political system of Serbia and Yugoslavia also in the future, with the full respect of legal institutions and laws - was reaffirmed in Gonzalez's report'.

'The position that only the citizens, only the will of the citizens of Serbia can determine the outcome of local polls has in this way been reaffirmed,' Jovanovic said.

Yugoslav Daily Survey, 1997-01-06 ; Tanjug, 1997-01-03

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