Yugoslav Daily Survey, 97-12-09

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Yugoslav Daily Survey

CONTENTS

[01] SESSION OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

[02] REPUBLICAN ELECTIONS COMMISSION: RESULTS FROM 78% POLLING STATIONS

[03] BOSNIAN SERBS WILL URGE CONSISTENT IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DAYTON ACCORDS

[04] SDS HAS LODGED A COMPLAINT TO THE APPEALS COMMISSION

[05] DJUMIC: OSCE OBSERVERS HAVE NO OBJECTIONS

[06] INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS HAIL ELECTIONS AS REGULAR

[07] RS DELEGATION FOR BONN CONFERENCE

[08] OSCE DELEGATION VISITED THE REPUBLICAN ELECTION COMMITTEE

[09] BELGRADE TO HOST 1998 BALKAN MEETING OF TELECOMMUNICATION MINISTERS

[10] YUGOSLAV-ARAB SOCIETY APPEALS FOR LIFTING OF SANCTIONS

[11] KRAJISNIK RECEIVED U.S. AND RUSSIAN DIPLOMATS

[12] FINAL RESULTS OF REPUBLIKA SRPSKA PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS

[13] STANIMIROVIC: USEFUL MEETING WITH TUDJMAN

[14] POLLING STATIONS IN SERBIA CLOSE

[15] RODIC: FIRST PRELIMINARY RESULTS ON MONDAY

[16] PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVED THE NEWLY APPOINTED BELGIUM AMBASSADOR

[17] BOSNIA'S COUNCIL OF MINISTERS MET IN LUKAVICA

[18] PREMIER KONTIC: YUGOSLAVIA AND RUSSIA WANT TO INTENSIFY ECONOMIC

[19] THE YUGOSLAV-AUSTRIAN BUSINESS CONFERENCE ENDS

[20] UPPER HOUSE PRESIDENT Y.STROYEV IS TO VISIT YUGOSLAVIA NEXT YEAR

[21] KRAJISNIK: CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN CREATED FOR ENDORSEMENT OF LAWS

[22] YUGOSLAV ARMY DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF RECEIVED THE UNPREDEP COMMANDER

[23] DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER BULAJIC SAYS VISIT TO RUSSIA WAS VERY PRODUCTIVE

[24] HEAD OF U.S. MISSION TO YUGOSLAVIA VISITS PRISTINA

[25] YUGOSLAV DEFENSE MINISTER ANNOUNCES VISIT OF HIS RUSSIAN COUNTERPART

[26] GERMAN AND FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTERS VISIT SARAJEVO

[27] PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVED THE NEWLY APPOINTED GHANIAN AMBASSADOR

[28] YUGOSLAV DELEGATION MEMBERS ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THE VISIT TO RUSSIA

[01] SESSION OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

Tanjug, 1997-12-08

The Federal Government, at a session chaired by Prime Minister Radoj e Kontic, on Monday adopted a draft Law on the confirmation of an Agreement with Bulgaria on customs cooperation and mutual aid, a Federal Government statement said. The agreement is aimed at preventing violations of customs and foreign currency regulations, it facilitates and speeds up go ods and passenger traffic and enables a high degree of cooperation between Yugoslavia and Bulgaria on t he coordination of regulations, exchange of knowledge, and training of customs officials. The Government established a Platform for the participation of a Yugoslav delegation to the Ministerial meeting of the Monitoring Committee of the Peace Implementation Council which will be held in Bonn on December 9 and 10. T he meeting will provide an analysis of the implementation of the Dayton-Paris accords and the implem entation of the conclusions from the previous meeting of the Committee held in Portugal in late May this y ear. It was assessed that the FR of Yugoslavia, as a signatory of the peace accords, has made a signifi cant contribution so far to the stabilization of the situation in Bosnia- Herzegovina and the process of b uilding confidence and cooperation in the region, and that it will continue doing so in future as well. The Government is urging the due implementation of the Dayton Accords, and it is necessary to point out at the Ministerial meeting the risks inherent in the issue of refugees, the equal treatment of entities, the a rming of the Muslim-Croat Federation, and other matters. The Government also adopted a Platform for the partici pation of a Yugoslav delegation to the plenary meeting of the Working Group for succession of the Peace I mplementation Council in Brussels on December 9-11. The delegation will be headed by Kosta Mihailo vic. A decision was adopted about the opening of a Yugoslav Consulate, with Honourary Consul Edison S ikeira at its head, in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

[02] REPUBLICAN ELECTIONS COMMISSION: RESULTS FROM 78% POLLING STATIONS

Tanjug, 1997-12-08

Sunday's elections for Serbian President were successful as over 50% of the electorate cast their votes, said the Republican Elections Commission, adding that results from 7,674 or 78% polling stations showed that leftist candidate Milan Milutinovic was in the lead with 1,35 4,118 votes.

Milutinovic, the candidate of the Socialist Party of Serbia-Yugoslav Left- New Democracy, is convincingly ahead of the other six candidates. He won 41.5% of the votes counted so far.

The second most successful candidate is Serbian Radical Party Presid ent Vojislav Seselj, with 1,076,438 votes, or 33%. The candidate of the Serbian Renewal Movement, V uk Draskovic, won 536,669 votes or 16.44%.

Social Democrat candidate Vuk Obradovic won 106,623 votes, Democrati c Centre candidate Dragoljub Micunovic 90,597, independent candidate Miodrag Vidojkovic 24,8 89, and Liberal Democratic Party candidate Predrag Vuletic won 18,811 votes. Figures obtained after the processing of the remaining field reports will not essentially alter the present picture, which means that Milutinovic and Seselj will compete in the run*off on Dec 21, a Commission Spokesman said. The fina l results of the first round will be announced on Tuesday afternoon, two days ahead of the legal deadl ine. The Commission agreed that Sunday's elections had passed in a democratic atmosphere. No objecti ons were received as to their regularity or the course of voting. This is an indication of increasingly democratic relations both in the procedure of nominations and in the procedure of voting at polling statio ns. The Spokesman for the Commission also said the elections had been monitored by representatives of international organizations, primarily the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), who also said the voting had been in order. The 48 foreign observers were headed by the Director of th e OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Gerard Studmann.

[03] BOSNIAN SERBS WILL URGE CONSISTENT IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DAYTON ACCORDS

Tanjug, 1997-12-08

Bosnian Serb member of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency Momcilo Kra jisnik said on Monday before leaving for Bonn to attend an international conference on Bosnia t hat he would urge a consistent implementation of the Dayton Peace Accords and oppose its revision. Kraj isnik said he expected the Bonn Conference to review and set a deadline for obligations stemming from the Dayton Accords. He said that the Republika Srpska would urge a consistent implementation of the Dayton Accords not "because we are enthusiastic about it, but because we signed it and undertook the obligat ion to implement it." "We oppose and fear all revisions of Dayton because they represent attempts at trans ferring some entity powers to Bosnia- Herzegovina, with which we disagree," Krajisnik said and added tha t this referred to the Dayton agreement's provisions which are in the sole jurisdiction of entities, su ch as information, sports and education. Krajisnik said that it was indicative that some circles in the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina, where many issues remain unsettled, had said they were not satisfied with the Bonn documents. "These are deliberate provocations of a policy that wishes to strengthen the positions of Bonn and tries to transfer entities' powers to Bosnia-Herzegovina," Krajisnik said Serb representatives will say that imposed solutions do not function in Bosnia-Herzegovina, he said "The Bonn Conference is crucial for Bosnia- Herzegovina. If force is applied to adopt solutions, B osnia-Herzegovina does not have prospects. The imposition of solutions and outvoting have led to war and one cannot accept that one man (international community's High Representative) is granted more authority in reaching solutions. This is not good," Krajisnik said. According to him, Bosnia-Herzegovina has a future if the equality of the two entities and three peoples is observed. Krajisnik said he regretted the fact that Republika Srpska representatives in Bonn would not have a single platform. He said that Republika Srpska P resident Biljana Plavsic was acting independently and that "we are going to Bonn with uncertainty and hope for success."

Krajisnik said he was dissatisfied with OSCE's preliminary results o n the Republika Srpska parliamentary elections, under which the Serbian Democratic Party had won just 24 seats.

[04] SDS HAS LODGED A COMPLAINT TO THE APPEALS COMMISSION

Tanjug, 1997-12-08

Serbian Democratic Party (SDS) Presidency Chairman Aleksa Buha said on Monday that SDS has lodged a complaint to the Appeals Commission of the Interim Election Comm ission in connection with the partial results of the elections for the National Assembly of Republika S rpska (RS), announced on Sunday by OSCE. Buha specified that the complaint concerned ballots which arriv ed from Vienna, without the proper documentation, and the voting process in the Federation of Bos nia and Herzegovina at 160 polling stations, and where representatives of the RS Government did not have access to one half of the polling stations, making possible the tampering of votes for 18 Federatio n deputies. The Appeals Commission of the Interim Election Commission will examine and resolve th e complaint on Wednesday, and will afterwards announce final results, Buha said. He assessed that t he role of OSCE at these elections was inglorious.

[05] DJUMIC: OSCE OBSERVERS HAVE NO OBJECTIONS

Tanjug, 1997-12-07

Republican Elections Commission Spokesman Zoran Djumic said in Belgr ade on Sunday, after polling stations closed, that the Serbian presidential elections had proc eeded in a democratic and fair atmosphere, without any incidents and in keeping with the law. "The pres idential elections in Serbia were monitored by 249 home and 233 foreign accredited journalists, which is 15 more than at the October 5 elections," Djumic said. Djumic said elections had been followed by 41 o bservers of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and that they had not had any objections about the course of the elections.

[06] INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS HAIL ELECTIONS AS REGULAR

Tanjug, 1997-12-08

Member of the international monitoring mission from Britain Christop her Wyner said late on Sunday he had no objections as to the regularity of the presidential elections i n Serbia. The elections are proceeding very well, said Wyner, a member of the British Helsinki Group, who visited several polling stations in and around Pristina, the capital of Serbia's Province of Koso vo and Metohija. The observers of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said the election s had been fair. OSCE representatives from Germany and Norway monitored the vote in the city of Novi Sad, and toured several polling stations in the town of Apatin, Serbia's northern Vojvodina. Mon itors from France and the United States visited several polling stations in the towns of Cicevac and Kruse vac, central Serbia. Other OSCE monitors visited the election precinct in Zajecar, eastern Serbia. Both s aid the elections had been fair.

[07] RS DELEGATION FOR BONN CONFERENCE

Tanjug, 1997-12-07

The delegation of Republika Srpska (RS) for the International Confer ence on Bosnia-Herzegovina, to be held on December 9-10 in Bonn, will consist of the RS representativ e in the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency, Momcilo Krajisnik, RS President Biljana Plavsic and the Co-Ch airman of the Council of Ministers from RS, Boro Bosic. The delegation will also include the Minis ter for civilian questions and communications in the Bosnia- Herzegovina Council of Ministers, Spasoje Al bijanovic, Deputy Foreign Minister in the Council of Ministers Dragan Bozanic, and several advisors from Plavsic's and Krajisnik's cabinets.

[08] OSCE DELEGATION VISITED THE REPUBLICAN ELECTION COMMITTEE

Tanjug, 1997-12-07

The delegation of the mission of the Organization for Security and C ooperation in Europe (OSCE) which was monitoring the presidential elections in Serbia, headed by the Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights Gerard Schutdmann, and the OSCE mission coordinator for the presidential elections in Serbia Anthony Welch, met on Sunday with member s of the Republican Election Committee to discuss the conducting of the presidential elections, the Re publican Election Committee has said. The Committee's Chairman, Balsa Govedarica, informed the OSCE dele gation that, according to the arriving reports, that the elections were conducted in a democratic and f air atmosphere. It was said that these elections are of big importance for Serbia and the stability of the entire country. Ambassador Schutdmann expressed gratitude on behalf of the OSCE mission for the open ness of all authorized bodies in the Republic which have enabled the mission to carry out its tasks suc cessfully. The OSCE delegation expressed interest in the development and promotion of procedures and leg al regulations of the election system, and the character and provisions of the Election Law and underli ned the progress in the election conditions and the process of democratization. It was said that the coop eration so far with the OSCE representatives had been good and that their presence at the previous and the current elections was of importance and mutual interest. It was emphasised that the suggestions of the OSCE supervisors would be important for all future changes and development of the election syste m, the statement said.

[09] BELGRADE TO HOST 1998 BALKAN MEETING OF TELECOMMUNICATION MINISTERS

Tanjug, 1997-12-05

Belgrade will host the third meeting of Balkan ministers of posts an d telecommunications in 1998, under an unanimous decision by the second Ministerial meeting recently he ld in Istanbul.

Yugoslav Minister of Telecommunications Dojcilo Radojevic, who heade d a Yugoslav delegation at the meeting, told Tanjug that the decision was very important because it represented further recognition of Yugoslavia's policy and efforts it invested in the development of regi onal cooperation. Radojevic described the unanimous decision to hold the third meeting in Belgrade as a confirmation and recognition also of the policy pursued by Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, who is constantly stressing the importance of good-neighbourly cooperation and regional linking.

At the two-day meeting held in Istanbul in late November, Balkan min isters of posts and telecommunications passed a Resolution on promoting regional cooperation in that domain. Radojevic said that the Resolution was an important step into the future because it defi ned specific activities to upgrade mutually beneficial regional cooperation in the area of posts and telecom munications. He said that the FR of Yugoslavia attributed great importance to the promotion of economic an d other cooperation among Balkan countries and added that telecommunications were an indispensable part of that cooperation. In this context, Radojevic also stressed the importance of the Yugoslav ministry in charge of that sector, which has been set up at President Milosevic's initiative and proposal.

The Istanbul meeting was held immediately after a Summit of Balkan h eads of state or government on the Greek island of Crete, Radojevic said. He added that the Crete Sum mit Declaration clearly specified a wish to promote cooperation among Balkan countries in the area of telec ommunications. The Yugoslav delegation at the meeting was actively involved and made a substantial co ntribution to its successful conclusion. Radojevic met with most heads of delegations at the meeting a nd agreed with them that expert groups should meet to solve issues of mutual interest relating to posts, telecommunications and radio communications. The Yugoslav delegation supported initiatives to strengt hen cooperation among Balkan countries in this area. These initiatives were included in the Resolution passed at the meeting. The delegation supported a move to set up an institutionalized form of cooper ation among Balkan countries. It also upheld another proposal that Balkan countries coordinate their ap pearance in international organizations during discussions of relevant issues of interest to all co untries of southeastern Europe. The Resolution also calls for studying possibilities of building a Balkan sat ellite system and other regional research projects that could attract financial support of international i nstitutions and private capital. The Istanbul meeting confirmed a joi nt commitment of participating countries to promoting telecommunication and postal traffic with a view to building confidence a nd stability of Balkan countries. It also represents an important step in further cooperation among these c ountries, Radojevic said.

[10] YUGOSLAV-ARAB SOCIETY APPEALS FOR LIFTING OF SANCTIONS

Tanjug, 1997-12-05

The Yugoslav-Arab Society on Friday appealed to all those who care f or human rights, freedoms and dignity to demand the complete lifting of the sanctions against Iraq and all other countries. The Society condemned sanctions in any form and against any country, maintaining that they present genocide and violations of international laws and the United Nations Charter because t hey deny peoples and individuals the elementary human rights. The Yugoslav-Arab Society believes that an appeal for respect of human rights, freedoms and democracy is hypocritical if it comes from any side which does not oppose sanctions, which does not work on their termination and elimination from internation al relations, said the statement.

[11] KRAJISNIK RECEIVED U.S. AND RUSSIAN DIPLOMATS

Tanjug, 1997-12-06

Republika Srpska President in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovi na Momcilo Krajisnik called, on Friday evening, for an equitable access of the two entities and the th ree peoples at the upcoming Ministerial Conference on Bosnia in Bonn. Krajisnik discussed the Bonn Co nference with U.S. Ambassador in Sarajevo Richard Kauzlaric and Russian Charge d'Affaires in Sarajevo J akov Gerasimov. After receiving the two diplomats in separate visits, Krajisnik said that Muslims were pl acing pressure for a revision of the Dayton Peace Agreement in Bonn in order to diminish the competencies of t he entities. We cannot accept a revision of the Dayton Peace Agreement and the expansion of the mandate of the international community's High Representative, SFOR, and the International Police Force s, Krajisnik said. According to him, Republika Srpska will urge the honouring of all agreements and commi tments, ensuing from the Dayton Peace Agreement. He stressed that what does not proceed from the D ayton Peace Agreement, and was being imposed currently, was dangerous for the stability of peace 2E

[12] FINAL RESULTS OF REPUBLIKA SRPSKA PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS

Tanjug, 1997-12-07

The Serb Democratic Party (SDS) won 24 seats in the 83-seat Republik a Srpska National Assembly according to preliminary results, OSCE Banja Luka Regional Centr e Director Roger Bryant said on Sunday. The pro-Muslim Coalition for an Integral and Democratic Bosnia -Herzegovina won 16 seats, the Serb National Alliance - Biljana Plavsic and the Serbian Radical Part y 15 seats each, the Socialist Party of Republika Srpska 9 seats, and the Party of Independent Social De mocrats of Republika Srpska and the Social Democrat Party of Bosnia-Herzegovina 2 seats each. Bry ant said a total of 712,448 citizens had gone to the polls.

[13] STANIMIROVIC: USEFUL MEETING WITH TUDJMAN

Tanjug, 1997-12-06

Independent Democratic Serb Party President and Croatian Parliament MP Vojislav Stanimirovic described the meeting between representatives of the Joint Council of Mun icipalities (ZVO) and the Serb National Council (SNV) with Croatian President Franjo Tudjman in Zagreb a s very useful, successful and encouraging for Serbs in the Srem-Baranja region. In a telephone stateme nt to Tanjug after the meeting, Stanimirovic said that an official statement was expected already on Mond ay, and also a public address by the Croatian President, to confirm everything that had been agreed at this meeting. "Early next week, we expect the arrival of Justice Minister Miroslav Separovic in this regi on for a session of the National Council for Establishing Confidence, where we shall discuss problems rega rding documents and legislature," Stanimirovic said. He said he expected Minister Separovic w ould make a public statement at this time so that the people could "hear from a Croatian official what is being planned and what they can expect." According to Stanimirovic, this would help remove doubtful point s and ease the anxiety of the people in the region. Speaking about the contents of the talks, Stanimir ovic said it had been heard the UNTAES mandate ended on January 15, 1998, but "both sides pointed out tha t the international community will continue monitoring the processes and that nothing drastic will happ en after the UNTAES leave, which President Tudjman confirmed." Stanimirovic said they had received assura nces from the President that there were no more reasons for any fears or a continuation of the "quiet exodus so far," which Serb representatives pointed out at this meeting.

"We said that the reason for this was that the local border agreemen t had not been good or comprehensive, especially for our refugees from other parts of Croatia," Stanimirovic said, adding that this mistake had now been corrected and that all refugees had the right to bor der passes at discount rates. Serb representatives especially spoke about the problems in connection wi th the inconsistent implementation of the Amnesty Law and the Validation Law. "President Tud jman said there were no longer any lists and, in our presence, ordered the justice minister that an end must be put to the practice of certain irresponsible regional officials, court presidents or judges, deliberatel y or by chance, aimed at getting us to leave these lands, to activate some lists which Tudjman said had been suspended," Stanimirovic said. He said there could be talk only of persecutions of those persons who hav e been proven perpetrators of war crimes. "We were promised that people who are now in the region will have the same rights regardless of nationality and that all refugees will have equal rights to return and renewal," he said. Regarding lost tenancy rights, Tudjman promised these problems would be r esolved in the best possible way, either in the respective refugee's original place of residence or he re in the region, said Stanimirovic.

"Those people who wish to remain in the region, also according to th e Croatian President, have the right to do so under the Erdut Agreement and their tenancy rights in the region will be settled," said Stanimirovic. The talks also briefly covered matters of education and it was agreed that further progress was necessary in this area. "We spoke about the status of the ZVO and th e issue of the so-called Klein's municipalities. President Tudjman absolutely supported our stand that the se municipalities, which held elections, and also the status of the ZVO, must be regulated by a special law," Stanimirovic pointed out. These municipalities will be covered by the Law on Territorial Organizati on, and the ZVO will have its own Status in order adequately to protect the rights and interests of the Ser b people, he said.

[14] POLLING STATIONS IN SERBIA CLOSE

Tanjug, 1997-12-07

Polling stations in Serbia closed at 8 p.m. local time on Sunday, af ter citizens cast their votes for republican President. A total of 7,234,769 registered voters were able t o vote at 9,827 polling stations which opened at 7 a.m. local time, circling one of the seven candidates f or Serbian President. The candidates were Milan Milutinovic, candidate of the Socialist Party o f Serbia, Yugoslav Left and New Democracy, Vojislav Seselj of the Serbian Radical Party, Vuk Draskovic of the Serbian Renewal Movement, Dragoljub Micunovic of the Democratic Centre, Vuk Obradovic of the Social Democrats, Predrag Vuletic of the Liberal Democratic Party, and Miodrag Vidojkovic, an independent c andidate.

[15] RODIC: FIRST PRELIMINARY RESULTS ON MONDAY

Tanjug, 1997-12-07

Republican Elections Commission Secretary Nebojsa Rodic told Tanjug late on Sunday that the first preliminary results of yesterday's presidential elections would be announced on Monday between 2 and 3 p.m. local time at a press conference of the Commission. The Repub lican Elections Commission did not receive any complaints during the day about the regularity of the elections for Serbian President, he said. The elections proceeded in a fair and democratic atmosphere and in keeping with the election laws, said Rodic.

[16] PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVED THE NEWLY APPOINTED BELGIUM AMBASSADOR

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic received on Thursday Belgium's newly- appointed Ambassador in Belgrade Joris Couvreur who presented his credentials to him.

Couvreur said it was both in Belgium's and Yugoslavia's interest to promote relations still further. He said the two countries had a constructive political dialogue within which readiness had been manifested to boost economic cooperation for which great possibilities existed.

Milosevic said Yugoslavia was committed to the policy of full openness, the respect of the principle of equality of states and nations and of their independence as well as to building confidence.

He also said Yugoslavia was working on the promotion of all-round cooperation with Belgium, which he said was part of the country's effort to take part in modern integration processes, especially in Europe, on the footing of equality.

Milosevic wished the Belgian Ambassador to contribute to the processes in question.

[17] BOSNIA'S COUNCIL OF MINISTERS MET IN LUKAVICA

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Bosnia's Council of Ministers reviewed in a meeting in Lukavica on Thursday documents that are to be adopted at the Ministerial Conference of the Peace Implementation Council in Bonn, Germany, on December 8-9.

Hans Schumacher, deputy of the High Representative for Bosnia, informed the Council of Ministers about the conclusions reached at the meeting of the five-nation 'Contact-Group' in Paris on Wednesday, stressing that the international community was determined to fully implement the Dayton Peace Accords.

Council Co-Chairman from Republika Srpska Boro Bosic said he had presented the Republika Srpska's position on the documents.

Co-Chairman from the Moslem-Croat Federation Haris Silajdzic criticised the said documents, saying they gave the two entities broader rights than to Bosnia-Herzegovina. He said this was a step back from a meeting of the Peace Implementation Council held in Sintra, Portugal, in June and the Conference in London held a year ago.

[18] PREMIER KONTIC: YUGOSLAVIA AND RUSSIA WANT TO INTENSIFY ECONOMIC

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Yugoslav Prime Minister Radoje Kontic said upon his return to Belgrade from Russia on Thursday that his Moscow talks had brought to light a general wish for intensifying economic and overall bilateral cooperation.

Speaking to reporters on his return, he said that the visit had been highly successful and that all questions broached by the Yugoslav side had met with full understanding on the part of the Russian partners in talks.

"Their meeting of our demands and our interests was limited only by objective Russian interests," he said, expressing his thanks to Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin for constructive talks and for the invitation to visit the Russian Federation.

Summing up the results of the visit, Kontic said that a Memorandum had been signed on liberalising bilateral trade, which reflected the two countries' political commitment to set up a free trade zone in the foreseeable future. "The Yugoslav side expressed a wish for this to be done by the end of the century, and suggested setting up task forces of experts to lay down the groundwork for implementing the first phase of the Memorandum, i.e., for liberalising mutual trade.

"This would consist in reducing tariffs or even fully abolishing them for certain Yugoslav commodities," he explained.

He stressed that the Russian side had accepted the Yugoslav suggestion, and so the implementation of the Memorandum could well begin next year.

He further said that great attention had been devoted to promoting cooperation in finance and banking, and a 150-million-dollar inter-state credit had been arranged to this end. The credit was basically intended to finance the marketing of Russian power industry, ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy and mining industry equipment in Yugoslavia, he specified. This, he added, should help revive the Yugoslav economy now that the international community's anti-Yugoslav sanctions had been lifted.

Kontic went on to say that liberalisation of passenger travel had also been discussed, recalling that already no visas were required for diplomatic and business trips between the two countries. But, he added, Yugoslavia had launched an initiative for abolishing visas completely, to reflect the high level of development of bilateral relations, and to give a powerful impact to economic cooperation, primarily in tourism and agriculture.

Special attention was devoted also to more advanced long-term forms of cooperation, he said, adding that the Russian side had agreed to the Yugoslav request that long-term business arrangements should be made in the energy sector as well as other sectors. This should guarantee a sure supply of natural gas and crude oil to the Yugoslav market, he explained.

He went on to say that the Yugoslav side had also proposed building infrastructural facilities that should ensure Yugoslavia's rational supply with fuel, specifically crude oil. In this context it was proposed to build an oil pipeline from Budapest, Hungary, to Novi Sad, Yugoslavia, to transport Russian oil for Yugoslav needs, and on to the Mediterranean, he said.

He stressed that an Agreement had also been signed on cooperation in education and culture over the next three years, and listed a range of other agreements discussed, some of them negotiated, during the visit.

He said that, if the agreements were implemented, and he saw no reason why they should not be, then this year's volume of bilateral trade could be expected to be doubled or even tripled by the end of the century, to reach between 2.5 and 3.5 billion dollars.

In respect of international topics, special attention had been devoted to the implementation of the Dayton Accord, Kontic said. He specified that the two sides agreed that only a consistent implementation of the accord could guarantee lasting peace and stability in the region.

He said that the Yugoslav side had taken the opportunity to draw Russia's attention, as a member of the Contact Group, to the dangers and risks inherent in the implementation of the Dayton Accord. These concerned especially the matter of refugees and displaced persons and their repatriation, and the unequal treatment accorded to the (Bosnian Serb) Republika Srpska in Bosnia-Herzegovina in the matter of economic recovery, he said.

He added it had been agreed that the FR of Yugoslavia and Russia should, in the coming period, coordinate their approach in respect of providing assistance to Republika Srpska for the purpose of economic recovery.

Kontic further stressed that the Russian side had expressed unreserved support for Yugoslavia's reincorporation in the international community.

"Not only did they promise openly to support our request for an unconditional return to the international community, they said also they would launch special initiatives for normalising Yugoslavia's relations with the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the World Trade Organisation," he stressed.

[19] THE YUGOSLAV-AUSTRIAN BUSINESS CONFERENCE ENDS

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

A Yugoslav-Austrian business conference, where both sides confirmed that it was necessary to work together on the promotion of cooperation in order to reach the former value of trade of half a billion dollars, ended in Vienna on Thursday.

Forty Yugoslav and 70 Austrian businessmen from mostly small and medium- sized companies participated in the conference, hosted by the Austrian Chamber of Commerce.

Yugoslav Chamber of Commerce President Mihajlo Milojevic, who headed the Yugoslav delegation, met with Austrian Transport Minister Kaspar Einem, Deputy Economy Minister in charge of foreign trade policy and European integration Jozeph Mayer, Head of the Austrian Chambers of Agriculture Rudolf Scwarzbock, Austrian Chamber of Commerce representatives, industrialists and managers of a large number of Austrian firms, including Siemens Austria and Roboter System AG.

During the talks, support was given to a further strengthening of ties between the two countries' companies and it was said that within its possibilities, Austria, as the future E.U. President, would help the Yugoslav economy integrate in the European processes.

[20] UPPER HOUSE PRESIDENT Y.STROYEV IS TO VISIT YUGOSLAVIA NEXT YEAR

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Yugoslav Prime Minister Radoje Kontic conferred on Thursday with Russian Parliament's Upper House President Yegor Stroyev on a large number of issues of importance for relations between the two countries.

After the meeting, Kontic said he had conveyed to Stroyev an invitation of the Federal Assembly to visit Yugoslavia next year. The invitation was accepted with great pleasure and this will essentially contribute to the promotion of cooperation between the two countries, Kontic said.

Kontic said he had asked Stroyev to help toward the soonest possible ratification of inter*state agreements that have been signed and those which will soon be signed.

After the talks with Kontic, Stroyev told Yugoslav and Russian reporters that parliaments in principle have a big role in forming of a legislative basis for cooperation with other states.

Stroyev said the two sides had conferred on the manner of functioning of the federation as a form of state organization, as well as experience in the work of the Upper Houses of Parliament in Russia and Yugoslavia.

Many are surprised that there are no political parties in the Upper House of the Russian Parliament, he said. During the talks with Kontic, much was said about the expansion of cooperation between different regions in the Russian Federation and the FR of Yugoslavia.

Stroyev emphasized as the most important thing his personal feeling that it was a visit of close friends, Slavs.

[21] KRAJISNIK: CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN CREATED FOR ENDORSEMENT OF LAWS

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

A major rapprochement was reached at a session of the three-man Presidency of Bosnia- Herzegovina held in Sarajevo's Muslim section on Thursday evening, which created conditions for passing of a package of laws on passports, citizenship and the Council of Ministers, Office of Republika Srpska member of the Bosnian Presidency Momcilo Krajisnik said in a statement.

Krajisnik met on Thursday with Foreign Ministers Klaus Kinkel of Germany and Hubert Vedrine of France and discussed with them results achieved so far in the implementation of the Dayton Peace Accords and activities in the coming period, including issues relating to the Conference in Bonn, said the statement.

Krajisnik stressed the importance of a balanced approach in donating of international aid. He also said that there were attempts at revising the Dayton treaty.

Kinkel and Vedrine voiced their countries' joint commitment to a full implementation of the Dayton Peace Accords, the statement said.

[22] YUGOSLAV ARMY DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF RECEIVED THE UNPREDEP COMMANDER

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Yugoslav Army Deputy Chief of General Staff Lt. Gen. Dragoljub Ojdanic and his aides received on Thursday the commander of the U.N. Preventive Deployment Force for Macedonia (UNPREDEP), Brig. Gen. Bent Soneman.

Lt. Gen. Ojdanic and Brig. Gen. Soneman discussed the situation on the Yugoslav-Macedonian border focusing on events that had occurred since their meeting on August 28, said a statement released by the Yugoslav Army Press Section. They agreed that cooperation between the Yugoslav Army and UNPREDEP was good and that the situation on the border was stable.

Brig. Gen. Soneman informed Lt. Gen. Ojdanic about a draft in respect of the UNPREDEP mandate which is to be adopted by the U.N. Security Council in the next few days, the statement said.

[23] DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER BULAJIC SAYS VISIT TO RUSSIA WAS VERY PRODUCTIVE

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

The visit paid to Russia by the Yugoslav government delegation has been very successful and productive, Yugoslav Deputy Foreign Minister Radoslav Bulajic said on Thursday.

"I am extremely pleased with the visit and think that it will impart and impulse and greatly contribute to the promotion of our cooperation, especially economic," Bulajic told journalists at the close of the two-day visit.

When the issue of Yugoslavia's return to the United Nations system comes up in the Security Council and the General Assembly, many countries will, with Russia's yes, also vote in favour, Bulajic set out.

Deputy Foreign Minister Bulajic said that the maintaining of the so-called outer wall of sanctions against Yugoslavia primarily depended on the United States and set out that the "Russian Federation has highly developed relations with and influence on the USA" and "can through that influence achieve moderation of the American position and relinquishing of some political conditions relating to our internal affairs," Bulajic told the press.

"We fulfil all the conditions that we can meet without affecting our own national interests," the Yugoslav diplomat underlined.

"We will try to continue being cooperative and more flexible, but we must not act against our own national interests," Bulajic reiterated.

He said that the success of the Yugoslav-Russian talks could partly be due to the fact that, alongside of the traditional friendship and closeness of the peoples of Yugoslavia and Russia, the two sides had displayed pragmatism possibly for the first time.

"It seems to me that the set goal of raising the level of mutual trade to 2.5-3 billion dollars over the next two years seems to me quite attainable with such an approach," Yugoslav Deputy Foreign Minister Bulajic stressed in conclusion.

[24] HEAD OF U.S. MISSION TO YUGOSLAVIA VISITS PRISTINA

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Head of the U.S. mission in Belgrade Richard Miles and his aides met on Thursday with Deputy Head of the Kosovo District Veljko Odalovic and Provincial Information Secretary Bosko Drobnjak.

The talks dealt with terrorist attacks which have become increasingly frequent in the areas of Glogovac, Srbica, Podujevo, Decani and Stimlje and have caused great concern among all ethnic groups living in Serbia's southern Province of Kosovo and Metohija, said a statement issued by the Provincial Information Secretariat.

The statement said state officials and ethnic Albanians loyal to Serbia were targets of these attacks, saying this was a way of exerting pressure on Serbs and Montenegrins to leave the Province with the intention of making it ethnically pure.

The statement said both sides had condemned terrorism agreeing that ethnic Albanian leaders must in a more unequivocal way identify and condemn ever- more present terrorism which it said was a major threat to peace both in and outside the Province.

The statement said the two sides had also agreed that terrorist attacks posed an obstacle to a political dialogue which was a must and the only way of solving problems in Kosovo and Metohija.

The statement also said December's elections for the illegal Republic of Kosovo made more difficult a dialogue starting from the position, recognised by the international community, that Kosovo and Metohija was an integral part of Serbia and Yugoslavia. Ethnic Albanian leaders must be aware of this if they really want to hold talks on the issue and solve it peacefully, the statement said.

[25] YUGOSLAV DEFENSE MINISTER ANNOUNCES VISIT OF HIS RUSSIAN COUNTERPART

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Yugoslav Defense Minister Pavle Bulatovic said on Thursday following talks between Yugoslav and Russian government delegations that an Agreement on bilateral military and technical cooperation was the basis of successful cooperation between the Yugoslav and Russian armies and Defense Ministries.

Bulatovic said that Yugoslavia was signing similar arrangements with all countries with which it had friendly relations, such as Russia.

Speaking about the agreement with Russia which has just been signed, Bulatovic said that Russian arms dominated the structure of Yugoslav Army armament. It is necessary to maintain these weapons and, depending on our financial abilities and needs, purchase new, more up-to-date ones, he said.

Asked by reporters if there were plans for Russian Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev's visit to Yugoslavia, Bulatovic said that Sergeyev had been sent a written invitation earlier, which was now endorsed in person. "I expect Minister Sergeyev to visit Yugoslavia next year," Bulatovic said.

[26] GERMAN AND FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTERS VISIT SARAJEVO

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

German and French Foreign Ministers Klaus Kinkel and Hubert Vedrin arrived in Sarajevo on Thursday and met with Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency members Alija Izetbegovic, Momcilo Krajisnik and Kresimir Zubak.

Kinkel and Vedrin first held separate talks and then a joint meeting with members of the Presidency.

The talks were said to have been aimed at making preparations for an International Conference on Bosnia to be held in Bonn on December 9-10, which is expected to give a strong impetus to the implementation of the Dayton Accords.

[27] PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVED THE NEWLY APPOINTED GHANIAN AMBASSADOR

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic received on Thursday the newly appointed Ghanian Ambassador in Belgrade Joao Gonsalves Baeta, who presented his credentials.

Ghanian Ambassador Baeta transmitted to President Milosevic greetings and best regards from Ghanian President Jerry Rawlings, and pointed out the long standing and firm friendship between the two countries, which goes back to the days when Ghana was gaining independence.

Ambassador Baeta underlined the wish of his Government and people to further successfully develop cooperation with Yugoslavia. He said that Ghana was especially interested in intensifying economic ties with Yugoslavia on the basis of the potentials of the two economies as well as the rich and positive experiences gained in relations between partners in the two countries.

President Milosevic, for his part, stressed that the two countries were bound by strong friendship, mutual understanding, and commitment to a policy of peace and the development of equality-based relations among states and peoples in the world.

President Milosevic said that Yugoslavia was greatly interested in renewing successful economic cooperation with Ghana, based on mutual possibilities and interests of economic partners in the two countries, whose deals over a long number of years he noted had affirmed them on the international market.

President Milosevic singled out the facilities built by Yugoslav companies in Ghana.

President Milosevic asked Ambassador Baeta to convey to President Rawlings best wishes for the well-being of the people of Ghana and Ghana's further progress, and wished the Ghanian Ambassador success in the performance of his responsible duties.

[28] YUGOSLAV DELEGATION MEMBERS ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THE VISIT TO RUSSIA

Tanjug, 1997-12-04

Yugoslav Foreign Trade Minister Borislav Vukovic said on Thursday that the value of Yugoslav- Russian trade could reach between 2 and 2.5 billion US dollars in the year 2000.

Vukovic, who was on a Yugoslav government delegation to talks with top Russian ministers that ended on Thursday, said that the projected value of bilateral trade by the end of the century could be reached only if the two sides raised their mutual trade by approximately 50 percent over each of the following three years. He said that such a high increase in trade was feasible provided that Yugoslavia reached an adequate production growth, especially in industrial output, and boosted revenues in the service sector by the above period.

"We have a certain trade deficit with Russia, but this problem could be successfully solved through an implementation of the above objectives," said Vukovic.

"Our objective is first to reduce the current trade deficit with Russia and then minimize, i.e. eliminate it," he said.

He said that export of Yugoslav products to the Russian market should be increased through counter-deliveries for oil imported from Russia and drawing of state tied credit to Yugoslav companies.

Metal-processing companies and those from the energy sector should benefit the most from the drawing of the tied credit not only in 1998, but also during 1999 and the year 2000, Vukovic said.

There are excellent chances for placing Yugoslav consumer goods on the Russian market, he said and added that a lot could be achieved in that domain also by setting up joint venture companies and through their joint appearance on the domestic and third markets.

Vukovic said that Yugoslav food-processing companies, textile and footwear factories have good chances of exporting to the Russian market. He said that these industries had also accounted earlier for Yugoslav export to the former Soviet and Russian markets.

He said that chances were good for return to those markets, but that competition was tougher than before.

He said that business deals concluded between Russian companies and the Subotica-based Sever company and the Backa Palanka-based Sintelon company set very good examples of production cooperation and operation of joint venture companies. Thanks to contracts, which have just been concluded with Russian partners, these companies will strike major export deals with chances of increase in the foreseeable future, Vukovic said.

Yugoslav Finance Minister Bozidar Gazivoda said that the tied credit agreement will significantly stimulate the Yugoslav economy, especially industries that had export potentials but were currently in a difficult position.

Gazivoda said that the talks with Russian partners would continue and added that he expected other, even more favourable arrangements. "It is very important that the agreements signed with Russian partners imply not only restoration of trust in both our state and our economy, but also, at the same time, a great test for future deals," he said.

Yugoslav Minister of Agriculture Nedeljko Sipovac gave a very positive opinion of the tied credit and other arrangements with Russia.

Sipovac said that a meeting with his Russian counterpart was an opportunity to solve some problems that hampered further expansion of bilateral cooperation. He said a mixed Working Group of agricultural experts was due to meet as early as in January to focus on Yugoslav needs that should restore its position on the Russian market.

"Before the sanctions, Yugoslavia had been present on the Russian Federation market for several decades and it is important to both sides to strengthen these positions again as soon as possible," Sipovac said.

He said that, within the liberalization of trade, it had been agreed also to make an inventory of both Yugoslav and Russian needs or a list of what both markets, respectively, needed.

"We have told our hosts that we have had very bountiful crops and that we are ready to deliver to their market various agricultural produce," Sipovac said. He stressed that these and all other agriculture-related issues would be constantly on the agenda of the Yugoslav-Russian Mixed Commission for agriculture.

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