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AFP Tuesday March 19, 8:27 PM Serbian Deputy PM resigns over espionage affair Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Momcilo Perisic resigned after he was briefly detained last week on suspicion of espionage, his spokesman Nebojsa Mandic told AFP. "Momcilo Perisic delivered his resignation to Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic today," Mandic said. Perisic was arrested late Thursday together with US diplomat John David Neighbor on suspicion of spying and revealing military secrets. He was released on bail Saturday by the military court in Belgrade pending the outcome of an investigation into the allegations. In a letter to Djindjic, Perisic said he has always been "guided exclusively by the interests of the (Serbian) nation and state, so there is no reason to change it now. "I fully support the Serbian government and regardless of whether I am resigning today from the post of deputy prime minister, my struggle for a better and happier Serbia will not be stopped in such a monstrous way," said the letter, a copy of which was obtained by AFP. "I will defend my innocence by my personality and my deeds and therefore neither I have claimed nor I will claim any immunity," Perisic added. Perisic enjoys immunity, both as deputy premier and a deputy in the federal parliament, but under constitutional rules this does not apply if he is found guilty of a crime carrying a prison sentence of at least five years. "Serbian people, my soldiers and everybody who has cooperated with me know very well what I have done for my country," said Perisic, also a former Yugoslav army chief of staff. Both Djindjic and Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica demanded Perisic's resignation on Monday following the arrest, which sparked strong reactions in Washington and Belgrade. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Sports - live college hoops coverage http://sports.yahoo.com/ --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9617B Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
