YUGOSLAVIA NATO
- ROBERTSON:MILESTONE IN NATO-YUGOSLAV RELATIONS
FROM THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA
- KOSTUNICA SAYS MISTAKES MUST NOT BE REPEATED
- YUGOSLAVIA TO CUT DOWN NUMBER OF EMBASSIES
- MAJOR PROFITEERS OF FORMER REGIME IDENTIFIED
- FEDERAL JUSTICE MINISTER: FORMING A TEAM FOR COOPERATION WITH THE
HAGUE
YUGOSLAVIA-RUSSIA
- RUSSIA'S STATE DUMA VOICES SUPPORT TO YUGOSLAVIA'S UNITY
KOSOVO METOHIJA
- DJINDJIC: STILL WITHOUT RESPONSE FROM KOSOVO
- CEKU REFUSES TO MEET WITH DJINDJIC
- COUNCIL OF EUROPE APPEALS FOR TOLERANCE IN KOSOVO
YUGOSLAVIANATO
ROBERTSON:MILESTONE IN NATO-YUGOSLAV RELATIONS
BRUSSELS, July 19 (B92) =96 NATO Secretary General George
Robertson= =20 described talks yesterday with deputy Serbian Prime
Minister Nebojsa Covic= =20 as "another milestone in developing the
relationship between NATO and=20 Yugoslavia."
Covic and Yugoslav Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic met
with=20 Robertson at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels to discuss
the situation= =20 in Southern Serbia and the participation of Kosovo
Serbs in the upcoming=20 elections in the province.
The NATO chief praised the "remarkable success" of the joint=20
policy in South Serbia which saw the return of Yugoslav forces to the=20
ground security zone and brought an end to Albanian rebel action.
Covic concurred, suggesting the success of the multiethnic=20
approach to the area should serve as "a showcase for the rest of the=
region."
Concerning Kosovo, Covic said that a decision would taken "in
the= =20 days to come" on whether Kosovo Serbs will take part in the
November=20 elections. He nevertheless said he was optimistic, "since we
will explain=20 "the consequences of both possible decisions."
Asked whether Yugoslav security forces could return to the=20
province as envisaged under UN Security Council Resolution 1244, the
NATO=20 chief replied, "not at the moment."
Robertson insisted that the emphasis at the moment should be
on=20 the return of the displaced, which he expected would begin "quite
soon."
Covic said he hoped to see the same success in Kosovo as in
South= =20 Serbia "to which 6,500 of the 12,000 refugees have so far
returned."
Commenting on the return of security forces, Covic told
press,=20 "our desires are one thing and the reality something else."
The return of=20 soldiers to the area could cause unnecessary problems,
he said, adding, "We= =20 want to be the solution to the problem and not
the problem itself."
FROM THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA
KOSTUNICA SAYS MISTAKES MUST NOT BE REPEATED
BELGRADE, July 18 (Tanjug) Yugoslav President Vojislav
Kostunica= =20 said Wednesday it would have been far better if the state
had dealt with=20 the responsibility of its political leadership than
left it to someone else= =20 to do this, in particular in the way it was
done in the case of the=20 extradition or "actually kidnapping" of
Slobodan Milosevic.
"What has been done wrong, must not be repeated. A new basis
must= =20 be sought, a legal basis for cooperation with The Hague
tribunal. We will=20 have a new federal government, we will see how
these things will proceed in= =20 the federal parliament when the
constitutional platform is concerned,=20 perhaps about future elections,
but, in any case, that issue must be=20 resolved in a legally valid
way," Kostunica said in an interview to the=20 Belgrade weekly NIN which
will be published Thursday.
Commenting on changes in the manner of work of the government
and= =20 the introduction of a veto on decisions which are vital for
republican=20 interests, Kostunica announced that something like this
would be contained= =20 also in the future constitution draft "as an
expression of the aspiration=20 to a high degree of equality of both
federal units..."
"That is how we will be guided in efforts to arrive at a
political= =20 agreement among all political factors, the majority and
minority in=20 Montenegro, and all political forces in Serbia, which
could lead us to a=20 new constitution," Kostunica said.
YUGOSLAVIA TO CUT DOWN NUMBER OF EMBASSIES
BELGRADE, July 18 (Tanjug) Yugoslav Assistant Foreign
Minister=20 Aleksandra Joksimovic told the Wednesday issue of the
Belgrade daily=20 Ekspres that the number of Yugoslav embassies would be
reduced to match the= =20 country's budgetary abilities.
"The reduction of the number of embassies is of exceptional=20
importance to us at this moment," Joksimovic said and added that this
was=20 "primarily a very sensitive political issue."
"We have already sent to the federal government a list of about
11= =20 countries, where the embassies are to be closed down according
to our=20 proposal," she said.
"These are some countries in Africa, South America and the
Far=20 East," Joksimovic said, but stressed that Yugoslavia would not
sever its=20 diplomatic relations with those countries.
MAJOR PROFITEERS OF FORMER REGIME IDENTIFIED
BELGRADE, July 19 (Beta) - The Serbian government's commission
for= =20 the investigation of abuse in the industrial and financial
systems stated=20 on July 18 that during Milosevic's rule, legal
entities and individuals=20 made income worth 8.3 billion German marks
through primary issue credits=20 and monopolies. Although, strictly
speaking, these people and companies did= =20 not break the law, they
became wealthy because the regime had protected= them.
The 8.3 billion marks is a basis for the paying of a special=20
one-time tax on extra profit of up to 90%, introduced by a law
recently=20 passed by the Serbian legislature, commission member and
central bank=20 governor Mladjan Dinkic, said at a press conference.
The commission has identified those who made 4.5 billion
German=20 marks of the 8.3 billion total. Besides the private Braca
Karic (Karic=20
Brothers) conglomerate (in second place with a basis of 114.2 million=20
marks), the main candidates for paying are society and state owned=20
companies. The list is headed by the Serbian Oil Industry (basis of
164.8=20 million German marks), followed by the Interna Banka Basen Bor
- 101.4=20 million, and ICN Galenika with 98.2 million. 246 taxpayers
have been=20 identified with basis' larger than one million marks.
Although the end users of the remaining 3.8 billion marks are
not= =20 yet known, it is known which bank was the intermediary for
distributing=20 these funds. If the tax is not paid by the users, it
will be by the bank,=20 Dinkic said.
FEDERAL JUSTICE MINISTER: FORMING A TEAM FOR COOPERATION WITH THE HAGUE
BELGRADE, July 19 (Beta)-Outgoing federal Justice Minister
Momcilo= =20 Grubac expressed his opinion on July 18, that the new
federal government=20 will reach a decree on cooperation with the Hague
tribunal and proposed the= =20 forming of an expert team which will
monitor the work of this court in=20 cases conducted against Yugoslav
citizens.
"Cooperation with the Hague tribunal without state regulations
is= =20 insecure, uncertain and depends on individual will. This is why
these=20 regulations must be created. The new federal government will
have to deal=20 with this issue because the problem of cooperation with
this court is not over with the handing over of Slobodan Milosevic,"
Grubac said= =20 at a press conference.
He added that the new government will also have the obligation
to= =20 form a team of legal experts which will "monitor the cases in
the Hague=20 tribunal."
YUGOSLAVIA-RUSSIA
RUSSIA'S STATE DUMA VOICES SUPPORT TO YUGOSLAVIA'S UNITY
MOSCOW, July 18 (Tanjug) Yugoslav parliament's upper house
speaker Srdja Bozovic met in Moscow on Wednesday with Russian State
Duma= =20 (parliament's lower house) speaker Gennady Seleznyov, who
voiced strong=20 support to the preservation of Yugoslavia's sovereignty
and territorial=20 integrity.
The State Duma condemned attempts at breaking up Yugoslavia,
as=20 well as the official and unofficial Western support to the
detachment of=20 Kosovo, Seleznyov said and added that Kosovo had to
stay within Serbia.
He said that the Duma commission in charge of assisting
Yugoslavia= =20 overcome the consequences of the NATO aggression was
doing its work in an=20 active and planned way.
Bozovic informed Seleznyov in detail about the political,
economic= =20 and social situation in Yugoslavia, laying a special
emphasis on the=20 problems of terrorism and separatism in Kosovo and
relations between=20 Yugoslavia's two federal units, Serbia and
Montenegro.
Bozovic and Seleznyov agreed that the forthcoming elections
in=20 Kosovo would not provide a realistic reflection of the will of
the=20 province's population, since not all of its peoples would
participate.
The two sides voiced their interest in promoting bilateral=20
economic and political relations and stressed the need for a stronger=20
cooperation in international political and economic institutions.
KOSOVO METOHIJA
DJINDJIC: STILL WITHOUT RESPONSE FROM KOSOVO
BELGRADE, July 19 (Beta) - Serbian Premier Zoran Djindjic said
on= =20 July 18 that the government had still received no official
response from=20 leaders of the Kosovo Albanians in order for the
process of clearing up the= =20 situation concerning missing and
kidnapped persons in Kosovo, among them=20 about 1,300 Serbs, could
start.
The Communication Bureau of the Serbian government announced
that= =20 Premier Djindjic had reacted to July 18 information quoted by
Tanjug and=20 Radio B92 that Albanian leaders Hashim Taci and Agim Ceku
refused to meet=20 with him.
In his statement to the Bureau, Djindjic said that "the main
goal= =20 is to clear up the fate of missing persons together with their
families,"=20 that some special circumstances should not be waited for
and that it was=20 all the same where these talks would be held, whether
in Kosovo or=20 somewhere outside the country.
CEKU REFUSES TO MEET WITH DJINDJIC
PRISTINA, July 18 ( Fonet) - Kosovo Protection Forces
commander=20 Agim Ceku said he would refuse to meet with Serbian prime
minister Zoran=20 Djindjic during his Kosovo visit next week.
"For me, it is unacceptable to meet with Djindjic, just as
his=20 announcement he would visit Kosovo was unacceptable," Ceku told
news agency= =20 Kosova Live. "There are no conditions for meetings and
visits of this kind."
Ceku added that his current position prevented him from
commenting= =20 on political questions.
COUNCIL OF EUROPE APPEALS FOR TOLERANCE IN KOSOVO
STRASBOURG, July 18 (Tanjug) The Council of Europe
Ministerial=20 Committee has confirmed its resolve to do everything
possible toward=20 securing peace in Kosovo and Metohija following the
adoption of UN Security= =20 Council Resolution 1244, and asked all
citizens of the province to refrain= =20 from any acts of destruction
which could jeopardize the advance toward=20 reconciliation.
In a statement sent to Tanjug Wednesday, the Ministerial
Committee= =20 strongly condemned the destruction of religious objects
and asked=20 authorized parties to secure the protection of religious
monuments and help= =20 in their reconstruction, considering them
symbols of confidence and the=20 harmonious life of different
nationalities, ethnic and religious groups.=20
Serbian News Network - SNN
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