No. 118, 24 June 1991

BALTIC STATES



OMON ATTACKS CONTINUE. On June 21 at about 20:00 local time four
armed men, three of them dressed in OMON uniforms, attacked and
burned down the Lithuanian customs post at Salociai in the Pasvalys
Raion and the neighboring Latvian customs post, Radio Independent
Lithuania reported on June 22. There were no reports of injuries.
On June 22 OMON troops forced Lithuanian customs officials out
of their office in the airport in Vilnius, tore off the office's
sign, confiscated documents and keys, and told the officials
never to return to work, the radio reported that day. The latter
was the first attack on a customs post not on the Lithuanian
border. (Saulius Girnius)

LANDSBERGIS CONTINUES VISIT IN WEST. Chairman of the Lithuanian
Supreme Council Vytautas Landsbergis flew from Paris to Lyon
on June 20 and to the Vendee area on June 21 where he had meetings
with local government and business officials. On June 22 he flew
to Norway to open a Lithuanian music festival in Tundsburg. On
June 23 he travelled to Kiel for the annual meeting of representatives
of the parliaments of North European countries. Estonian parliament
chairman Arnold Ruutel and Landsbergis told journalists that
day that they trust and support RSFSR President Boris Yeltsin
and had reservations about the CSCE conference, scheduled in
Moscow in September, Radio Independent Lithuania reported on
June 24. (Saulius Girnius)

PRO-BALTIC AMENDMENT TO US FOREIGN AID BILL. The US House of
Representatives passed a Foreign Aid bill on June 20 with an
amendment linking aid to the USSR with the situation in the Baltic
States, Western agencies reported June 21. According to the amendment,
the US would withhold aid pending a USSR pledge to distribute
the aid equally among the Baltic States and Soviet republics.
The USSR would also have to return property seized in the Baltic
States since January 1. Half of the proposed $30 million in technical
aid for 1992 and 1993 would go directly to the Baltic States,
and the other half would be sent to democratically elected local
USSR governments and other organizations deemed "eligible" for
aid. (Gytis Liulevicius)

PRO-SOVIET RALLY MARKS WAR ANNIVERSARY. Pro-Soviet opponents
of Lithuanian independence took to the streets in Vilnius on
June 22, according to TASS that day. USSR war veterans gathered
at the Chernyakhovsky monument for an "anti-fascist meeting,"
marking the 50th anniversary of the Nazi attack on the USSR.
Speakers at the meeting, including Lithuanian Communist Party
First Secretary Mykolas Burokevicius, denounced the current Lithuanian
government, especially Supreme Council Chairman Vytautas Landsbergis,
claiming that his father collaborated with the Nazis during the
war. (Gytis Liulevicius)

JUNE 1941 ANTI-SOVIET REVOLT COMMEMORATED. Lithuanians met in
Lukiskiai Square (formerly Lenin Square) in Vilnius on June 22
to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1941 Lithuanian revolt
against Soviet rule, Radio Independent Lithuania reported June
23. The revolt managed to set up a provisional government, which
was quickly disbanded by the Nazi occupiers. Several Lithuanian
organizations sponsored the meeting, including "Young Lithuania"
and the Lithuanian Helsinki Group. Participants put up a cross
in the square, marking the spot where leaders of an 1863 revolt
against tsarist rule were hanged. (Gytis Liulevicius)

LATVIA REVISES 1991 BUDGET--AGAIN. Latvia has revised its budgetary
revenues and expenditures for 1991--for the seventh time this
year. A Tass report dated June 22 notes that the latest revision
calls for expenditures to increase by 89 million rubles. Tax
receipts from property taxes are to go up by 40 million. Among
the departments and organizations scheduled to enjoy more revenues
are the customs department for the repair and building of customs
control points. The health care budget is also to rise. (John
Tedstrom)



USSR--ALL-UNION TOPICS



GORBACHEV DEFEATS HARDLINERS. USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev
easily defeated his hardline opponents at the USSR Supreme Soviet
who had attempted to limit his power base. The parliament overwhelmingly
rejected premier Valentin Pavlov's demands for additional powers
for the government. The vote was 264-24 in favor of removing
the question from the agenda. Western agencies on June 22 reported
that Gorbachev attacked the leaders of the Soyuz faction in the
parliament, accusing them of plotting behind his back and being
"completely divorced from reality." Gorbachev told reporters
that he was not afraid of hardliners and that "society will reject
them." (Alexander Rahr)

GORBACHEV'S COMPROMISE. The rejection of Pavlov's demands was
not, however, a clear victory for Gorbachev. The premier not
only kept his job, but Gorbachev even admitted that Pavlov had
acted "within the framework of perestroika in requesting new
powers," according to Western news agencies on June 21. He also
promised Pavlov he would merge his economic plan with the more
radical one of Grigorii Yavlinsky. In turn, Pavlov told the Supreme
Soviet that his demands for more power had been "misinterpreted"
and that in reality there were no disagreements with Gorbachev.
The leaders of Soyuz were surprised by Pavlov's retreat. They
also deplored that KGB chief Vladimir Kryuchkov had earlier come
out so strongly on Pavlov's side, according to The Boston Globe
on June 22. (Alexander Rahr)

SHCHERBAKOV SIDES WITH PAVLOV? At a seminar on changes in the
USSR, Soviet first deputy prime minister Vladimir Shcherbakov
said that the Soviet Union's society would not survive an attempt
to implement the radical reform plan devised at Harvard University.
According to Western reports June 22, Shcherbakov said people
in the USSR still equate capitalism with exploitation. He said
"There is enormous resistance to change on the part of the population...it
would not survive shock therapy." In making this remark, Shcherbakov
puts himself squarely in the conservative camp of Soviet Prime
Minister Valentin Pavlov and others who were rebuffed by Soviet
leader Mikhail Gorbachev on the weekend. (John Tedstrom)

SOVIETS MARK NAZI INVASION. Gatherings were held throughout the
Soviet Union on June 22 to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the
1941 German invasion. According to Western and Soviet reports,
Gorbachev, together with his Prime Minister and Defense Minister,
laid a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier, while many
Soviet newspapers devoted full pages to the first days of the
German-Soviet conflict. Pravda carried an unusual four-page supplement
for the event. Soviet sources informed their readers that some
1,710 towns were destroyed during the war, as were 70,000 villages;
some 32,000 factories and 65,000 kilometers of railroad track
were blown up. (Stephen Foye)

GORBACHEV ON WAR ANNIVERSARY. In a speech on June 21 devoted
to the war, Gorbachev, not surprisingly, stressed that the Soviet
victory resulted from what he called the solidarity of the Soviet
people. He said that ethnic and national differences were overcome,
and that people with different social backgrounds, as well as
varying political and religious beliefs, had been able to unite.
He also praised allied cooperation during the war, and lamented
the breakdown of East-West relations during the "Cold War" years.
(Stephen Foye)

VOLKOGONOV FUROR CONTINUES. Recriminations between revisionist
historian Dmitrii Volkogonov and the conservative Soviet High
Command continued over the weekend, indicating deepening political
divisions over the war's legacy. According to Western reports
on June 21, Volkogonov defended his history of the war as being
entirely truthful, and said that the Soviet people do not need
"sugary patriotism." He accused the military leadership of trying
to control history, and said that criticism of his work had prompted
him to resign as editor of the ten-volume history (see June 21
Daily Report) and from his post as head of the Defense Ministry's
Institute of Military History. (Stephen Foye)

GORBACHEV HAILS SOVIET-GERMAN RELATIONS. In a June 21 television
address marking the 50th anniversary of Nazi Germany's attack
on the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev said the Soviet Union
is "firmly set on the path of reconciliation with Germany." Gorbachev
also said that good relations between the two former adversaries
"constitute a true example of good neighborliness and partnership."
Gorbachev's speech was also broadcast on German television. (Suzanne
Crow)

BUSH PHONES GORBACHEV. US President George Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev
spoke via telephone for forty minutes at Bush's request on June
21. According to the White House, the conversation focused on
the G-7 summit, the delayed US-Soviet summit, the START treaty,
and Boris Yeltsin. Bush urged Gorbachev to cooperate with Yeltsin
on political and economic reform policies. Bush said that he
and Yeltsin, during their meeting the day before, had "a good
discussion" on reforms in the Soviet Union," the Boston Globe
reported June 22. (Suzanne Crow)

CHILE'S ECONOMIC MINISTER TO MOSCOW. Chilean Economy Minister
Carlos Ominami left for the USSR June 22, according to Western
reports. He is leading a group of 35 business leaders in hopes
of boosting bilateral trade. Chile hopes to increase exports
to the USSR and to expand technical cooperation in the fields
of fishing, textiles, metallurgy and agriculture. This is the
first official Chilean visit to the USSR at such a level since
1972. Relations between Chile and the USSR were suspended between
1973 and 1990. Recent Soviet trade statistics, through end 1990,
report no trade with Chile. (John Tedstrom)

SOVIET TRADE OFFICIAL SEEKS ASYLUM. The Norwegian foreign ministry
said on June 22 that an unnamed Soviet trade official with diplomatic
status was seeking political asylum in Norway. Foreign Ministry
Spokesman Bjoern Blokhus said it is not certain asylum will be
granted, explaining: "before glasnost'...any official trying
to defect would automatically get political asylum in Norway."
This is not true anymore, Blokhus said. The Soviet official reported
to Oslo police just after Gorbachev's visit to Norway earlier
this month, a Western agency reported June 22. (Suzanne Crow)


DEMAND FOR CANONIZATION OF THE LAST TSAR. Radio Rossii reported
on June 21 that the Political Committee of the Russian National
Monarchist Party had demanded that the Holy Synod of the Russian
Orthodox Church canonize immediately Tsar Nicholas II and the
members of this family. The Tsar and his family were among several
thousands of "new martyrs" canonized in 1981 by the US-based
Russian Orthodox Church abroad. (Oxana Antic)



USSR--IN THE REPUBLICS



YELTSIN RETURNS FROM U.S. RSFSR President Boris Yeltsin left
a good impression during his visit to the U.S. Vice-President
Dan Quayle called him "impressive", according to a Western agency
report on June 21. Speaking at New York University, Yeltsin predicted
the creation of a common political and economic system in the
world's northeastern hemisphere, in which the U.S. and Russia
would play a leading role, Western agencies reported on June
22. Before his departure, Yeltsin told reporters that he was
satisfied with his visit and that his goal was not to get money,
but to establish personal relations with U.S. leaders. (Alexander
Rahr)

RSFSR REPORTS STRONG INCREASE IN INFLATION. Consumer prices in
the RSFSR grew by an average 96 percent in May over May 1990,
according to Western and Soviet reports of official RSFSR statistics.
Food prices went up 127 percent on average, with meat up 180
percent, fish 193, and sugar 155.Textiles and clothes prices
increased 166 percent and building materials 132 percent. (John
Tedstrom)

IRKUTSK TO GET LICENSE TO SELL ABROAD. The USSR Cabinet of Ministers
has agreed to a general license for Irkutsk oblast to sell part
of its raw materials abroad. Irkutsk plans to earn about 500
million hard currency rubles from the sales--presumably in 1991--and
plans to direct those funds towards the purchase of capital equipment
for the manufacturing and consumer goods industries. (John Tedstrom)


PROTEST AGAINST UNION TREATY IN KIEV. Thousands of people demonstrated
in Kiev June 23 to demand rejection of the proposed Union treaty,
according to agency reports. Speakers at the rally, which was
organized by Rukh, said the treaty would deprive Ukraine of its
independence. In other news, the republican Supreme Soviet voted
June 22 by an overwhelming majority to hold the first direct
presidential election in 1992; the exact date will be fixed this
week. (Kathy Mihalisko)

UKRAINIAN 'SOLIDARITY.' On June 23, a three-day congress of workers
ended in Kiev with a decision to form an All-Ukrainian Association
of Solidarity with Workers. People's deputy Larisa Skoryk told
AP that the group will use Poland's Solidarity as a model and
will aim to defend workers and fight for an independent Ukraine.
Donetsk coal miner Oleksandr Ivashenko was elected to lead the
new association. (Kathy Mihalisko)

KAZAKHSTAN CREATES ECONOMIC COUNCIL FOR REFORM. Kazakhstan has
created the "Supreme Economic Council for the Introduction of
Market Relations" according to Radio Moscow, June 23. Kazakhstan
has recently taken several steps that put it among the most progressive
republics in terms of economic reform programs. Approximately
85 percent of the republic's citizens favor moving to a market-based
system. Economic reform measures will be couched in terms of
Kazakhstan's sovereignty, according to the report. (John Tedstrom)


NEW DATA ON UZBEK JOINT VENTURE DEALS. A surprising amount of
joint venture activity is going on in Uzbekistan, according to
figures recently cited by the republics's vice president Shukurulla
Mirsaidov. In remarks carried by Tass June 22, Mirsaidov said
that there were some 30 joint ventures in Uzbekistan, capitalized
at about 377 million hard currency rubles. The joint ventures
have already produced some 2.4 billion hard currency rubles worth
of consumer goods. At a 5-day international business seminar
in Tashkent, which ended June 22, contracts worth $65.8 million
were signed. (John Tedstrom)

KIRGIZ PRESIDENT SETS UP CONSULTATIVE COUNCIL OF WORKERS. The
organizational meeting of a consultative council of workers under
the republican president has been held in Kyrgyzstan, Moscow
radio reported June 23. The meeting of the council, which is
said to be unique to the Kirgiz president's office, discussed
inter alia privatization. The Kirgiz president Askar Akaev is
obviously trying to win the support of the workers for privatization,
which, he said, will take place in two stages in the republic.
The first would involved retail trade, services, transport, and
construction, and the second medium-size and larger enterprises.
(Ann Sheehy)

MOLDAVIA CELEBRATES ONE YEAR SINCE SOVEREIGNTY. On June 21-23,
Moldavia held official celebrations to mark the first anniversary
of its declaration of sovereignty, adopted by parliament on June
23, 1990. Addressing the parliament, chairman Alexandru Mosanu
said that Moldavia was building "a special relationship" with
Romania but he dismissed "accusations...that unification with
Romania is the ultimate goal." Reaffirming the doctrine of "two
Romanian states," Mosanu said that "sovereignty has strengthened
our confidence that we can be the masters of our own house,"
Moldovapres reported June 21. (Vladimir Socor)

MOLDAVIAN LEADERS HAIL YELTSIN'S VICTORY. Moldavian parliament
chairman Alexandru Mosanu told Russian TV June 21 that Yeltsin's
popular election as President of the RSFSR constituted "a resounding
assertion of the democratic forces, not only in words but in
deeds...improving Moldavia's chances for genuine independence.
That prospect is no longer beyond the horizon". First Vice Prime
Minister Constantin Oboroc in turn told Radio Bucharest the same
day that "the triumph of the democratic forces in Russia is a
historic event which has improved our own chances of achieving
sovereignty, escaping the rule of this empire, and seeking an
equitable formula of coexistence with other sovereign states".
(Vladimir Socor)

GAGAUZ LEADER REGRETS YELTSIN'S VICTORY. "I do not support Yeltsin,"
said Stepan Topal, chairman of the would-be Supreme Soviet of
the self-proclaimed Gagauz SSR in southern Moldavia, in an interview
with Nezavisimaya Gazeta of June 18. Topal accused Yeltsin of
"leaving the small peoples to their own devices and disregarding
their interests... If Yeltsin gets the upper hand, it will mean
the demise of the small peoples." Topal also said that "many
of our communists" disapprove of the recent elevation of Moldavian
CP leader Petru Lucinschi (a convinced reformer) to the position
of CPSU CC Secretary; "such things do not promote confidence
in the Party," Topal said. (Vladimir Socor)

FIRST CONGRESS OF PEOPLE'S OF CHECHENO-INGUSHETIA ENDS. A two-day
congress of the people's of Checheno-Ingushetia ended June 22,
TASS reported the same day. The congress, which was called by
the authorities in the hope of preventing a further deterioration
of interethnic relations in the North Caucasus, received a message
of greetings from Gorbachev appealing to the population to preserve
the republic's normal rhythm of life and set an example of interethnic
relations in the North Caucasus. The congress addressed an appeal
to the other peoples of the North Caucasus calling for a congress
of all the North Caucasian peoples in the Chechen-Ingush capital,
Grozny. (Ann Sheehy)