No. 168, 02 September 1992

SUCCESSOR STATES TO THE USSR

YELTSIN DENIES RUSSIAN INVOLVEMENT IN SHELLING OF GEORGIAN TROOPS.
Thirteen Georgian soldiers were killed by missile fire from a
Russian military facility while crossing the river Gumista north
of Sukhumi on 1 September, Western agencies reported. The commander
of the Georgian troops in Abkhazia informed Georgian State Council
Chairman Eduard Shevardnadze that Russian troops were responsible
for the attack; Russian President Boris Yeltsin has denied Russian
involvement, according to Interfax. Shevardnadze hinted that
the incident could jeopardize his planned meeting in Moscow with
Yeltsin and Abkhaz and North Caucasian representatives on 3 September.
In an interview with Izvestia, summarized by Interfax, Shevardnadze
claimed to have a concrete peace plan for the region. (Liz Fuller,
RFE/RL Inc.)

HAS RUSSIA WRITTEN OFF SHEVARDNADZE? Two articles in the Russian
press suggest that the Russian leadership may have resigned itself
to Shevardnadze's imminent removal from the Georgian political
scene. Golos (no. 35) claims that a secret protocol has been
signed between Russia and Georgia on the frontiers between the
two states, and that some Russian circles are now backing Georgian
Defense Minister Tengiz Kitovani, who has links with leading
Russian security officials based in the Transcaucasus Military
District. Rossiiskie vesti (No. 51) cites unnamed members of
a Russian delegation recently in Tbilisi as claiming that Shevardnadze
no longer retains any control over the situation in Abkhazia.
Western press reports similarly suggest that Georgian troops
under Kitovani are acting independently of instructions from
Shevardnadze in Tbilisi. (Liz Fuller, RFE/RL Inc.)

TENSE SITUATION IN DUSHANBE. The demonstrators who occupied part
of the Presidential Palace in Dushanbe on 31 August and took
several government officials hostage released the hostages the
following day and promptly took some more, including the mayor
of Dushanbe, ITAR-TASS reported on 1 September. The same day,
Shodmon Yusupov, chairman of the opposition Democratic Party,
denied that his organization had any involvement in the actions
of the demonstrators who are reported to be members of a Dushanbe
youth group. They are demanding the resignation of President
Rakhmon Nabiev because he cannot stop the fighting in southern
Tajikistan. According to the report, a demonstration was in the
making in the square where an anti-government demonstration continued
for two months in the spring. (Bess Brown, RFE/RL Inc.)

UKRAINE TO GAIN IMF MEMBERSHIP. The International Monetary Fund
will formally accept Ukrainian membership on Thursday, an RFE/RL
correspondent reported on 1 September. The official ceremony
is to occur in Washington where Finance Minister Grigorii Pyatshenko
will sign the relevant documents. This announcement of imminent
membership came after reports that the IMF was threatening to
cut off talks with the nation because of its failure to produce
a coherent reform program. The Fund was evidently satisfied with
subsequent reform plans announced by Ukrainian First Deputy Prime
Minister Valentyn Symonenko on Monday. (Erik Whitlock, RFE/RL
Inc.)

GREEK BUSINESSMAN TO FINANCE PRAVDA. Greek businessman Yannis
Yannikos, who took over a major interest in the former Communist
Party daily Pravda last month, said that he was going to "repay
old debts" by helping save the newspaper from financial ruin.
In comments that appeared in Pravda on 1 September, Yannikos
said the newspaper helped him survive in jail during Greece's
civil war. He said he was sentenced to die in the 1940s for fighting
against Greek fascists, but attributed his reprieve to a campaign
launched by Pravda to spare the lives of himself and his comrades.
Pravda's editor-in-chief Gennadii Seleznev said the paper would
keep its editorial independence. (Vera Tolz, RFE/RL Inc.)

RUBLE CONTINUES TUMBLE. The ruble fell another 2.6% against the
dollar on the Moscow Interbank Foreign Currency Exchange, Western
and Russian news agencies reported on 1 September. The dollar
now buys 210.5 rubles as compared to the 205 rubles set at last
Thursday's market. Central Bank Chairman Viktor Gerashchenko
has called this rate "absolutely unrealistic," claiming in an
interview with Kosomolskaya Pravda on 1 September that the purchasing
power equivalent of the ruble was between 15-27 rubles to the
dollar. Another central bank official, Deputy Chairman Aleksandr
Khandruev told the news agency RIA that the ruble may in the
future be tied to a one to two month moving average of market
exchange rates, according to Novosti the same day. (Erik Whitlock,
RFE/RL Inc.)

GRACHEV FIGHTS POLITIZATION OF ARMY. Russian Defense Minister
Pavel Grachev has said that those officers who want to be active
in politics should immediately resign from the army, ITAR-TASS
reported on 1 September. He stated that harsh actions will be
taken against officers who participate in political protests,
and noted that he will de-politicize all military organizations,
such as the Officers' Assemblies. He added that he will also
fight the establishment of unofficial trade unions in the army.
He denied that he is against democratization, saying that he
is always ready to open a dialogue with organizations that are
concerned about the military. He reiterated, however, that he
will not tolerate political activity in the army. (Alexander
Rahr, RFE/RL Inc.)

CHIEF COMMAND OF CIS JOINT ARMED FORCES SET UP. The chief command
of the CIS Joint Armed Forces has been formed according to the
agreement reached by the CIS leaders in July and will from now
on coordinate efforts by CIS member states to ensure collective
security, reforms in the armed forces, and the performance of
peace keeping duties, Interfax reported on 31 August. Meanwhile
the Belarus Defense Ministry has withdrawn its military personnel
from Tajikistan, causing protests from the Tajik leadership,
which now faces personnel shortages that may hamper border control.
(Alexander Rahr, RFE/RL Inc.)

CIS DEFENSE MINISTERS TO MEET. The defense ministers of the CIS
member states are scheduled to meet in Moscow on 3 September
to discuss various aspects of collective security, a joint nuclear
strategy, the composition of strategic forces, communications
between the CIS armed forces' chief command and control bodies,
the procedure for transfer of servicemen to their native countries,
and air force activities over CIS territory, Interfax reported
on 1 September. The defense ministers will also discuss a "military
package," which will be addressed at the forthcoming CIS summit
meeting of heads of state in Bishkek on September 25. (Alexander
Rahr, RFE/RL Inc.)

ARBATOV CLAIMS REAGAN ARMS BUILDUP PROLONGED COLD WAR. Georgii
Arbatov, a long-time Kremlin advisor, has claimed that the US.
military buildup under President Ronald Reagan actually prolonged
the Cold War. In remarks published on 31 August by UPI, Arbatov
is quoted as saying that there had been a virtual conspiracy
during the Cold War between the Soviet and American military-industrial
complexes, with each indirectly helping the other. According
to Arbatov, the US buildup under Reagan "helped sustain the perception
by our hardliners of a besieged country." Arbatov, the director
of the USA-Canada Institute added that Japan or Germany were
the more likely victors in the Cold War, rather than the United
States. (Doug Clarke, RFE/RL Inc.)

US, RUSSIA INITIAL PACT ON URANIUM FROM WEAPONS. President Bush
announced on 31 August that the United States and Russia had
initialed an agreement to ensure that the highly enriched uranium
from dismantled nuclear weapons would be used only for peaceful
purposes. UPI reported that the two governments planned to sign
a pact calling for the quick conversion of uranium from Russian
atomic bombs into civilian reactor fuel. Within the next year,
the US Department of Energy will sign a contract to purchase
the weapons materiel from Russia, and will then dilute the uranium
so that it can be used in commercial reactors. Russia will use
part of the proceeds to increase the safety of nuclear reactors
in the former Soviet Union. (Doug Clarke, RFE/RL Inc.)

MOSCOW BANKER ACCUSSES CIA OF RECRUITING RUSSIAN BUSINESSMEN.
A young Russian entrepreneur, German Sterligov, has made a formal
complaint concerning CIA activities to the US Ambassador, Robert
Strauss. Sterlogov alledged that CIA officers offered him business
assistance in the United States on the condition that his firm
provide them commercial information, according to TASS on 31
August. In his letter to Strauss, Sterligov wrote that he and
his partners, Alexander Doronin and Malik Saidulaev, began experiencing
difficulty obtaining US visas and conducting their business in
the US as soon as they refused to provide information to the
CIA. A spokesman at the US Embassy in Moscow said that Sterligov's
charges were absolutely groundless, and that all elligible employees
in Sterligov's firm had been granted visas, Reuters reported
on 31 August. (Victor Yasmann, RFE/RL Inc.)

. . . AND MOSCOW NEWS REPORTS ON COMPUTER ESPIONAGE. Several
years ago, the former USSR Aviation Ministry bought Wax computers
from the American firm TEC, according to Moscow News (no. 34).
The computers had been implanted with a time-delayed computer
virus, which had been programmed to disable the computers one
year after installation. The American plan, writes Moscow News,
was to respond to a call by Moscow for assistance by sending
an intelligence officer disguised as a TEC technician, who would
then be able to obtain all the information that had passed through
the computers during the previous year. The virus was discovered
by Ministry of Security officers. The publication of this story
in Moscow News seems to be part of a coordinated campaign to
raise the morale and the image of the Russian secret service.
It may also be a response to Western complaints about continued
Russian espionage abroad. (Victor Yasmann, RFE/RL Inc.)

RUSSIAN-BELARUSIAN DEAL ON FSU DEBT. Russia has agreed to assume
the portion of the convertible currency debt of the former Soviet
Union attributable to Belarus in return for the Belarusian share
of the FSU assets abroad. This was set out in a Russian-Belarusian
agreement that was published in Minsk on 31 August, Belinform-TASS
reported. The Belarusian share is estimated at around $3.5 billion
out of a total FSU debt that stood at roughly $74 billion at
mid-1992. Spokesmen for the Russian Federation have repeatedly
asserted that Russia is the only former Soviet republic that
services--albeit only partially--the convertible currency debt
of the FSU. (Keith Bush, RFE/RL Inc.)

ARDZINBA FLOATS IDEA OF PEACEKEEPING FORCE IN ABKHAZIA. Interfax
quotes Abkhaz parliament Chairman Vladislav Ardzinba as stating
that he wants a negotiated solution to the current conflict and
"civilized relations" with Georgia, but that all Georgian troops
must be withdrawn from Abkhaz territory. Ardzinba did not rule
out the subsequent deployment of peacekeeping troops, possibly
under the auspices of the UN or CSCE. UN Undersecretary General
Vladimir Petrovsky is quoted by ITAR-TASS as proposing in Moscow
on 1 September that the UN send observers to Abkhazia. Petrovsky
expressed the hope that Georgia would agree to this suggestion.
(Liz Fuller, RFE/RL Inc.)

NAGORNO-KARABAKH CEASEFIRE FAILS TO TAKE EFFECT. The agreement
on a 60-day ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh reached in Alma-Ata
on 28 August failed to take effect as scheduled on 1 September.
Interfax quoted the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry as claiming
that Armenian forces had shelled several Azerbaijani towns and
killed 24 refugees near the Lachin corridor, while the Armenian
Foreign Ministry charged that Azerbaijani troops had launched
an offensive along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. Interfax
quoted Azerbaijani President Abulfaz Elchibey as claiming that
the ceasefire agreement applied only to the Armenian-Azerbaijani
border and not to Nagorno-Karabakh, which was "Azerbaijan's internal
affair." Kazakhstan's presidential envoy Gasan Kazhokov, in Erevan
to monitor the ceasefire, declined to comment on the situation
on 1 September, according to ITAR-TASS. (Liz Fuller, RFE/RL Inc.)


MOLDOVA FEARS "YUGOSLAV" SCENARIO. Moldova's ambassador to Russia,
Petru Lucinschi, told a news conference in Moscow on 26 August
that Moldova fears "a situation on the Yugoslav model in which
Moldova's eastern area would be cut off" from the rest of the
country, Izvestiia reported. The forces of the "Dniester republic"
are using the pacification process and the presence of Russia's
peacemaking troops in order to consolidate their gains and strengthen
their structures of state power, Lucinschi said. Alluding to
a possible chain reaction leading to the unraveling of Moldova,
Lucinschi expressed concern that a "victory for the 'Dniester
republic' could have negative consequences in the [Gagauz-inhabited]
south and other parts of the republic". (Vladimir Socor, RFE/RL
Inc.)

MOLDOVAN LEADERS ON LANGUAGE PROBLEMS. Addressing the people
of Moldova on "Language Day," 31 August (the anniversary of the
1989 legislation elevating the native language to official status
and reinstituting the Latin script in Moldova), President Mircea
Snegur said that the implementation of the language laws has
been hindered by the fact that "Moldova exists in an imperial
space, which proves much more difficult to break away from than
we could imagine a few years ago." In another address, Parliament
Chairman Alexandru Mosanu said that the implementation of the
language laws is difficult and uneven owing to "the weakness
of state power at all levels...the continuing dominance of the
Russian language in important social functions...the nonobservance
of the language laws by parts of the Russian-language population
hoping to revert to the linguistic situation of the Soviet period...and
the damage done by the separatist forces on the left bank of
the Dniester and their supporters," Moldovapres reported on 31
August and 1 September. (Vladimir Socor, RFE/RL Inc.)

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

SIEGE OF GORAZDE ENDS. On 1 September Serbian forces pulled back
12 miles from the strategic hilltop positions they have held
for four months around the mainly Muslim town. The 2 September
Washington Post said that this was in keeping with a promise
Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic made at the London Conference
on 26-28 August. The paper added that, after making this gesture,
Karadzic now probably hopes to consolidate his hold on the two-thirds
of Bosnia's territory his followers still control. But the daily
noted that "the Serb position seems to be unraveling rather than
strengthening, in both military and political terms." Serbs make
up only one-third of Bosnia's population. (Patrick Moore, RFE/RL
Inc.)

PANIC RESPONDS TO CRITICISM. During an interview on Belgrade
TV on 1 September Milan Panic, prime minister of the rump Yugoslavia,
rejected accusations that he betrayed Serbia's interests at the
London Conference. He said that the conference achieved "more
than expected" and, more important, there is now a "more realistic"
assessment of blame for the fighting in Bosnia-Herzegovina."
He added "I do not think that I deviated" from the federal assembly's
instructions in connection with the conference. Panic also said
he and Serbia's President Slobodan Milosevic have never quarreled,
but "If Mr. Milosevic does not keep his word, which he and I
gave together as representatives of the Yugoslav and Serbian
peoples, I will ask him to submit his resignation." Yugoslavs
must understand that they have two choices, Panic concluded,
"One is peace, international recognition, pride, international
law, consideration, and respect. The other is tragedy." (Milan
Andrejevich, RFE/RL Inc.)

DRASKOVIC SUPPORTS PANIC. Vuk Draskovic and his Serbian Renewal
Movement (SPO), Serbia's largest opposition party, threw their
support behind Panic on 1 September, Radio Serbia reports. The
SPO is urging the public to rally in large numbers for Panic
at the Federal Assembly when it takes its vote of confidence
on Panic. The SPO terms the call for the vote by hard-line minority
faction in the Socialist Party and the right-wing Radical Party
"a desperate move by the Lord of War [Milosevic] to get rid of
the Advocate of Peace." The SPO statement predicts the consequences
of a possible replacement of Panic would be foreign military
intervention and a civil war in Serbia. Politika TV predicted
on 1 September that Panic will survive the vote. (Milan Andrejevich,
RFE/RL Inc.)

ATTEMPT ON PANIC? A curious incident on 30 August is being described
by the SPO as an attempt "to physically remove Panic and a few
generals" from the scene. Panic was aboard a federal navy patrol
boat off Budva, Montenegro, when the vessel began taking on water.
According to a report on Belgrade's independent radio Studio
B on 1 September, the boat also lost the use of its radio and
had no lifeboats aboard. The tour of the coast was cut short
and the boat returned to Budva harbor, sinking just minutes after
Panic debarked. Radio talk shows in Belgrade were inundated with
calls supporting Panic. (Milan Andrejevich, RFE/RL Inc.)

TURKISH PRESIDENT FEARS BALKAN CONFLICT. Turgut Ozal, in a speech
before the Grand National Assembly on 1 September reported by
Reuters, expressed fears that the war in Bosnia could spread
across the Balkans. A Balkan conflagration would have serious
implications for Turkey--also a Balkan state--both because of
the potential for international conflict that could involve Turkey
and because of Turkey's historic concern for ethnic Turks in
the peninsula. Although he did not specify possible flash points,
he no doubt was thinking of Kosovo, the Sandzak, and Macedonia.
Ozal also called attention to the situation in the Transcaucasus,
also bordered by Turkey, calling this volatile region a "powder
keg." Interethnic conflict has already exploded in several regions
there as well. Turkish policy currently seeks improved relations
with Armenia, while Abkhazia has asked Ankara for help against
Georgia. Extreme right-wing Turks earlier this year called for
direct Turkish military intervention in Azerbaijan. (Duncan Perry
& Liz Fuller, RFE/RL Inc.)

SLOVAK PARLIAMENT ADOPTS CONSTITUTION. On 1 September, the Slovak
parliament approved the constitution of the Slovak Republic.
CSTK reports that in the 150-member parliament 114 deputies voted
for the constitution, 16 voted against, 4 abstained, and 16 were
not present. A three-fifths majority was needed to approve the
constitution. Shortly before the vote, ethnic Hungarian deputies
walked out. The parliament approved an amendment to the preamble
to the Slovak Constitution whereby the original wording "We,
the citizens of the Slovak Republic..." was replaced by "We,
the Slovak nation..." Another amendment approved by the deputies
stipulates that the Slovak language should be considered the
"state" language of the republic, rather than the "official"
language. Parliamentary chairman Gasparovic said that "by the
adoption of this constitution, the Slovak Republic has become
a sovereign state." Czechoslovakia is to split into two states
on 1 January 1993. (Jiri Pehe, RFE/RL Inc.)

SLOVAK PREMIER CLASHES WITH HUNGARIAN DEPUTIES. Speaking at the
end of the Slovak National Council's discussion of a draft Slovak
constitution on 1 September, Slovak Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar
accused ethnic Hungarian deputies of trying to create political
instability in Slovakia. CSTK reports Meciar as saying that amendments
to the constitution proposed by Hungarian deputies were rejected
not because they were proposed by ethnic Hungarians but because
they were bad. Meciar also argued that there was no comparison
between the treatment of ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia and ethnic
Slovaks in Hungary. In Slovakia, "we do not want ethnic Hungarians
to meet the same fate that ethnic Slovaks have met in Hungary,"
said Meciar. Hungarian deputy Erno Rozsa rejected Meciar's speech
as dictatorial and arrogant. (Jiri Pehe, RFE/RL Inc.)

DUBCEK UPDATE. A physician at the Prague clinic where Alexander
Dubcek, former chairman of the Czechoslovak Federal Assembly
and leader of the 1968 Prague Spring, was transported following
a car crash, confirmed that his condition is critical. Dubcek's
spine, pelvis, and several ribs are broken. In early morning
hours of 2 September Dubcek underwent three hours of surgery
on his spine. Describing the accident, CSTK reports that Dubcek
and his driver were catapulted from the doors of their BMW auto
after it broke through a steel roadside barrier on the highway
connecting Prague and Bratislava and plunged into a ravine. (Jiri
Pehe, RFE/RL Inc.)

LATVIAN LEADERS WANT ALL TROOPS OUT BY 1993. During a joint meeting
on 31 August, members of Latvia's Satversme and People's Front
factions agreed that all Russian troops must leave Latvia unconditionally
by the end of 1993. Regarding recent unofficial statements by
Russian officials that the troop departure would be completed
in 1993, Latvian officials expressed guarded optimism; some saw
these a softening of Moscow's attitude toward the Baltic States,
while others reacted more cautiously, noting the unofficial nature
of the Russian statements and the fact that the Russian side
also said that it wants to bring up several issues--not specified--at
the next meeting on troop withdrawal issues, Diena and BNS report.
(Dzintra Bungs, RFE/RL Inc.).

MAYOROV VISITS LITHUANIA. On 1 September a group of senior officers
from the Northwest Group of Forces (NWGF, RFE/RL Inc.), headed
by its commander Col. Gen. Leonid Mayorov, traveled to Vilnius
to meet with the Russian army command in Lithuania and discuss
issues of troop withdrawal, BNS reports. A military spokesman
in Vilnius refused to comment on the purpose of the visit. The
Lithuanian National Defense Ministry had not been informed about
the visit. (Saulius Girnius, RFE/RL Inc.)

PREPARATORY TALKS FOR LANDSBERGIS-YELTSIN MEETING. On 31 August
and 1 September a Lithuanian delegation, headed by Supreme Council
deputy chairman Ceslovas Stankevicius, held talks at the Lithuanian
delegation in Moscow with Russian officials preparing for the
8 September meeting between Russian President Boris Yeltsin and
Supreme Council chairman Vytautas Landsbergis, Radio Lithuania
reports. Lithuanian chargé d'affaires in Moscow, Egidijus Bickauskas,
was positive, saying he has not seen such a constructive Russian
approach before. Drafting of agreements on troop withdrawals
was proceeding very slowly, he said, but he expected the principal
positions to be settled that evening. (Saulius Girnius, RFE/RL
Inc.)

ROMANIAN POLL SHOWS OPPOSITION LEADS. A new public opinion survey
conducted by the independent Institute of Marketing and Polling
again shows the Democratic Convention as likely to win most seats
in the parliamentary elections scheduled for 27 September, Rompres
announced on 2 September. The poll was taken between 10 and 20
August. It shows the convention as winning 31.3% of the seats,
as against 13.6% for the National Salvation Front, and 11.6%
for the (pro-Iliescu) Democratic National Salvation Front. The
poll confirms earlier trends. (Michael Shafir, RFE/RL Inc.).


HUNGARIAN INTERIOR MINISTER IN ROMANIA. According to MTI and
Western media, Interior Minister Peter Boross arrived in Romania
on 1 September for a 24-hour visit at the invitation of his Romanian
counterpart Victor Babiuc. The two ministers signed agreements
on the return of illegal refugees, cooperation between the interior
ministries, and opening new border crossings. Discussions also
touched on improving cooperation between the border guards, police,
and refugee organizations of the two countries. (Judith Pataki,
RFE/RL Inc.)

STRIKES WANING IN POLAND. Strikers at the FSM car parts factory
in Tychy lowered their pay demands after the management dismissed
400 of the striking workers. In a statement issued on 1 September
they said they want a minimum pay guarantee of 75% of the average
pay in Polish industry (about $150) instead of the previous demand
of the salary equivalent of 10% of the market price for the compact
FIAT Cinquecento produced by the FSM.(about $500). The management
said in a statement reported by PAP on 1 September that the change
may lead to new negotiations with the strikers and could eventually
bring about the end of the conflict. In a related development,
Gazeta wyborcza reports on 2 September that the management of
the Silesian Rozbark coal mine is preparing to send dismissal
notices to 301 striking miners; on 1 September notices were sent
to 14 strikers. In the meantime, PAP reports that Prime Minister
Hanna Suchocka has agreed to meet on 4 September with Solidarity
Chairman Marian Krzaklewski and worker representatives of the
Ursus tractor plant. (Jan de Weydenthal, RFE/RL Inc.).

STRIKE IN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA. An RFE/RL correspondent
reports that schoolteachers began their first ever national strike
on 1 September in the Republic of Macedonia, protesting low wages.
In July the parliament passed a wage package that represented
a 141% increase for teachers. As a result of continuing inflation,
however, available funds are insufficient to meet the new salary
levels. The strike is expected to last a week. Leaders met with
President Kiro Gligorov in an effort to resolve differences.
(Duncan Perry, RFE/RL Inc.)

NO LATVIAN BANKRUPTCIES . . . YET. According to Deputy Minister
of Energy and Industry Janis Melkis, Latvian industry faces a
deep crisis. Output during the first half of 1992 dropped 31%
as compared with the same period last year and companies have
11.2% fewer employees on their payrolls than in 1991. The production
slump has created a 2.8-billion-ruble deficit in the state budget.
Profits in January-June 1992 were 8 times those of the same period
in 1991, but the rise resulted essentially from price hikes and
inflation. Latvian industries are still owed 7.5 billion rubles,
4.2 billion from companies in the CIS. Despite the critical situation,
no company has had to shut down, though closures and bankruptcies
have been expected for some time. Industrial wages averaged 5,794
rubles in July, and a 28% wage increase is expected this fall,
BNS reports. (Dzintra Bungs, RFE/RL Inc.)

NEW ROUND OF SUBSIDY CUTS IN ROMANIA. A new round of subsidy
cuts, the second in 1992, went into effect in Romania on 1 September.
Western and local media report that the prices of many staples
have doubled. Under the new measures, meat became fully unsubsidized.
The prices for bread, sugar and cooking oil have all doubled,
and electricity prices rose by 62%. The government has announced
cash handouts and raised minimum wages in the state sector by
15%. (Michael Shafir, RFE/RL Inc.)

ENERGY PRICE INCREASES IN LITHUANIA. Effective 1 September the
government has raised the price of electricity fivefold--from
70 kopeks to 3.5 rubles per kilowatt/hour--Radio Lithuania reports.
Gasoline prices have been raised as well--A-92 from 23 to 35
rubles per liter, A-76 from 19 to 30 rubles, and diesel from
14 to 25 rubles. (Saulius Girnius, RFE/RL Inc.)

KOZLODUY PLANT READIES FOR WINTER. On 1 September a three-day
seminar on contingency planning with participation by French
and Finnish experts opened at the Kozloduy nuclear power plant.
BTA reports that in mid-September a team of the International
Atomic Energy Agency is scheduled to inspect winter preparations
at the problem-ridden facility, which will use only four of its
six reactors during the coming season. (Kjell Engelbrekt, RFE/RL
Inc.)

[As of 1200 CET]