No. 43, 04 March 1993

RUSSIA



SECURITY COUNCIL MEETS. The Russian Security Council met under
the chairmanship of President Boris Yeltsin, ITAR-TASS reported
on 3 March, to discuss the basic principles of the country's
new foreign policy concept which had been prepared not by the
Foreign Ministry but by the Foreign Policy Commission of the
Security Council chaired by the Council's secretary, Yurii Skokov.
The concept will be presented to the parliament as the basis
for foreign policy as implemented by the executive branch of
power. The Security Council also debated the basic concepts of
Russia's military doctrine, and discussed Cossack organizations'
demands for more autonomy. Alexander Rahr

. . . FOREIGN POLICY SHIFTS. The fact that the task of drafting
a foreign policy concept was taken away from Russian Foreign
Minister Andrei Kozyrev and handed to the Russian Security Council
adds more evidence to the view that Kozyrev is playing an increasingly
decorative role in the making of Russian foreign policy. Since
the creation of the Security Council's Foreign Policy Commission
in December, Russia's foreign policy has shifted toward significantly
tougher and more assertive stances. -Suzanne Crow

YELTSIN MEETS WITH GENERALS. Following the convening of the Russian
Security Council, Boris Yeltsin met with commanders of Russia's
military districts, fleets, and service branches. According to
an Izvestiya report (summarized by Reuters), the military leadership
urged Yeltsin to take resolute action to end the political crisis
currently paralyzing the country. While some Western reports
suggested that the generals had thrown their support behind Yeltsin
in his increasingly acrimonious battle with the legislature,
Izvestiya reported that Grachev again reiterated his determination
to keep the army out of politics. Russian TV reported that Yeltsin
had met with the generals as a natural follow-up to the discussion
on military doctrine during the Security Council meeting. According
to the same report, Grachev went out of his way to deny rumors
that the generals' arrival in Moscow signaled incipient plans
for a coup. -Stephen Foye

RUSSIA FORMALLY REQUESTS PEACEKEEPING ROLE. On 3 March the Russian
delegation at the UN formally submitted a document describing
Russia's role in peacekeeping operations in the CIS, ITAR-TASS
reported. This document was presented by Deputy Foreign Minister
Sergei Lavrov in support of Boris Yeltsin's statement to the
Civic Union forum on 28-February that "the time has come for
distinguished international organizations, including the United
Nations, to grant Russia special powers as a guarantor of peace
and stability in regions of the former USSR." The document took
pains to note similarities between Russian operations and UN
operations, but it failed to treat the problem of ensuring Russian
impartiality as a peacekeeper. -Suzanne Crow

. . . FOREIGN MINISTRY RESPONDS TO COMPLAINTS OF IMPERIALISM.
The Russian Foreign Ministry responded on 3 March to complaints
by Ukraine about Boris Yeltsin's February 28 proposal for Russia
to obtain "special powers" as a peacekeeping force in the CIS,
ITAR-TASS reported. To claim that Yeltsin's statement was evidence
of "neo-imperialism" "could not be farther from the truth," the
ministry representative said. The diplomat went on to say that
Russia's peacekeeping operations were aimed at supporting peace
in specific regions of the former Union and only with the support
of concerned parties. -Suzanne Crow

GRACHEV DENIES ARMS SUPPLIES TO SERBS AND CROATS. Defense Minister
Pavel Grachev on 3 March denied that Russia was supplying arms
to either Serbia or Croatia, ITAR-TASS reported. He also said
that Moscow had no plans to do so in the future, and that the
issue has been discussed by neither the government nor the Security
Council. His remarks were in response to a report that appeared
in The Times on 2 March. -Stephen Foye

YELTSIN QUESTIONS CONSTITUTION. Sergei Yushenkov, co-leader of
the pro-Yeltsin bloc Democratic Choice, told the Ekho Moskvy
radio station on 2-March that if hardliners, led by deputy Vladimir
Isakov, succeed in further altering the existing constitution
at the forthcoming Congress, President Yeltsin will no longer
feel under an obligation to obey the constitution. Presidential
spokesman Vyacheslav Kostikov indicated that Yeltsin will proclaim
emergency rule if Russia faces the imminent danger of a fascist
dictatorship. The co-leader of the Democratic Russia Movement,
Lev Ponomarev, said that the centrist Civic Union bloc is the
"natural partner" of the liberals, but added that it was premature
to speak of a coalition between democrats and centrists. -Alexander
Rahr

YELTSIN LEGAL AIDE ON REFERENDUM. The deputy head of the President's
State-Legal Department, Anatolii Sliva, said on 3 March at a
press conference reported by ITAR-TASS that the Congress of People's
Deputies was not legally entitled to cancel or delay the referendum
on the principles of a new Russian Constitution scheduled for
11 April, or to replace it by another form of plebiscite. Moreover,
if the parliament failed to decide on the draft text of the basic
principles of the constitution, said Sliva, the President and
the Constitutional Court would be within their rights to finalize
the text. Sliva suggested that Yeltsin's remarks of 2 March concerning
the possibility that he would himself call a referendum if it
were banned by the Congress were not legally binding and "possibly
rather emotional." The parliament is scheduled to meet today
to decide whether to convene an extraordinary session of the
Congress to discuss the future constitution. -Wendy Slater

YELTSIN MEETS WOMEN'S REPRESENTATIVES. Yeltsin held a reception
for female politicians and the representatives of women's organizations
to mark International Women's Day on 8 March, ITAR-TASS reported
on 3 March. The President appealed to Russian women to use their
influence to lower tensions in society. He said he hoped to reach
an agreement with the parliament and added that he would prefer
not to use the "extreme methods" which he had mentioned during
his recent meeting with the Democratic Choice bloc to solve the
political crisis. Yeltsin warned of the danger of the collapse
of the Russian Federation into 50-60 mini-states "which would
fight each other over the next hundred years." He also said he
believed that economic stabilization will be achieved this year.
-Alexander Rahr

ADVISORY TV SUPERVISION COUNCIL PROPOSED. The chairman of the
Ostankino broadcasting company, Vyacheslav Bragin, has proposed
creating a public advisory body to supervise the company. Speaking
on 3 March at a Moscow conference on the media, Bragin was quoted
by the Russian media as saying that the main Russian political
groups-the Civic Union, the Russian Unity parliamentary faction,
the New Russia and Democratic Choice blocs, independent trade
unions and professional associations-should be represented on
the council. The council, which could also include Ostankino
management and prominent journalists, should champion political
pluralism in the company's information policy, the chairman argued.
Bragin said that attempts to set up a body under the Russian
parliament to monitor Russian TV broadcasting were a threat to
freedom of creativity. Last week, Ostankino was at the center
of controversy, when Bragin's deputy, Igor Malashenko, resigned
in protest at the alleged domination of the company by Democratic
Russia. -Vera Tolz

ZIL TO BE PRIVATIZED. ZIL, the industrial conglomerate with up
to 130,000 employees at 17 sites across Russia, is to be privatized,
the Financial Times reported on 4 March. One million shares with
a face value of 1,000 rubles each will be offered for sale at
100 auction centers. The firm is most famous for its massive
limousines, hand-made at a rate of 2-3 a year, but it also produces
heavy trucks and refrigerators. The shares offered to the public
represent 35% of the share value of the company; 40% will go
to the workforce and management; and 25% will be retained by
the state for later sale. -Keith Bush

TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA



SHEVARDNADZE VISITS SUKHUMI. Georgian parliament chairman Eduard
Shevardnadze flew to the Abkhaz capital of Sukhumi on 3 March
to assess the capability of the Georgian troops in the region,
ITAR-TASS reported. Shevardnadze denied rumors that Georgia was
preparing to abandon Sukhumi to the Abkhaz forces, affirming
that additional Georgian troops were being deployed to counter
a possible Abkhaz assault. Shevardnadze said he was prepared
to meet with the Abkhaz leadership for talks. In an interview
published in Stolitsa (no. 8), Abkhaz parliament chairman Vladislav
Ardzinba accused Georgia of conducting a policy of genocide in
Abkhazia and reiterated that Abkhazia merely wants a federal
treaty with Georgia similar to that concluded between Russia
and its autonomous formations. -Liz Fuller

OPINION POLL SHOWS DASHNAKS TO BE MOST POPULAR PARTY IN ARMENIA.
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsyutyun) is currently
the most popular political party in Armenia and enjoys the support
of 20% of the population, according to an opinion poll cited
in Rossiiskaya gazeta of 3 March. The party's leader, Vatan Oganesyan,
is quoted as saying that the Dashnak version of socialism does
not preclude private ownership, but that caution is needed in
implementing economic reforms in war conditions. Oganesyan further
claimed that his party no longer demands the return of Nagorno-Karabakh
to Armenia, but supports a CSCE proposal to hold a referendum
in the case of disputed territory, the results of which would
be binding for the states concerned. -Liz Fuller

PEACEKEEPERS FROM KYRGYZSTAN ARRIVE IN TAJIKISTAN. The first
battalion of CIS peacekeeping forces has arrived in Tajikistan
from Kyrgyzstan in accord with an agreement concluded at the
January summit of CIS heads of state, ITAR-TASS reported on 3-March.
The peacekeepers from Kyrgyzstan are to be stationed on the Tajik-Afghan
border in the Ishkashim Raion of Gorno-Badakhshan, in recent
weeks the site of many clashes between CIS border troops and
persons attempting to cross into Tajikistan from Afghanistan.
Additional peacekeeping troops from Russia and Kazakhstan are
to arrive in Tajikistan in the near future to strengthen border
defenses in Khatlon Oblast. Border guard reinforcements from
Uzbekistan were reported to have arrived a few days earlier.
-Bess Brown

TAJIK COURT SENTENCES AFGHAN FOR BORDER VIOLATION. Tajikistan's
Supreme Court has sentenced a 27 year-old Afghan citizen to five
years incarceration in a strict-regime labor camp on a charge
of smuggling contraband and repeated illegal crossings of the
Tajik-Afghan border, ITAR-TASS reported on 3 March. The young
man was arrested while assisting a group of Tajiks to return
to Tajikistan with weapons acquired in Afghanistan. There have
been several reports of Afghans having been arrested in Tajikistan
on similar missions, but this has been the first well-publicized
trial of one of them. A number of Afghan citizens are reported
to be fighting alongside anti-government forces in Garm Raion,
an opposition stronghold east of Dushanbe. -Bess Brown

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE



CONDEMNATION OF SERBIAN "MASSACRE" IN BOSNIA. Major American
dailies on 4 March report that Serbian paramilitary units continued
an intense campaign of ethnic cleansing near Cerska in eastern
Bosnia the previous day. Thousands of refugees are already on
the roads, and others are "fighting for their lives." The UN
Security Council passed a unanimous resolution condemning the
Serbs' behavior and calling on leaders of all three Bosnian factions
to reach a negotiated settlement in the current New York negotiations.
Both chief UN negotiator Cyrus Vance and UN High Commissioner
for Refugees Sadako Ogata called the Serbs' treatment of Muslims
a "massacre." Bosnia's UN ambassador Muhamed Sacirbey told the
Los Angeles Times that asking the Bosnians to accept some of
the responsibility for the problem would be like asking "a battered
woman [to be] accused of complicity in her own rape." Meanwhile
at the New York talks, Bosnian president Alija Izetbegovic agreed
to the terms for a cease-fire once the Bosnians had received
assurances that UN troops would take control of Serb heavy weapons.
Serbs and Bosnians still have not agreed to the UN plan for the
division of Bosnia into 10 autonomous regions. -Patrick Moore


US AIRDROPS TO BOSNIA CONTINUE. The Washington Post reports on
4 March that the Clinton administration the previous day criticized
Serbian attacks on Muslim areas and made clear that US relief
shipments will continue by air. To date there have been four
airdrops in as many days, and Secretary of State Warren Christopher
said that they "will be continuing in light of overnight events.
We've had disturbing reports today of continuing fighting in
eastern Bosnia, refugees streaming down the roads." President
Bill Clinton noted: "we're continuing the airdrop plan. This
phase of it is going forward just as planned." The paper also
quotes an unnamed senior military officer as saying that "the
Serbs are redoubling their effort" at blocking overland relief
work. -Patrick Moore

SERBS THREATEN NEW DANUBE BLOCKADE. The Serbian maritime trade
union is threatening to block the Danube again, beginning 10
March. The union said it has lifted the blockade to allow time
for negotiations with the Romanian authorities on free navigation
on the Danube. On 3 March Radio Bucharest quoted a spokesman
for the union, who said a renewed blockade would last "until
the question has been settled." -Michael Shafir

MACEDONIAN CHIEF OF GENERAL STAFF FIRED. Gen. Mitre Arsovski
was removed on 3 March and replaced by Adm. Dragoljub Botsinov,
head of the Macedonian Military Academy, MILS reports. Arsovski
was fired in a disagreement with the government of the Republic
of Macedonia over control of military and security forces. The
government favors civilian control; Arsovski does not. -Duncan
Perry

SUCHOCKA CRITICIZES EUROPEAN "ISOLATIONISM." Polish Prime Minister
Hanna Suchocka met with her British counterpart, John Major,
on 3 March, during the second day of her official visit to Britain.
Major told a press conference after the meeting that his country
supports Poland's efforts to join the EC. He cautioned that full
membership is several years away, however. Suchocka told reporters
that Major has agreed to let Poland use Britain's share in the
$1 billion "stabilization fund" to restructure Poland's deeply-indebted
banking system. In an evening address to the Royal Institute
for International Affairs, Suchocka accused Europe of "post-Cold
War isolationism" and criticized the EC for its "lukewarm response"
to Eastern European aspirations. She called for better access
to EC markets along with a genuine EC commitment to free trade,
Western agencies report. Suchocka's three-day visit concludes
on 4 March, after meetings with business leaders designed to
promote investment. -Louisa Vinton

CLINTON AND YELTSIN TO MEET IN WARSAW? POLISH PRESIDENT LECH
WALESA TELEPHONED US PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON LATE ON 3 MARCH,
PAP REPORTS. Walesa's press office announced that the two presidents
discussed the changes underway in East Central Europe. Clinton
reportedly praised Poland's progress so far. Clinton's meeting
with Russian President Boris Yeltsin, scheduled for 4 April at
an as yet undetermined location, was also a topic for discussion.
The Polish president's press spokesman would neither confirm
nor deny an RFE/RL report that Walesa had proposed Warsaw as
a suitable site. Earlier in the day, Walesa was hospitalized
briefly for tests after experiencing faintness, which a spokesman
attributed to fatigue. The president was pronounced healthy.
-Louisa Vinton

MECIAR ANNOUNCES END OF KLAUS REFORMS IN SLOVAKIA. At a meeting
of the ruling Movement for a Democratic Slovakia marking the
second anniversary of the party's foundation on 3 March 1991,
Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar acknowledged that Slovakia is
abandoning some principles of the economic reforms initiated
under the former Czechoslovak governments. According to Slovak
Radio, Meciar said that the reforms designed by former Czechoslovak
Finance Minister and current Czech Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus
had brought a 30% economic decline for Slovakia. Meciar said
that his government intends to strengthen political stability
and prevent a further worsening of social conditions in Slovakia
by a set of "active measures," including import limitations.
He added that he is opposed to a devaluation of the Slovak currency.
This view was supported at the meeting by Finance Minister Julius
Toth who, apparently referring to recent demands by the IMF,
said that "Slovakia will have enough money and no one will advise
it to devalue its currency." -Jan Obrman

CONFUSION ABOUT KNAZKO'S DISMISSAL. There have been conflicting
reports concerning the widely-expected dismissal of Slovak Foreign
Minister Milan Knazko. While Knazko himself repeatedly informed
the media that Prime Minister Meciar would propose his ouster
to new President Michal Kovac on 3 March, TA SR carried a statement
by Meciar on 3 March in which he claimed that he has not submitted
any such proposal. Meanwhile, more officials have indicated their
support for the foreign minister. After President Kovac publicly
praised Knazko's work on 1 March, Ivan Laluha, the chairman of
the foreign policy committee of the Slovak parliament, which
is currently evaluating the work of the Foreign Ministry, told
press agencies on 3 March that so far he cannot find any shortcomings
in the ministry's work that would justify Knazko's dismissal.
Knazko warned that the tensions between him and Meciar could
lead to a split of the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia, CTK
reported. -Jan Obrman

WAS IMRE NAGY A KGB AGENT? IN AN INTERVIEW IN THE 1 MARCH ISSUE
OF THE SOCIALIST DAILY NEPSZABADSAG, FORMER HUNGARIAN COMMUNIST
PARTY LEADER KAROLY GROSZ CONFIRMED THE CONTENTS OF A RECENT
INTERVIEW IN THE 27-FEBRUARY ISSUE OF THE TURIN PAPER LA STAMPA.
According to Grosz, as a result of a request made in spring 1989
to Soviet party leader Mikhail Gorbachev, KGB chief Vladimir
Kryuchkov sent photocopies of documents indicating that Imre
Nagy, then a political exile in the Soviet Union, offered his
services to the KGB in 1930 and was accepted in 1933; he subsequently
denounced 30 to 35 Hungarian and about 70 German communists.
Grosz, after verifying the authenticity of the photocopies, informed
his party's stunned political and central committees, which took
note of his recommendation not to publish the documents to avoid
making a political campaign out of the issue. A close Nagy associate,
the deputy Miklos Vasarhelyi, told Radio Budapest on 1 March
that he sees behind the revelations an manipulative attempt by
Kryuchkov to discredit Russian President Boris Yeltsin, who put
a wreath on Nagy's grave during his November 1992 visit to Budapest.
Several recent Russian writings about Nagy seem to indicate that
the KGB file was put together following the news of his planned
rehabilitation and reburial in 1989. -Alfred Reisch

HUNGARY'S TRADE WITH POLAND AND THE CZECH AND SLOVAK REPUBLICS.
As a result of the free trade agreement between Hungary, Poland,
and the Czech and Slovak Republics that came into force on 1
March, customs duties and quantitative limits will be gradually
reduced over eight years for industrial goods and five years
for agricultural products, MTI reports on 2 March. According
to Acting State Secretary for International Economic Relations
Lajos Berenyi, 60% of Hungarian industrial exports to Poland
and 54% to the Czech Republic and Slovakia will become duty-free,
together with 45% of Hungary's imports from those countries,
with quantitative limits on agricultural products remaining in
force. Hungary's total trade with Poland and Czechoslovakia amounted
in 1992 to nearly $800 million and over $300 million respectively,
with the latter amount equally divided between the Czech and
Slovak Republics; compared to 1991, this represented in Czechoslovakia's
case a 50% increase and a considerable drop in the case of Poland.
-Alfred Reisch

BULGARIA THREATENS TO SUSPEND INTEREST PAYMENTS. Upon returning
from talks with creditor banks in Frankfurt, Bulgarian Finance
Minister Stoyan Aleksandrov said his country may stop paying
interest unless there is significant progress in negotiations
on the $10-billion commercial debt, Reuters and BTA report. Having
canceled all payments on 29 March 1990, Bulgaria began to honor
part of its obligations last fall. Aleksandrov told journalists
in Sofia that he has asked creditors to accept an annual $200-million
payments ceiling until the year 2000, in view of the country's
deep economic crisis. Until the next round of talks-to be held
on 5 April-Bulgaria is to prepare a more coherent proposal. Aleksandrov,
who has requested that experts from the International Monetary
Fund and the World Bank be present at the talks, said Bulgaria
will keep to its "firm line." -Kjell Engelbrekt

OPPOSITION RALLIES AGAINST BULGARIAN GOVERNMENT. On 3 March,
Bulgaria's National Day, some 20,000 sympathizers of the opposition
Union of Democratic Forces gathered in Sofia to protest against
the government, Western and Bulgarian agencies report. As UDF
leaders read out a declaration accusing the cabinet, led by unaffiliated
economist Lyuben Berov, of supporting restoration of communism,
crowds chanted "Resignation!" and "New Elections!" UDF Chairman
and former Prime Minister Filip Dimitrov also addressed the meeting.
-Kjell Engelbrekt

ROMANIA RAISES WAGES, BUT LABOR UNREST GROWS. The government
announced on 3 March that it has increased average monthly wages
in the state sector by 9.1%. This represents half of the predicted
price increase in the first quarter of 1993. Inflation runs at
about 200%, and the government says it intends to cut it to 80%.
More price increases are expected in May, when the last subsidies
on foodstuff and services will be lifted, and in July, when a
value-added tax is to be introduced. Prime Minister Nicolae Vacaroiu
will present the proposed economic reform to parliament on 4-March.
Against this background, labor unrest is growing. Hydroelectric
workers demonstrated in Bucharest on 3-March to demand wage paybacks
and government investments in their industry. They met with government
officials. Radio Bucharest said President Iliescu participated
in the demonstration on the workers' side and expressed support
for their demands. The leaders of the Alfa trade union confederation,
one of Romania's largest, said on 3 March that negotiations with
the government had failed. Radio Bucharest quoted the union's
spokesman as saying a warning strike is scheduled for 8 March,
but a general strike may be declared, which might lead to a "government
reshuffle, and even the anticipated elections." The spokesman
said "some forces might even take advantage in order to stage
a coup d'etat." -Michael Shafir

MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT, ROMANIAN INTELLIGENCE CHIEF MEND FENCES.
Mircea Snegur received Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) chief
Virgil Magureanu in Chisinau on 3 March. They reaffirmed the
principle of noninterference in the internal affairs of other
states, a Moldovan communique said. Moldova's Presidential Office
told the RFE/RL Research Institute that Magureanu requested the
meeting in order to rebut recent allegations in Russian-language
media that SRI is recruiting and training Moldovans, including
Popular Front members, for violent actions against the Moldovan
government with a view to forcing Moldovan-Romanian unification.
On 2 March the Romanian government, SRI, and Moldovan Popular
Front in separate statements rejected the allegations. Snegur
has several times recently expressed concern that Moldovan pro-unification
militants may be preparing a coup. The Moldovan government has
also protested officially against Magureanu's own statement,
quoted by the Romanian press, that SRI is working to bring about
Romanian-Moldovan unification. -Vladimir Socor

NO PROGRESS IN STRATEGIC ARMS TALKS. Russian Defense Minister
Pavel Grachev said on 3-March that Russian-Ukrainian negotiations
near Moscow on strategic arms have yielded no breakthroughs,
ITAR-TASS reports. Grachev accused Ukrainian leaders of claiming
ownership of strategic weapons located in Ukraine. He also threatened
to issue an official statement that would reportedly accuse Ukraine
of failing to maintain the weapons properly and underline Moscow's
unwillingness to assume further responsibility for their safety.
Ukrainian officials haev said on 3-March that Russian-Ukrainian
negotiations near Moscow on strategic arms have yielded no breakthroughs,
ITAR-TASS reports. Grachev accused Ukrainian leaders of claiming
ownership of strategic weapons located in Ukraine. He also threatened
to issue an official statement that would reportedly accuse Ukraine
of failing to maintain the weapons properly and underline Moscow's
unwillingness to assume further responsibility for their safety.
Ukrainian officials have said that Moscow is responsible for
the impasse in negotiations. -Stephen Foyevices [of the two countries]
have united." Stephen Foye

LITHUANIA AND THE "MINI-OPEC" AGREEMENT. Contrary to reports
in the Russian media [and as reported in RFE/RL Daily Report
yesterday], Lithuanian delegation head Albertas Sinevicius said
that his country did not sign the agreement on the formation
of an intergovernmental council on oil and gas on 2 March in
Surgut and participated there only as observers, the RFE/RL Lithuanian
Service reports. Opposition leader Vytautas Landsbergis suggested
that the Seimas should reject joining the council, the purpose
of which is to restore Russia's coordinating role in the oil
and gas industry, since it would run counter to Lithuania's decision
not to join any post-Soviet alliances. He said that even participation
as an observer would be harmful since it would be a breach of
Baltic States' unity. The head of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor
Party faction in the Seimas, Justinas Karosas, said that Lithuania
could sign it since it is only an economic agreement and not
a political alliance. -Saulius Girnius

GERMANY DONATES MILITARY AIRPLANES TO LITHUANIA. On 3 March two
10-year old L-410 type military transport planes donated by the
Bundeswehr arrived in Vilnius, Radio Lithuania reports. The craft
can carry 15 passengers or 1.5 tons of cargo, have a maximum
speed of 330 km/h, and can fly 1,000 km with a ton of fuel. They
will be based at the Russian military airport in Siauliai, which
is scheduled to be handed over to Lithuania on 1 June. -Saulius
Girnius

RUSSIAN OFFICERS STILL COME TO SERVE IN LATVIA. Radio Riga reported
on 2 March that Russian army officers are still being dispatched
for service in Latvia, despite agreements that Russian military
forces are to be withdrawn. Already in March the Latvian border
guards have stopped a dozen officers and ordered them to take
the return train to Russia; some officers fled the border guard
post leaving their assignment papers behind. Radio Riga also
reports that a formal request has been received from the leadership
of Russia's Northwestern Group of Forces to bring into Latvia
an additional 1561 military specialists in order to facilitate
the withdrawal of Russian troops and military equipment from
Latvia. -Dzintra Bungs

LATVIAN PARLIAMENT RATIFIES EC LOAN. On 3-March the Supreme Council
ratified the loan agreement between Latvia and the European Community
that was signed in Brussels on 8 January. Latvia will now be
able to borrow 80 million ecus with a seven-year recovery deadline.
The loan will be used to finance imports of raw materials, power
resources, equipment, and technology for industry, BNS reported
on 3 March. -Dzintra Bungs

[As of 1200 CET]

Compiled by Wendy Slater and Charles Trumbull









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