No. 48, 11 March 1993

	Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Inc.





RUSSIA



YELTSIN, CHERNOMYRDIN, KHASBULATOV ADDRESS THE CONGRESS. The
11 March session of the Congress opened with President Boris
Yeltsin's address. Yeltsin, taking a conciliatory tone, suggested
cooperation between the executive and legislature to overcome
the current political crisis, proposing that both the president
and the Congress voluntarily sacrifice some of their prerogatives
in an effort to support the government of Viktor Chernomyrdin.
Yeltsin's supporters persuaded the gathering to change the agenda
in order to give the rostrum to Chernomyrdin, who supported the
idea. Speaker Ruslan Khasbulatov attacked both Yeltsin and Chernomyrdin,
saying that agreements between the branches of power should be
based on the constitution. Khasbulatov said Chernomyrdin is not
a real prime minister because his deputies Vladimir Shumeiko
and Anatolii Chubais are more powerful. Khasbulatov also called
for the resignation of Chubais, who is responsible for privatization,
and Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev. Khasbulatov added that the
parliament will not approve the 1993 state budget until the government
reveals its hard currency expenses. -Julia Wishnevsky

YELTSIN LOSES FIRST CRUCIAL VOTES AT THE CONGRESS. The dispute
between the president, prime minister, and the speaker at the
Congress was followed with the vote for the draft resolution
of the session on division of power. Altogether three drafts
were proposed: one, by the editorial commission elected by the
Congress the day earlier; the second, by the presidents of republics
and regions of the Russian Federation; and the third, by Yeltsin.
The Congress approved in principle the draft poposed by its editorial
commission (623-deputies voted for and 252 against). The second
draft received 526 votes for and 247 against; while Yeltsin's
proposals won merely 382 "yes" and 329 "no" votes. The Congress
also rejected Yeltsin's suggestion to include in a commission
a number of his representatives because its rules say that only
deputies could sit on such commissions, and six of the officials
named by Yeltsin were not deputies. -Julia Wishnevsky

GAP BETWEEN YELTSIN AND CONGRESS WIDENS. The afternoon session
of the 10 March meeting of the Congress of People's Deputies
revealed that the confrontation between Yeltsin and deputies
had visibly sharpened since the Congress last met in December
1992. Of all those who addressed the session, only a handful
of intellectuals and the heads of republics that form the Russian
Federation supported Yeltsin and only partially. The heads of
the local soviets issued a warning, read by Krasnoyarsk representative
Vyacheslav Novikov, to the effect that they would resist all
unconstitutional attempts to resolve by force the current dispute
between legislative and executive branches of government. All
in all, moderates wanted the agreement achieved by Yeltsin and
the Congress at the December 1992 session to be annulled, while
Yeltsin's more radical opponents wanted the president to go on
with his 11-April referendum plans or to resign if they fail.
(The sessions of the Congress are broadcast live on Russian radio
and rebroadcast on television.) -Julia Wishnevsky

YELTSIN URGES TAKEOVER OF FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS. As part of
a package of proposals for redefining powers between the Russian
executive branch and parliament, President Yeltsin has called
for making the Council of Ministers responsible for questions
concerning key state financial bodies in addition to formulating
and implementing national economic anti-crisis programs. While
maintaining some sort of subordination to Parliament, the Central
Bank, the two state banks that handle international transactions,
the Pension Fund, the Russian Fund of Federal Property, and other
extrabudgetary federal funds should be transferred to the government
of the Russian federation, the Yeltsin draft resolution urged,
according to ITAR-TASS. The policies of these institutions, especially
the Central Bank, have often contradicted those of the executive
branch. It is not clear, however, how proposals for dual subordination
would help clarify the policy-making roles among the executive
branch, parliament, and the financial organizations themselves.
-Erik Whitlock

PRESIDENTIAL SPOKESMAN WARNS OF CONFRONTATION. President Yeltsin's
press spokesman Vyacheslav Kostikov in an interview with Ostankino
TV on the evening of 10-March said that by the end of its first
day, the Congress had brought the country to "a very dangerous
situation," and risked destroying the truce achieved in December
between the president and the legislature. He warned of possible
confrontation between the two branches of power, "perhaps with
the use of force." Kostikov defined Yeltsin's proposals made
that day to the Congress for constitutional agreement as placing
"a clear emphasis on the economy". He said that the current economic
crisis was due mainly to the vague allocation of responsibility
and that Yeltsin's proposals would devolve economic responsibility
entirely upon the government. -Wendy Slater

YELTSIN SEEKS WEST'S SUPPORT FOR EMERGENCY RULE. Several Western
newspapers, including the Financial Times of 10 March and the
Chicago Tribune of 11 March, said that Boris Yeltsin has privately
asked several Western leaders whether they would support him
if he had to take "emergency measures" to preserve his rule in
a bitter power struggle with the parliament. These "measures"
could include the introduction of a direct presidential rule
and the disbanding of the Congress of People's Deputies. -Vera
Tolz

CIVIC UNION ON RESOLUTION OF CONFLICT. The influential Civic
Union bloc of centrist parties distributed to the Congress its
proposals for resolving the current constitutional discord, ITAR-TASS
reported on 10 March. Civic Union called for the formation of
a coalition government, and for the prime minister to have the
right to reshuffle the government (currently this is a presidential
prerogative). It was essential that parliament be allowed to
confirm the appointments of the foreign, defense, security, and
interior ministers, as provided for in the compromise agreement
reached at the Seventh Congress in December 1992. Civic Union
called for greater government autonomy, and for a referendum
on early presidential and legislative elections if the Congress
failed to settle the division of powers. -Wendy Slater

GRACHEV ON CONGRESS, MILITARY REFORM. In an interview broadcast
on Ostankino TV on 9-March, Defense Minister Pavel Grachev discussed
the Congress and a wide range of military reform issues. Grachev
noted that while he had been the target of criticism from deputies,
he was able to maintain good working relations with the legislative
body. Concerning military reform, Grachev argued that the North
Caucasus military district was the most important in Russia,
but that efforts were also being made to strengthen the Moscow
and Leningrad military districts, which are now "border districts."
Grachev also claimed that while Russian troop withdrawals would
be complete by 1995, he did not expect the military housing problem
to be solved before 1997. In response to a question concerning
use of the military to assist police and in internal security
missions, Grachev argued strongly that the military should be
limited to defending against foreign threats rather than internal
ones. -John Lepingwell

GRACHEV ON RUSSIAN TROOPS IN GEORGIA. According to Pavel Grachev,
there is a need for Russian troops in Abkhazia and Georgia. While
acknowledging that Russian- Georgian negotiations over troop
withdrawal were taking place, Grachev said he hoped that Russian
troops would remain in Georgia "to defend Georgian sovereignty,
among other things." Grachev rejected complaints by Eduard Shevardnadze
that Grachev's recent visit to Russian units in Georgia represented
an interference in Georgia's affairs, and accused Shevardnadze
of showing up unannounced in Moscow to discuss military withdrawal
issues. Grachev's remarks were broadcast on Ostankino TV on 9
March. -John Lepingwell

KUZBASS MINERS CALL FOR REFERENDUM. Miners in the Kuzbass region
of western Siberia have called for a referendum if no agreement
is reached on the division of power between executive and legislature
at the current Congress of People's Deputies, an RFE/RL correspondent
reported on 10 March. The miners accuse the parliament and the
Congress of People's Deputies of "usurping power". Russian radio
reported the same day that the wage agreement made between the
government and the miners' union on 8-February has begun to be
implemented. Meanwhile ITAR-TASS reported that the Kemerovo miners
intend cutting off supplies of coal to protest the lack of government
subsidies. The mines have to sell coal at the current regulated
prices, which do not cover production costs. -Sheila Marnie

TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA



MORE DETAILS ON KAZAKH PRIVATIZATION PROGRAM. The Kazakh government
has published its national privatization program for 1993-1995,
ITAR-TASS reported on 10-March. The three-year program, which
was approved by the government last month, envisages the sale
of most state-owned enterprises through a combination of voucher
and money transactions. Foreigners will be allowed to buy Kazakh
assets after obtaining a license from the state. The branches
of the economy excluded from privatization under the program
are those considered of vital economic importance. The state
will exercise control of enterprises of such branches through
special holding companies. The program also does not include
the privatization of land, water and other natural resources.
-Erik Whitlock

HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT EXPECTED IN KYRGYZSTAN. Experts from the World
Bank have predicted that between 95,000 and 190,000 people will
be unemployed in Kyrgyzstan by the end of 1993, Radio Mayak reported
on 10 March. The country's economy has been severely affected
by the collapse of economic ties with the other successor states
to the USSR. Kyrgyz President Askar Akaev warned a gathering
of entrepreneurs that soon the government will have to end the
subsidies to many enterprises with which it sought to limit the
spread of unemployment. Those enterprises that cannot subsist
without government support will have to declare bankruptcy. -Bess
Brown

TAJIK OPPOSITION TRIED TO FLEE TO KYRGYZSTAN. Deputy Chairman
of Tajikistan's Council of Ministers Munavarsho Nazriev told
a press briefing on 10 March that groups of the armed Tajik opposition
had tried to escape mopping-up operations by government troops
by fleeing into Kyrgyzstan, but had been stopped by Tajik and
Kyrgyz government forces, ITAR-TASS reported. Nazriev acknowledged
that some opposition groups have taken refuge in the mountains
of Tajikistan. The same source quoted the official Iranian news
agency IRNA as reporting that more than 100 Tajiks have asked
for asylum in Iran after walking from the Tajik-Afghan border
to the Afghan city of Herat. Thousands of Tajik refugees fled
to Afghanistan after the restoration of conservative rule in
Dushanbe in December 1992, and few have been willing to return
to Tajikistan. -Bess Brown

TAJIKISTAN STEPS UP WAR ON DRUGS. The Presidium of Tajikistan's
Supreme Soviet has issued a decree raising the penalty for possession,
manufacture, or transport of narcotics to five to ten years in
prison, Krim-press reported on 10 March. Penalties were also
increased for the growing of plants containing narcotic substances.
Repeat offenders may face the death penalty. Growing and manufacture
of narcotics has increased in many parts of Central Asia as economic
conditions worsen. Tajik officials have been reported to fear
that rural inhabitants will try to improve their financial situation
by turning to the growing of opium poppies and other narcotic-bearing
plants. -Bess Brown

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE



SERBS NOT TO OFFER CONCESSIONS? INTERNATIONAL MEDIA REPORT ON
11 MARCH THAT SERBIAN PRESIDENT SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC IS SLATED
TO MEET WITH FRAN�OIS MITTERRAND IN PARIS LATER IN THE DAY. The
French president hopes to convince Milosevic to put pressure
on Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic to accept the Vance-Owen
plan for a partition of Bosnia into ten highly autonomous regions.
Karadzic and his followers do not like the proposal, which requires
them to give up much of the land they have conquered. Many world
leaders regard the plan as imperfect, but note that it is the
only or best proposal under consideration. Karadzic told the
Daily Telegraph that he, however, considers the plan "the final
stumbling block to peace," and Tanjug on 10-March quoted him
as saying that Milosevic will offer Mitterrand no concessions.
The 11-March Los Angeles Times quotes a senior US official as
saying that "Karadzic wants a risk-free, concession-free negotiated
settlement. -Patrick Moore

BOSNIAN UPDATE. Relief missions are continuing their attempts
to bring shipments to both Konjevic Polje and Srebrenica in eastern
Bosnia, and Radio Bosnia-Herzegovina said on 10-and 11 March
that Serbian pressure on Srebrenica is increasing. International
media on 10 March reported that Bosnian president Alija Izetbegovic
has run into opposition in Sarajevo in his attempts to persuade
his colleagues to agree to the Vance-Owen plan, which he had
earlier virtually accepted. Some observers noted, however, that
Izetbegovic has a history of agreeing to one thing at international
meetings and then taking a different stand once he returns home.
-Patrick Moore

NEW DANUBE BLOCKADE? ON 10 MARCH SHIPPING UNIONS IN RUMP YUGOSLAVIA
THREATENED A NEW DANUBE BLOCKADE IN CASE ROMANIAN AUTHORITIES
DO NOT PERMIT YUGOSLAV VESSELS FREE NAVIGATION ON THE RIVER.
A Yugoslav union leader said that the blockade, which might involve
up to 70 Serbian ships, will last until Romania does away with
all restrictions against Yugoslav vessels. Romania's interior
ministry released on the same day a statement insisting that
the country will continue to observe the UN sanctions against
Serbia and Montenegro. Yugoslav tugboats and barges had brought
the traffic on the Danube to a halt between 23-February and 2
March. -Dan Ionescu

COSIC DESCRIBES SITUATION AS GRAVE. Dobrica Cosic, Federal President
of rump Yugoslavia, on 10-March likened the county to "a Red
Cross" because of the large number of refugees-currently estimated
at about 600,000. He also pointed to the rapid impoverishment
of the population, the result of declining production and rising
unemployment. He warned of the possibility of social upheavals.
The remarks were made in a speech to a delegation of Yugoslav
Red Cross officials, reported by Radio Serbia. -Milan Andrejevich


SITUATION IN KOSOVO "COMING TO HEAD." Politika reports on 10
March that the Kosovo situation is "coming to a head." The Belgrade
daily cites as evidence the increasingly frequent appeals by
Albanian political leaders and commentaries in the Albanian-language
media to resist Serbian terror. Radio Croatia reported on 9 March
that Serbian troop movements continue and that inspectors of
Serbia's finance ministry are confiscating goods without legal
documentation from Albanian shopkeepers. -Milan Andrejevich

POLISH JUSTICE MINISTER RESIGNS. Prime Minister Hanna Suchocka
accepted the resignation of Justice Minister Zbigniew Dyka on
11 March, PAP reports. Dyka was ordered on leave at the end of
January after what Suchocka called a "reprehensible" decision
to assign a prosecutor involved in the political trials of the
1980s to the investigation of charges that President Lech Walesa's
closest aide was a secret police agent. Recent Polish media reports
said that Suchocka had convinced the minister's party, the Christian
National Union, to accept Dyka's removal, on the condition that
it retain control over the justice post. The resignation is the
first cabinet change since the government was formed in July
1992. It may be a reaction to charges that the coalition has
been adrift since its success in the budget vote. -Louisa Vinton


PENDING EXTRADITION SOURS POLISH-GERMAN RELATIONS. A Polish deputy
foreign minister warned on 10 March that "some tension" in bilateral
relations is inevitable if Germany goes ahead with the extradition
to the US of the last of six Poles arrested in Frankfurt last
year for illegal arms trading. The German ambassador was called
to the Polish Foreign Ministry on 6 March after reports emerged
that Rajmond Szwonder, the deputy director of the Lucznik arms
plant, would be extradited despite repeated official Polish intervention
on his behalf. The six Poles were arrested in a "sting" operation
organized by US customs officers, who say the men were attempting
to sell arms to Iraq. The Poles claim Iraq was never mentioned.
The only evidence against them is apparently a clandestine recording
that is inadmissible in court. The German embassy in Warsaw issued
a statement on 10-March saying that Germany was bound by international
law to extradite Szwonder. The Polish foreign ministry countered
by charging that this was an "opportunistic" attempt to shift
blame to the US. A Polish trade official told PAP that Szwonder
was the only one of the six men to have government authorization
to sell Polish arms. The other five Poles are already awaiting
trial in New York. -Louisa Vinton

ROMANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER TO GERMANY. Radio Bucharest announced
on 10 March that Teodor Melescanu is expected in Bonn for an
official visit at the invitation of his German counterpart, Klaus
Kinkel. The radio quoted an earlier interview with Kinkel on
the importance of the visit for the Romanian-German relations.
In another development, reports from Sibiu said that preparations
for the return of more than 400-tons of German toxic waste are
underway in southern Transylvania. The waste was illegally dumped
there in 1992. The German government recently agreed to pay the
costs of removal. -Dan Ionescu

ROMANIAN PARLIAMENT RESUMES DEBATES ON CABINET'S PROGRAM. On
11 March the two houses resume debate in joint session on a four-year
economic and social strategy presented by the cabinet on 4 March.
On the 10th the leader of the country's main opposition alliance
said that his organization intends to bring a no-confidence motion
against the left-wing Vacaroiu government in the near future.
Emil Constantinescu, president of the centrist Democratic Convention,
told Reuters that "a vote of censure" is favored by all 20-parties
of the convention, but the timing of the veto is still being
discussed. Constantinescu also suggested that the party's final
decision will depend on the cabinet's response to criticism during
the current parliamentary debates. The opposition expressed serious
doubts that the government's long-term strategy could help refloat
an economy beset by soaring inflation and unemployment -Dan Ionescu


SLOVAK PREMIER ASKS FOR KNAZKO'S DISMISSAL. In an interview with
RFE/RL on 10-March, Slovak President Michal Kovac said that Prime
Minister Vladimir Meciar had officially asked him to dismiss
Foreign Minister Milan Knazko. Kovac said he is turning the matter
to the Constitutional Court. According to the Constitution, the
president must recall a minister after a nonconfidence vote in
Parliament, but it is not clear whether he must do so also upon
the request of the premier. Parliament Chairman Ivan Gasparovic
told Slovak Radio on 10 March that Meciar has asked Kovac to
dismiss Knazko not only as foreign minister but also deputy prime
minister. Knazko said on Czech TV on 10 March that he has not
been officially informed. He also said that the Constitution
should clearly specify the president's fundamental prerogatives
so it would not be necessary to involve the Constitutional Court.
-Jiri Pehe

CZECHS MOVE ON TEMELIN NUCLEAR PLANT. On 10 March the government
officially approved the completion of the controversial Temelin
nuclear plant, a step opposed by the Austrian government and
Czech environmentalists. Speaking to reporters after the government
meeting, Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus said that 18-ministers voted
in favor and one-Environment Minister Frantisek Benda-abstained.
CTK reports Klaus as saying that the nuclear plant will have
world-class safety standards. (US-based Westinghouse Electric
has signed preliminary deals to supply Western-standard nuclear
fuel as well as control and safety technology for the plant.)
Klaus also said that the completion of the plant would allow
the phase-out of some of the brown-coal-fired power plants in
northern Bohemia, one of the most polluted regions in Europe.
-Jiri Pehe

CZECH COMMUNIST LEADER TO RESIGN. Jiri Svoboda, chairman of the
Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia, said on 10 March that
will resign effective 12 March. Svoboda, faced with the resurgence
of hard-liners in his party, has sought to change the party's
name and reorient it toward the democratic left. He told a press
conference in Prague that he "cannot preside over a party, where
a regrettable nostalgia for the past is spreading." He refused
to work with the newly-formed "Marxist platform," a faction within
the party headed by Miloslav Stepan, a party presidium member
under the hard-line communist regime of Milos Jakes in the 1980s.
Svoboda's resignation is a reaction to a meeting of the party's
central committee on 7 March, at which his proposals to change
the party's name and orientation were rejected. Svoboda told
Reuters on 10 March that the central committee is just as incompetent
as it was when communist rule in Czechoslovakia was overthrown
in November 1989. -Jiri Pehe

HUNGARIAN COURT ORDERS COMPENSATION OF JEWS. At the request of
the Hungarian Association of Jewish Religious Groups, the Constitutional
Court ruled on 9 March that the conditions of the Paris Peace
Treaty must be observed and Jews must be compensated for valuables
that they were forced to deposit with the Hungarian National
Bank in 1944, MTI reports. If no heirs can be found, the compensation
will go to Jewish community. No details were given. The valuables
themselves cannot be returned or even accurately traced because
the paperwork has been lost or is unreliable. The court also
upheld the general concept of the compensation law, but declared
one paragraph unconstitutional, because it would provide discriminatory
agricultural support for people who invested their compensation
vouchers in land. -Judith Pataki

TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER IN HUNGARY. On 10-March Hikmet Cetin
paid an official visit to Hungary and met with President Arpad
Goncz, Prime Minister Jozsef Antall, and his Hungarian counterpart
Geza Jeszenszky, MTI reports. Jeszenszky and Cetin initialed
the bilateral treaty to be signed by Antall and Turkish Prime
Minister Suleyman Demirel, who is expected to visit soon. The
agreement calls for expanded economic and cultural relations
and establishing cultural representation in each other's capitals.
Jeszenszky praised Turkey's role in helping to find a solution
to the problems in the Yugoslav region. -Judith Pataki

NEW LITHUANIAN PRIME MINISTER. On 10 March the Seimas, in a session
broadcast live by Radio Lithuania, approved the presidential
nomination of Adolfas Slezevicius as prime minister by a vote
of 70 to 13 with 23 abstentions. Slezevicius was charged with
presenting his cabinet to the president within 15 days. The Seimas
also approved the resignation of Bank of Lithuania chairman Vilius
Baldisis by a vote of 86 to 0 with 13-abstentions. Brazauskas
also presented Kestutis Lapinskas, Vladas Pavilionis, and Stasys
Sedbaras as his three nominees to the Constitutional Court. -Saulius
Girnius

LATVIA TO INAUGURATE VISAS. On 10 March Diena reported that Latvia
is going ahead with an earlier decision to require visas of foreigners
traveling to and through its territory starting on 20 March.
Deputy Indulis Berzins expressed concern that Russia has still
not approved Latvia's request to open consulates at St. Petersburg
and Pytalovo, especially since so many Russians travel frequently
to and from Latvia and currently they can obtain visas in Moscow.
Visas will also be issued at some border crossing points but
they will cost more at the border than at a consulate. -Dzintra
Bungs

ESTONIA PASSES BILL ON SEA BORDERS. On 10-March Parliament by
a vote of 42 to 38-with 3-abstentions passed a law "On the Sea
Territorial Waters of Estonia," BNS reports. The law establishes
the 12-mile limit for Estonia's territorial waters, but notes
that this can be reduced if agreements are made with the Russia
and Latvia. In fact, a map appended to the law shows the border
to be less than 12 miles in several sections of the Gulf of Finland.
-Saulius Girnius

ESTONIA'S DEFENSE CONCEPT. Defense Minister Hain Rebas told the
press on 10 March that Estonia envisages a policy of "total defense"
that would involve the civilian population, state structure,
and armed forces in securing peace and repelling enemy attacks.
Rebas said that the draft Fundamentals of Estonia's State Defense
was submitted on 8 March to Parliament for consideration. The
document will serve as the basis for future defense laws and
for the drafting a concrete plan of defense, BNS reported on
10 March. -Dzintra Bungs

BALTS, RUSSIA AGREE ON HUMAN RIGHTS COOPERATION. RFE/RL Latvian
Service reported on 10 March that a written accord was reached
earlier this week at the UN Commission on Human Rights meeting
in Geneva among representatives from Estonia, Latvia, and Russia
to stop criticizing each other and work together solve the problems
of Russian-speakers in the two Baltic states. The main point
of the accord is that both the Balts and Russians in the Baltics
are victims of policies of the former Soviet Union. -Dzintra
Bungs

KRAVCHUK VS. KUCHMA. Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk has
rejected the draft budget proposed by Prime Minister Leonid Kuchma's
cabinet, Reuters reports on 11 March. In a short speech to the
Cabinet of Ministers on 10 March, which was aired on Ukrainian
TV, Kravchuk accused the government of failing to address fundamental
issues like runaway inflation and the pauperization of low-income
families. "given that we have no such answers," he said, "I propose
that the entire matter be returned to ministers for reexamination."
Reuters comments that Kravchuk's speech was tantamount to a vote
of no confidence in Kuchma's government. -Roman Solchanyk

MOLDOVAN-UKRAINIAN RAPPROCHEMENT. Moldova and Ukraine have approved
a package of draft agreements on the reciprocal protection of
the rights of ethnic minorities and on cooperation in education,
culture, energy, transport, and agriculture, Radio Kiev reported
on 7 and 8 March. Ukraine's ambassador for special assignments,
Andrii Obodovsky, who initialed the documents in Chisinau, told
Radio Kiev that bilateral relations are marked by "mutual understanding
and trust" and that Ukraine is satisfied with the "favorable
conditions for the organizational life and activities of the
Ukrainian community in Moldova." On 5-March, an agreement on
cooperation was signed in Kiev at Vice-Prime Ministers' level
by the Unions of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Ukraine
and Moldova, Radio Kiev reported. On 25 February, Ukraine announced
that it will no longer accept the transit of goods produced in
the "Dniester republic" unless they are cleared by Moldova. On
19 February Ukraine and Moldova signed a far-reaching military
agreement. -Vladimir Socor

"DNIESTER," GAGAUZ LEADERS DEMAND FEDERAL MOLDOVA. In a joint
statement on 10 March, the presidiums of the "Dniester" and Gagauz
supreme soviets demanded the transformation of the "Moldovan
Soviet Socialist Republic" into a federation of three equal republics-Moldova,
Dniester, and Gagauz-and its accession to the Commonwealth of
Independent States, Basapress reported. The move means a rejection
of Chisinau's offers, under negotiation since last fall, of administrative-territorial
autonomy short of republican status of Transdniester and the
Gagauz and appears to lay the ground for them to demand to join
the CIS in their own right if Moldova stays out. It also reverts
to the strategy of 1990-91, which called for Moldova's federalization
and its adherence to the USSR, failing which the two would-be
republics would reserve the right to join the union and thus
secede from Moldova. -Vladimir Socor

[As of 1200 CET] Compiled by Suzanne Crow  and Charles Trumbull





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