No. 170, 06 September 1993

COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES



YELTSIN, GRACHEV ON MASSANDRA SUMMIT. Russian President Boris
Yeltsin announced on 3 September that he and Ukrainian President
Leonid Kravchuk had agreed at a summit meeting in the city of
Massandra on the Crimean peninsula that day that Ukraine would
turn over its share of the Black Sea Fleet in exchange for "more
or less" the cancellation of Ukrainian debts to Russia. Yeltsin
also announced that agreement had been reached on the return
of nuclear warheads from Ukraine to Russia for dismantling. Russian
Defense Minister Pavel Grachev made similar claims at a press
conference the following day, ITAR-TASS and Western agencies
reported. The text of the Russian-Ukrainian communique signed
at the meeting and published by ITAR-TASS on 4 September made
no reference to the kinds of deals mentioned by Yeltsin and Grachev.
-Suzanne Crow

UKRAINIAN SIDE DENIES MASSANDRA "DEALS". After an initial delay
of several hours, Ukrainian representatives began challenging
the Russian and Western accounts of what had been agreed to at
Massandra. When President Kravchuk and other members of the Ukrainian
delegation finally arrived back in Kiev late on 3 September they
denied that any deals concerning the sale of Ukraine's share
of the Black Sea Fleet or Ukraine's surrender of its nuclear
warheads to Russia had been made. Kravchuk explained to journalists
at Kiev airport that "nothing" fundamental "had changed." Ukraine
was not in a position to maintain its entire share of the Black
Sea Fleet and would consider a Russian proposal to sell some
of the ships to it and allow it to use some of the Ukrainian
naval "infrastructure" (i.e. Sevastopol), but it was "absolutely
not the case," he stressed, that he agreed to sell all of Ukraine's
share of the fleet and to lease Sevastopol to Russia. -Bohdan
Nahaylo

THE UKRAINIAN VERSION OF THE SUMMIT. From what President Kravchuk,
foreign minister Anatolii Zlenko, and the deputy minister for
military conversion, Valerii Shmarov, told journalists at Kiev
airport on their return from Massandra, and from what has emerged
subsequently from other Ukrainian officials and been reported
by the Ukrainian media, the Russian side had evidently surprised
and flat-footed the Ukrainian delegation by the toughness of
its position on the debt issue and by proposing that Ukraine
settle this problem without delay by selling its share of the
Black Sea Fleet and leasing Sevastopol to Russia. The ensuing
negotiations had apparently been very strained and some Ukrainian
representatives, as various Western newspapers have reported,
have even accused the Russian side of overstepping the bounds
of "civilized methods" and of "economic diktat." The only agreement
in this sphere which was reached, according to Ukrainian officials,
was to form a commission which would study the Russian proposal
concerning Ukraine's share of the Black Sea Fleet. -Bohdan Nahaylo


NO CHANGE IN UKRAINE'S "TEMPORARY" NUCLEAR STATUS. As for the
issues connected with nuclear weapons, the Ukrainian side considers
that it made the real breakthrough at Massandra, and not the
other way round. Kravchuk, Zlenko, and other officials have emphasized
in their statements carried in the Ukrainian media that the agreements
that were reached on these matters at Massandra come after protracted
negotiations with Russia and concern the maintenance of warheads
situated in Ukraine and compensation which Ukraine is claiming
for warheads sent to Russia for dismantling. For the first time,
they stress, the Russian side has also agreed to consider Ukraine's
claims for compensation for the tactical nuclear weapons which
it transferred to Russia in 1992. There has been no suggestion
from any Ukrainian official that Ukraine has in fact altered
its stance on nuclear weapons and is prepared to give all, or
some of them, up before parliament finally makes a decision about
the ratification of START-1. -Bohdan Nahaylo

GRACHEV AND MOROZOV ALSO DISAGREE. On 5-September Ukrainian Minister
of Defense, Konstantin Morozov responded to Russian Minister
of Defense, Pavel Grachev's 4-September statement suggesting
that Ukraine may join Russia in a Black Sea defense union after
Russia took over the Black Sea Fleet. Morozov denied that an
agreement to sell off Ukraine's portion of the Black Sea Fleet
had been reached or that had any leasing arrangements of the
naval base at Sevastopol been decided on. He said any agreements
on the base would have to take into account Ukraine's security
interests, which include the withdrawal of the Russian fleet
beyond Ukraine's borders, Ukrainian Radio reported on 5-September.
-Ustina Markus

THE DOMESTIC POLITICAL FALLOUT IN UKRAINE. Despite the explanations
which Kravchuk and other Ukrainian officials have offered about
what occurred at Massandra, the preliminary reports about an
agreement to sell off Ukraine's naval force and hand over nuclear
warheads to Russia sent shock waves throughout Ukraine and exacerbated
the political crisis in the country. Stunned leaders of the democratic
opposition and nationalist groups promptly accused the Ukrainian
president of 'capitulationism' and of betraying Ukraine's national
interests, Ukrainian and Western media report. The leader of
the main opposition party, Rukh, Vyacheslav Chornovil, for instance,
has declared that Kravchuk deserves to be impeached and urged
that parliament (which adjourned last Thursday until 21 September)
be reconvened. There are reports, too, of protests from demoralized
Ukrainian naval officers in Crimea and a demonstration on 5 September
in Lviv. -Bohdan Nahaylo

CIS SUMMIT POSTPONED. The CIS summit scheduled for 7 September
has been postponed until 24 September, Yeltsin announced at his
joint press conference with Kravchuk in Massandra on 3 September,
ITAR-TASS reported. In an interview on Ostankino television on
4 September, Yeltsin said the postponement was the result of
a request by Kravchuk that the summit not meet until the Ukrainian
parliament had discussed the question of creating an economic
union, which will be the main topic of the summit. Yeltsin said
that he attached great importance to the summit. Interest in
some form of economic union is such that both Moldovan president
Mircea Snegur and Azerbaijan parliament leader Geidar Aliev had
announced they would be attending even though their republics
are no longer members of the CIS. Georgian head of state Eduard
Shevardnadze has not yet replied to the invitation to attend,
ITAR-TASS reported on 3 September. -Ann Sheehy

RUSSIA



PARLIAMENT REFERS RUTSKOI'S SUSPENSION TO CONSTITUTIONAL COURT.
The Russian parliament on 3 September rejected President Yeltsin's
request to support his temporary suspension of Vice President
Aleksandr Rutskoi and First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Shumeiko
because of corruption allegations, Western agencies reported.
The text of Yeltsin's message was carried by ITAR-TASS on 3 September.
The Parliament voted overwhelmingly to refer the section of the
decree which concerned Rutskoi to the Constitutional Court; parliamentary
speaker Ruslan Khasbulatov said that the vote had thus nullified
Rutskoi's suspension and termed the decree "a shocking betrayal
of the constitution." Justice Minister Yurii Kalmykov, accusing
the Constitutional Court of bias, has predicted that it will
overturn Yeltsin's decree. -Wendy Slater

DEMOCRATIC RUSSIA DEFENDS SHUMEIKO. The coordinating council
of the Movement "Democratic Russia" has issued a statement criticizing
the temporary suspension of First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir
Shumeiko because his departure has weakened the reformist wing
in the government, ITAR-TASS reported on 3 September. It said
that after the successful organization of Yeltsin's campaign
at the April referendum, Shumeiko's popularity had risen so high
that he was considered as a possible candidate for future presidential
elections. Reactionary forces have therefore chosen Shumeiko
as a target of their attacks, the leadership of "Democratic Russia"
said and appealed to the state procuracy to speed up investigation
into corruption charges leveled against Shumeiko so that he could
be cleared and return to his former job. -Alexander Rahr

PARLIAMENT REJECTS PROPOSAL TO SPEED UP CONSTITUTION ADOPTION.
Parliament rejected on 3 September a proposal by pro-Yeltsin
deputy Father Gleb Yakunin, who suggested that the parliament
should set a date for a new session of the Congress of People's
Deputies for the discussion of a new constitution. ITAR-TASS
said that Yakunin thought the parliament should debate the draft
constitution that was prepared in June by the Constitutional
Assembly. The same day, Radio Mayak reported that after rejecting
Yakunin's proposal, the parliament voted to create a commission
headed by its speaker Ruslan Khasbulatov empowered to begin talks
with Yeltsin on the reconciliation of the Constitutional Assembly's
draft and the latest draft constitution worked out by the parliament's
constitutional commission. The procedure for adopting a new constitution
has not yet been agreed upon, since many politicians think that
the Congress of People's Deputies should not be entrusted with
this task, despite the fact that this is what the currently existing
legislation requires. -Vera Tolz

RUSSIAN MINERS BEGIN 24-HOUR STRIKE. 10,000 coalminers failed
to show up for the first shift in Russia's Far Eastern Sakhalin
Region on 6 September, ITAR-TASS reported, forcing the closure
of all the mines on the island. Next to refuse to work were miners
at the Inta collieries in Russia's Far North. Miners in the Urals
region of Western Siberia are not striking, but have agreed to
suspend deliveries as a sign of solidarity with those who are.
The miners are staging a 24-hour protest against the government's
decision to free coal prices. The ending of state subsidies means
that as many as half Russia's mines may be threatened with closure;
thousands of miners will be thrown out of work; and those that
remain in work will see a sharp fall in wages and other benefits.
-Elizabeth Teague

TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA

MASSIVE ATTACK ON PRIVATIZATION PROGRAM ANTICIPATED. The deputy
prime minister in charge of privatization has warned that parliament
is preparing a massive attack on the program, Biznes-TASS reported
on 3 September. Anatolii Chubais told a meeting of the All-Russian
Association of Privatized and Private Enterprises that the legislature
is planning to broaden the powers of the State Property Fund
(GKI) and to replace its chairman with a parliamentary deputy
who will effectively halt the current privatization process.
On 5-September, Moscow Mayor Yurii Luzhkov claimed that President
Yeltsin shared his concern about "wild" privatization, Central
TV reported. Luzhkov and Deputy Prime Minister Oleg Lobov had
sent the president a letter spelling out recent instances of
corrupt buyouts, including the sale of the ZIL automobile plant.
-Keith Bush

TURKEY REINFORCES TROOP PRESENCE ON FRONTIER WITH ARMENIA. On
3-September Turkey moved additional troops to its frontier with
Armenia and placed them on heightened alert, Reuters reported
quoting the semi-officials Anatolian News Agency. A spokesman
for the Iranian Embassy in Baku told Radio Liberty's Azerbaijani
Service that no Iranian troops had crossed the frontier into
Azerbaijan; Turkish President Suleyman Demirel characterized
the Armenian occupation of territory in southern Azerbaijan as
"ethnic cleansing". In an interview published in Hurriyet on
4 September, Turkish Prime Minister Tansu Ciller warned that
she could not exclude military retaliation if Armenian forces
attack the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhichevan. -Liz Fuller

ALIEV IN MOSCOW. Azerbaijan parliament chairman Geidar Aliev
flew to Moscow on 5-September for talks with the Russian leadership
aimed at correcting what he termed "serious errors" in the policy
adopted by the leadership of Abulfaz Elchibey and placing Russian-Azerbaijani
relations on "mutually advantageous foundations", ITAR-TASS reported.
Whether the possibility of CIS membership for Azerbaijan will
be discussed is not clear. Aliev will also attend talks under
the aegis of the CSCE beginning on 9 September. It is not known
whether he will meet in Moscow with Turkish Prime Minister Tansu
Ciller, who is scheduled to arrive there this week. -Liz Fuller


TAJIK LEADER FOR EARLY ELECTIONS. Tajikistan's head of state,
Supreme Soviet Chairman Imomali Rakhmonov, told the country's
Constitutional Commission on 5-September that he agrees on the
need for early elections to the national legislature, but such
elections cannot be held until social and political stability
is restored, ITAR-TASS reported. He also listed the disarming
of illegal armed groups and the repatriation of all Tajik refugees
in Afghanistan as preconditions for parliamentary elections.
Rakhmonov made his observations in connection with an appeal
to the commission to speed up work on a new constitution, which
he said Tajikistan needs as soon as possible in order to create
a democratic, secular state based on law. -Bess Brown

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE



TRYING TO REVIVE BOSNIAN PEACE TALKS. Radios Bosnia and Serbia
report on 4-5 September that leaders of the warring parties in
Bosnia are willing to revive the Geneva peace talks but clearly
show they are not willing to compromise. After meeting with Turkish
officials in Istanbul, Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic told
reporters on 4 September that he is ready to resume negotiations,
but would not change his demands that Bosnian Serbs and Croats
give up more land and access to a port on the Adriatic. Izetbegovic
meets with UN Security Council on 6 September. Nikola Koljevic,
vice president of the self-proclaimed Serb Republic, told the
Novi Sad Dnevnik on 5 September that his side is willing to exchange
some territory-but not grant additional land-to the Muslims if
it means it would salvage the Geneva talks. Bosnian Serb leader
Radovan Karadzic made a similar statement saying there can only
be "territorial adjustments within the framework of the current
plan." Meanwhile, on 5 September, Bosnian presidency member Mirko
Pejanovic, a Serb, and Bosnia's deputy commander of the army,
Stjepan Siber, a Croat, have asked UNPROFOR commanders to intervene
to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches embattled Muslim areas
such as Mostar and Gornji Vakuf. Vjesnik on 5-September published
a report in which Bosnian Croat army officials accused Muslim
government forces of holding more than 1,000 Croat families in
detention centers in central Bosnia where Muslims were trying
to force the Croats to renounce their ethnic identity. The charges
came one day after Roger Wilkinson, a spokesman for the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees, remarked that Muslim civilians released
from Croat detention camps near Mostar "looked like concentration
camp victims from the Second World War." -Milan Andrejevich

EUROPEAN DEMOCRATIC UNION CONGRESS ENDS CONGRESS. At the end
of its 16th congress held in Budapest from 1 to 3 September,
and attended by the prime ministers and other top officials of
ten European states, the European Democratic Union issued a final
declaration calling for even closer economic cooperation among
the countries of Western and East Central Europe in support of
the latter's political and economic reforms and of its stability
and security. According to the EDU chairman, Austrian Foreign
Minister Alois Mock, the organization supports the desire of
Hungary, Poland, and the Czech Republic to join the European
Community and NATO, MTI reports. The EDU granted observer status
to Slovakia's Hungarian Christian Democratic Movement, and full
membership to the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania, whose
leaders said this will enable them to better represent Magyar
minority interests and protect them against attacks from Slovak
and Romanian nationalists. -Alfred Reisch

KOHL TO SUPPORT CZECH ADMISSION TO EC. According to the daily
Mlada Fronta Dnes, German Chancellor Helmut Kohl told journalists
in Bonn on 3-September that he will support the Czech Republic's
integration with the West and particularly its admission to the
EC. He said that the integration of Germany's closest eastern
neighbors with Western Europe is an elementary precondition for
internal peace in Europe and Germany. Referring to a meeting
with Czech Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus in Budapest last week,
Kohl indirectly criticized Prague's unwillingness to open a debate
with representatives of the more than three million Germans who
were expelled from Czechoslovakia after the war. The chancellor
indicated that the failure to discuss common history and efforts
to exclude Sudeten Germans from such discussions represent an
obstacle for reconciliation between the Czech Republic and Germany.
Kohl was quoted as saying that it should not only be the prime
ministers of the two countries who talk to each other but also
"people who have a very special relationship" to the common past.
Kohl added that a true dialogue between Czechs and Germans is
impossible if one side tries to exclude a group from it or refuses
to accept it as a partner. -Jan Obrman

SLOVAK PREMIER ON ROMANIES, HUNGARIANS. In a 3 September visit
to the eastern Spisska Nova Ves district, Premier Vladimir Meciar,
in a reference to Romanies, said that it is necessary to reduce
family welfare payments so that "the reproduction of socially
unadaptable and mentally retarded people drops." According to
local and international media, Meciar said it is not "socially
just when someone who does not work is better off than someone
who works," or "when large families get huge welfare support"
simply because they have many children. Romanies represent 13%
of the Spisska Nova Ves district residents and are reportedly
responsible for a significant share of its crime and unemployment.
In response to the Hungarian parties' recent letter to the Council
of Europe concerning minority rights legislation, Meciar said
Slovakia "was given six months to adopt the necessary changes
in its legislation, and this time is still not over. Blaming
us for not complying with something is an outright lie. Those
who do so are doing it with a deliberate intention to harm this
country," TASR reports. -Sharon Fisher

HORTHY REBURIED IN HUNGARY. Admiral Miklos Horthy, Regent of
Hungary from 1919 to 1944, who died in exile in Portugal in 1957,
was reburied with his wife and son in the family vault at Kenderes
on 4 September, MTI and Radio Budapest report. The ceremony,
which the Horthy family intended to be a private one, was attended
by some 50,000 persons, including seven ministers and Prime Minister
Antall's wife and son-albeit in a private capacity-and top leaders
of Hungary's Reformed and Roman Catholic Churches. On the eve
of the reburial, several hundred persons gathered in Budapest
to "bid farewell" to the Horthy era in a demonstration organized
by Hungary's Democratic Charter, and close to 1,000 persons held
a silent demonstration at the request of Hungary's Jewish organizations
to remember Hungary's 600,000 Jews killed at the end of World
War-II. The Hungarian press on 4-September published numerous
articles reminiscing about Horthy, who is still a controversial
figure and whose role is viewed in differing ways by Hungarians
at home and abroad. -Alfred Reisch

ROMANIA, THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE, AND THE MAGYAR MINORITY. Romania
is close to being accepted as a full member of the Council of
Europe, diplomats and officials in Strasbourg told an RFE/RL
correspondent on 3 September. On the previous day the council's
judicial and human rights commission approved its admission,
and sources in Strasbourg say the application might get the approval
of the council's parliamentary assembly when it meets later this
month. Both assembly approval and the concurrence of all 31-member-states
is required for admission. Diplomats say Hungary may be opposed
to immediate Romanian membership over the issue of the Magyar
minority. In an interview with Adevarul on 4-September, Foreign
Minister Teodor Melescanu said Budapest's attitude toward Romania's
admission will "provide a genuine test for its sincerity" in
"normal relations of collaboration," adding that the issue will
figure prominently in his talks with his Hungarian counterpart,
Geza Jeszenszky, in Bucharest later this month. At a press conference
on 3-September a spokesman for the presidency criticized a memorandum
from the Hungarian Democratic Federation of Romania to CE Secretary-General
Catherine Lalumiere for not seeking "to cooperate constructively"
with the government. At a press conference carried live by Radio
Bucharest on the same day, Prime Minister Nicolae Vacaroiu denounced
the memorandum, saying it could have "serious consequences" for
Romania's application. -Michael Shafir

ROMANIAN GOVERNMENT REJECTS OPPOSITION CENSURE. Vacaroiu said
at the same press conference that the government rejects the
opposition's motion of censure, which demands the dismissal of
two ministers and the government's secretary-general on suspicion
of corruption. He said the accusations are part of a "tasteless
scenario" and that he will present the executive's position to
parliament on 6 September. On the other hand, Vacaroiu revealed
that a government investigation has turned up "large deposits
in foreign banks" in connection with a failed shipping deal with
a Greek company that figured among the corruption allegations.
The premier did not explain whose accounts were involved, but
said those found guilty will have to pay, no matter how high
their position. In a related development, the Party of Romanian
National Unity said it has given the government until the end
of the month to meet demands on economic reform or face a no-confidence
motion. The PRNU has backed the Vacaroiu government, and is probably
less interested in economic reform and more on forcing the executive
to include some of its members and rejecting Magyar demands on
minority rights, PRNU vice chairman Ioan Gavra hinted at a press
conference on 2 September. -Michael Shafir

VISEGRAD DEFENSE OFFICIALS MEET IN POLAND. Deputy defense ministers
and chiefs of general staff from the Czech Republic, Hungary,
Poland, and Slovakia gather on 6-September for a working meeting
in Cracow. According to Polish media reports, they are to discuss
logistical problems in coordinating military activities in the
four countries, which form the so-called Visegrad Group in East
Central Europe and maintain close cooperation in political and
security matters. -Jan de Weydenthal

LAST PUBLIC OPINION POLL BEFORE POLISH VOTE. Excommunists won
the most public support in the last public opinion poll before
the parliamentary elections, gaining about 15% of votes in a
national sample. They were followed by a left-wing peasant party
(13%), the Democratic Union (12%), the Walesa-supported BBWR
and left-leaning Labor Union (6% each), Solidarity and the populist
Party X (5%). No other group secured 5% of the vote, as is required
for the representation in parliament. The results of the poll
were reported by the media, which also said that the turnout
is expected to reach about 50%, 10% more than that of the 1990
ballot. The election is to take place on 19 September. -Jan de
Weydenthal

PRIMAKOV VISITS BULGARIA. On 3 September the director of the
Russian foreign intelligence service, Evgenii Primakov, arrived
in Sofia to meet with high-ranking government officials and his
Bulgarian counterpart, Gen. Brigo Asparuhov. According to BTA,
Primakov held discussions with Premier Lyuben Berov covering
the effects of the UN imposed sanctions against rump Yugoslavia
on the Bulgarian economy; they also spoke about international
terrorism, the drug trade, and how to deal with the organized
crime activities of the Bulgarian and Russian mafias. With President
Zhelyu Zhelev, Primakov spoke about the war in ex-Yugoslavia.
Ties between the Bulgarian and Soviet intelligence authorities
were strong under communism, with the KGB being involved in directing
secret police operations in Bulgaria. -Stan Markotich

ALBANIAN PRESS HIGHLIGHTS. Gazeta Shqiptare reports on 5 September
that the Albanian branch of the Helsinki Committee has aired
concerns over rising religious extremism in Albania and warned
that current trends might break down the existing harmony among
religions. The group also noted that religion is being used as
a criterion for job placement in some state institutions. Reuters
also reports on 5 September that Christian and Moslem missionaries
are using financial incentives to win followers. In other developments,
Rilindja Demokratike reports on 5 September that at the meeting
of the European Democratic Union held in Budapest last week,
Albania's Democratic Party was denied membership in the body.
According to the Democratic Party press, this was the result
of efforts by Greece's New Democracy Party, which opposed the
move on grounds that Albania does not recognize the rights of
its Greek minority. However, according to an article on 5-September
in the Socialist paper Zeri i Popullit, the reason might in fact
be that the Democratic Party jails people opposed to its policies.
In internal developments, all Albanian dailies report on the
beginning of a new parliamentary session with all parties, including
the Socialists, present and accounted for; the Socialists obviously
felt that their parliamentary boycott was useless and now vow
an all-out battle in parliament. This session's main focus will
continue to be the country's new constitution. Finally, 24 Ore
reports on 5 September that former president Ramiz Alia has published
a new book, Hopes and Disillusions, that chronicles the period
from May 1991-April 1992. -Robert Austin

MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT ON SECURITY GOALS. Addressing a ceremony marking
the first observance of Moldovan Army Day on 3 September, President
Mircea Snegur said that the creation of Moldova's own armed forces
pursues two main objectives: contributing to "filling the security
vacuum resulting from the disintegration of the Warsaw Pact in
this region," and "orienting [Moldova] toward fruitful cooperation
with NATO and its bodies." The settlement of the Transdniester
crisis is a political matter and it tops the leadership's political
agenda, Snegur said, as quoted by Basapress. -Vladimir Socor


ODESSA TO BE FREE-TRADE ZONE. In a step towards market reform,
the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers has decided to set up the
country's first free-trade zone in Odessa, ITAR-TASS reported
on 4 September. Prime Minister Leonid Kuchma signed an order
creating a Committee for the Establishment of the Odessa Economic
Free-Trade Zone. Over the next three months the committee is
to work out regulations regarding international trade, transit
duties and foreign investment in Odessa. The committee will be
headed by parliamentary deputy Ruslan Bodelan. -Ustina Markus


POPE IN LITHUANIA. John Paul II began his week long visit to
the Baltic States on 4-September in Vilnius, where he met with
President Algirdas Brazauskas and his family before holding a
Mass for the Poles in Vilnius, Radio Lithuania reports. On 5
September after meeting with Jewish leaders, he held an outdoor
Mass in Vilnius and called upon the Balts to reconcile with Moscow.
President Boris Yeltsin has invited the pope to visit Moscow,
but an invitation from the Orthodox Church is also needed. On
6 September in Kaunas the pope held an outdoor Mass for more
than 100,000 people. The pope spoke in Lithuanian in major gatherings.
The pontiff's efforts to visit Lithuania in 1984 and 1987 were
vetoed by the Soviet authorities. -Saulius Girnius

UN MISSION ON TROOP WITHDRAWAL IN LATVIA. On 3 September a UN
delegation, headed by special envoy Tommy Koh, traveled from
Lithuania to Riga where it held talks with top Latvian officials.
On 4-September the delegation visited Russian military units
and spoke with the command of the Northwestern Group of Forces.
Koh told a press conference that he sees differences in the positions
of the two countries: Russia wants to complete the departure
of its troops by the end of 1994, not 1993 as Latvia requests;
desires a signed agreement on the withdrawal that was lacking
with Lithuania; wants fixed guarantees on pensions for retired
servicemen; and desires to keep its military objects at Liepaja,
Ventspils, and Skrunda for nine more years, Diena reports on
6 September. -Saulius Girnius

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









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