No. 14, 21 January 1994

RUSSIA

GOVERNMENT RESHUFFLE. After several days of negotiations with Prime 
Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin, President Boris Yeltsin signed a decree on 
20 January ordering a reshuffle in the government, Interfax and other 
agencies reported. Yeltsin's decree appointed Oleg Soskovets as first 
deputy prime minister, and named Aleksandr Zaveryukha, Anatolii Chubais, 
and Yurii Yarov as deputy prime ministers. The new government thus reduces 
the number of deputy prime ministers from nine to four. Among the 
casualties were three former deputy prime ministers, including economic 
reformers Boris Fedorov and Aleksandr Shokhin, and Sergei Shakhrai, who 
was appointed minister for nationalities and regional policy. Other minor 
changes were made, reflecting the restructuring of the government to 
reduce the number of ministries and state committees. The security, 
defense, and foreign affairs portfolios remained unchanged. Wendy Slater, 
RFE/RL, Inc. 

FEDOROV RESIGNS, SHOKHIN HOPEFUL. Following release of the presidential 
decree outlining changes in the government of Prime Minister Viktor 
Chernomyrdin, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Boris Fedorov 
told a press conference on 20 January that he was resigning from his 
current position, Russian and Western news agencies reported. President 
Yeltsin and Chernomyrdin had offered Fedorov the position of Finance 
Minister, but stripped him of his status as deputy prime minister. Fedorov 
said he anticipated that the policy intentions of the new government would 
lead by April to a catastrophic rise in the inflation rate. Aleksandr 
Shokhin, also stripped of his status as deputy prime minister, but 
switched to the office of Minister of the Economy, told a Biznes-TASS 
correspondent on the same day that he remained committed to continuing 
market reform and that he hoped to be given the powers to do so. Erik 
Whitlock, RFE/RL, Inc. 

GERASHCHENKO: MARKET ROMANTICISM OVER. While pledging that reform in 
Russia will be continued and deepened, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin 
told a press conference on 20 January that the "period of market 
romanticism had ended" and that economic policies would be corrected "to 
make people's lives easier," Russian and Western agencies reported. 
Chernomyrdin suggested that one of the first actions of the new government 
would be to pay off the enormous backlog of delayed budgetary payments to 
various industries, agriculture and state financed organizations. The 
Prime Minister also mentioned that the 1994 inflation projections made by 
the government at the end of last year were too low. He anticipated that 
during the first six months the inflation rate would be on the order of 
15-18% monthly and that it would fall to 8-9% by the end of 1994. Erik 
Whitlock, RFE/RL, Inc.

DEPUTIES REJECT COMPOSITION OF COMMITTEE ON GEOPOLITICS. The State Duma 
has confirmed the membership of 22 parliamentary committees, failing to 
approve the composition of only one committee, that which is to deal with 
issues of geopolitics. This committee is dominated by members of Vladimir 
Zhirinovsky's Liberal Democratic Party. The committee's chairman and one 
of its deputy chairmen are from the LDP; altogether nine out of the 
committee's thirteen members are Liberal Democrats. ITAR-TASS reported 
that the majority in the Duma found this situation unacceptable. 
Meanwhile, the Duma is debating an amendment to its rules that will bar 
from participation in the body's sessions those deputies whose statements 
and actions are damaging to the dignity of the parliament. The plan to 
introduce such an amendment was prompted by the antics of Zhirinovsky. 
Vera Tolz, RFE/RL, Inc.

DEPUTIES SET HIGH SALARIES FOR THEMSELVES. Deputies of the State Duma have 
voted to pay themselves a salary comparable to that of a federal minister, 
ITAR-TASS reported on 20 January. Deputies will now receive a salary of 
1.5 Million rubles a month, and the State Duma will cost Russian taxpayers 
7 billion rubles per month. A proposal by deputy Andrei Volkov to set the 
salary of deputies at the equivalent of $3,000 in rubles was rejected. 
However, deputies voted in favor of a proposal made by Zhirinovsky that 
gives deputies the same access to medical and social care as federal 
ministers. Deputies also voted to give themselves the right to enter all 
government and state institutions, as well as all state enterprises; they 
will have the right to use public telephone lines for free. Alexander 
Rahr, RFE/RL, Inc. 

DUMA REJECTS COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE OCTOBER EVENTS. The State Duma 
rejected on 20 January a proposal to set up a committee to investigate the 
clashes that took place in Moscow in October 1993, ITAR-TASS reported. 
Only 187 of the 444 deputies supported the proposal, which was put forward 
by Nikolai Travkin of the Democratic Party of Russia. Vera Tolz, RFE/RL, 
Inc.

RUTSKOI NOT GUILTY OF CORRUPTION. The 20 January afternoon edition of 
Ostankino TV "Novosti" quoted the office of the Moscow state prosecutor as 
announcing that former vice-president Aleksandr Rutskoi was not connected 
to a secret account in the Swiss bank Indosuetz. In dismissing the case 
against Rutskoi the prosecutors reportedly raised another charge--that 
Rutskoi himself had been slandered. The culprit in this matter is likely 
to be the lawyer Andrei Makarov, former head of the Administration on 
Securing the Activities of the Joint Commission for Combating Crime and 
Corruption. Yeltsin set up this agency to counterattack against 
accusations of corruption and embezzlement among Yeltsin loyalists that 
were raised by Rutskoi on the eve of the April 1993 referendum. In August 
1993 Makarov accused Rutskoi of having channeled state money to the Swiss 
bank account. The next day, Yeltsin released Rutskoi of all his duties as 
vice-president. Julia Wishnevsky, RFE/RL, Inc. 

KOLESNIKOV ON MILITARY DRAFT. The Chief of the General Staff, Mikhail 
Kolesnikov, held a press conference on 20 January during which he 
described the current call-up as a "very difficult" one. According to 
reports from Interfax, Russian TV and Ostankino TV, he stated that the 
number of enlisted personnel now stands at only 54% of the required level, 
but that he expected this number to grow to 65% and then 95% after the 
spring and fall call-ups, respectively. By the end of the year, the 
Russian military would have 2.0 million troops, some 100,000 less than 
previously announced. Military units (such as construction battalions) 
attached to civilian ministries will be dissolved, with the troops going 
to combat units. Kolesnikov also called for a reduction in draft 
exemptions, noting that only 20% of youths are eligible for conscription. 
Part of the draft shortfall will evidently be made up by signing up an 
additional 150,000 volunteer soldiers. The Surgeon General of the Armed 
Forces informed reporters that the health of new draftees is poorer than 
before, with more conscripts entering the military with records of drug 
addiction or criminal behavior. John Lepingwell, RFE/RL, Inc.

UPDATE ON RUSSIAN SUB SALE TO DPRK. The New York Times reported on 20 
January that North Korea has used a small Japanese trading company to 
purchase secretly forty aging submarines from the Russian Pacific Fleet. 
The number of subs involved, which is considerably higher than earlier 
estimates, has puzzled experts monitoring the situation; some have 
suggested that North Korea may hope to rebuild them to augment its own 
fleet or to cannibalize them for spare parts. Russian officials have 
insisted that the vessels are being sold solely as scrap metal. The US 
government is reportedly pressing Moscow for an explanation. The New York 
Times quoted the president of the Japanese company involved (Toen Trading 
Co.) as saying that the vessels, most of them believed to be Foxtrot class 
diesel submarines, were being towed intact from Russian naval bases in 
Vladivostok to the nearby North Korean port of Najin. Experts have pointed 
to the possibility that close ties still exist between formerly allied 
Russian and North Korean military commanders, and have suggested that 
Pacific Fleet commanders may be acting on their own initiative. Stephen 
Foye, RFE/RL, Inc.

KOZYREV TO VISIT CHINA; TROUBLE WITH AIRCRAFT DEAL? A Chinese Foreign 
Ministry spokesman said on 20 January that Russian Foreign Minister Andrei 
Kozyrev would visit China at the end of the month to exchange views with 
his Chinese counterparts on bilateral relations and on regional and 
international issues. The spokesman, who described Sino-Russian relations 
as "very good," provided no further details on the talks and said that the 
exact date of the visit had not yet been fixed. He also declined comment 
on a report recently published in Jane's Defense Weekly, which alleged 
that a row had arisen between Moscow and Beijing over technology transfers 
involved in the sale of Russian Su-27 fighters to China. The disagreement 
was said to have stalled delivery of a second batch of the aircraft to 
China. Stephen Foye, RFE/RL, Inc. 

RUSSIA SUPPORTS PROLONGING IRAQI SANCTIONS. The Russian Foreign Ministry 
announced on 20 January that it would support the UN Security Council's 
decision to impose sanctions against Iraq for another 60 days, ITAR-TASS 
reported. At the same time, Russia favors lifting the oil embargo against 
Iraq if Iraq complies with UN resolutions on disarmament. The Foreign 
Ministry's statement said that Russia resolutely and invariably stands for 
the fulfillment by Iraq of all other resolutions of the Security Council 
on the settlement in the Persian Gulf, including the resolution on the 
demarcation of the Iraqi-Kuwaiti border. Only then can the issue of 
lifting all other sanctions can be considered, the Foreign Ministry said. 
Suzanne Crow, RFE/RL, Inc. 

CIS

KOZYREV TOUGH ON CRITICS. On 20 January, Russian Foreign Minister Andrei 
Kozyrev expressed continued exasperation with reaction to his comments at 
an 18 January meeting of Russian ambassadors to the CIS and Baltic states. 
"Strange" and "hysterical" were the words Kozyrev used to describe the 
response in the Baltic states. Rather than attempting to reassure his 
critics, Kozyrev toughened his rhetoric even more: he warned that Russia 
would not sit still if the rights of Russian speakers in the Baltic States 
were violated. Kozyrev complained that current negotiations on the 
question of Russian speakers in the Baltic States were not proceeding 
"normally." He said it would be possible to use stronger measures if a 
violation of international legal norms took place in the Baltic States, 
Interfax reported. Thus far, international organizations have found no 
evidence of human rights violations of ethnic Russians in the Baltic 
states. Suzanne Crow, RFE/RL, Inc.

INITIAL DEBATE ON TRILATERAL DEAL. On 20 January the Ukrainian parliament 
held an initial discussion of the trilateral nuclear weapons agreement and 
decided to postpone a full debate until 25 January, by which time the 
relevant committees will have examined the agreement. Reports from Reuters 
and The Washington Post indicate that there were attacks on Kravchuk and 
the deal, but the Post noted that many moderate parliamentarians are 
withholding judgment, or even supporting the deal. One of the committees 
examining the deal is headed by Yurii Kostenko, an outspoken opponent of 
denuclearization who told Reuters he expected the deal to be rejected. In 
Moscow a "high-ranking Russian diplomat" told Interfax on 20 January that 
the warheads could be withdrawn from Ukraine within two years, as 
specified in the Massandra agreement of September 1993. The diplomat 
called for the withdrawal to begin immediately, although he noted that the 
issue of compensation would not be fully solved until May, when experts 
from the three states will meet to discuss the valuation of the warheads. 
John Lepingwell, RFE/RL, Inc. 

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

CROATIAN OPPOSITION SLAMS PACT WITH SERBS. The Zagreb dailies on 21 
January report that the Croatian opposition is furious over the agreement 
that President Franjo Tudjman and his Serbian counterpart Slobodan 
Milosevic reached two days earlier on taking the first steps toward 
normalizing relations. The politicians repeat their long-standing charge 
that Tudjman is wrong to sit down and bargain with the aggressor and that, 
if he does so, he must insist on Serbia's recognition of Croatia's 
Tito-era frontiers, including the Serb-held Krajina region, as a 
precondition. Vjesnik quotes the Croatian People's Party statement as 
reminding Tudjman that Milosevic has taken him to the cleaners before and 
may well have done so again. The leading opposition grouping, the Croatian 
Social-Liberal Party, says that Croatia has no business talking to an 
aggressor but should rather be improving its relations with the fellow 
victim, the Muslims. The Socialist Party of Croatia has similar 
misgivings, but nonetheless calls the pact a step in the right direction 
of normalization, which is also the stand of the Serb minority's Serbian 
People's Party as well as the theme of an editorial in the Belgrade daily 
Borba. Patrick Moore, RFE/RL, Inc. 

BOSNIAN CONFLICT ON HOLD? Following the collapse of the Bosnian peace 
talks on 19 January and their adjournment until next month, international 
media reported on 20 January that the European Parliament has recommended 
that mediator Lord Owen be replaced by someone with a fresh mandate. Owen, 
who is widely regarded by Croats and Muslims as pro-Serb and whose name 
lends itself to an unkind pun in Serbo-Croatian, said, however, that he 
would not step down. Elsewhere, French officials and UN Secretary-General 
Boutros Boutros-Ghali appear to be jockeying for advantage in their 
dispute over possible air strikes against Serb positions. Meanwhile in 
Bosnia itself, Reuters on 21 January quotes military experts as saying 
that the Muslims are using attrition rather than a direct attack on the 
Croats in the strategic, central Bosnian Lasva valley lest they lose their 
politically important image as victims in the conflict. Finally, the 
British tabloid The Sun has pronounced a fitting epitaph on the latest 
round of Bosnian peace talks, saying that "the UN [has] never stopped 
bickering and the bloodthirsty tribes are further from a settlement than 
ever." Patrick Moore, RFE/RL, Inc. 

ETHNIC ROMANIANS CLAIM UKRAINE BARS THEM FROM PARLIAMENT. The Christian 
Democratic Alliance of Romanians of Ukraine complained on 20 January that 
Kiev has curbed Romanian political rights by drawing up electoral 
boundaries to exclude them from parliament, Reuters reported on the same 
day. The statement said the Romanians' rights had been restricted by the 
constituencies established in Cernovitsy, where the authorities had 
attached districts with a Romanian 
majority to areas with a Ukrainian majority when drawing up the 
constituency boundaries. "Under the circumstances, the Romanians' chances 
to have, at long last, their own representatives in parliament in Kiev are 
considerably reduced." The alliance proposed creating two "national 
constituencies" to include ethnic Romanian villages, saying this would 
secure the election of two Romanian deputies to the Ukrainian parliament. 
The official Romanian news agency Rompres carried excerpts of the 
statement. The Chernovitsy chief electoral officer told Reuters on the 
same day the two Romanian-majority districts had not been deliberately 
split up. He said he received no complaints about the way the district 
boundaries were drawn for the elections scheduled for March. Michael 
Shafir, RFE/RL, Inc.

ILIESCU, NASTASE ON FUTURE COALITION. President Ion Iliescu said on 20 
January that a future coalition between the ruling Party of Social 
Democracy in Romania and the nationalist Party of Romanian National Unity 
was " not absolutely necessary, but inevitable" in order to give the 
executive "a certain amount of stability." Iliescu spoke at a meeting with 
a delegation of the PSDR headed by executive president Adrian Nastase, 
Radio Bucharest reported the same day. Ioan Gavra, PRNU vice chairman , 
said at a press conference that the agreement between the two parties was 
in the stage of finalization and Nastase said the last details were being 
worked out. Iliescu said a distinction should be made between a "social 
pact" between all parties, and this should be pursued with intensity, and 
a "political pact" which might change the configuration of the coalition. 
Concerning the latter he said his impression was that it would be 
difficult to achieve; his talks with the opposition Democratic Convention 
of Romania, Iliescu added, had shown large differences exist not only 
between the PSDR and the DCR but also within the DCR. The president also 
said a dialogue with the trade unions should start as soon as possible. 
The largest trade union federations have called strikes for next month to 
demand early elections and faster economic reforms. Michael Shafir, 
RFE/RL, Inc.

ZHELEV TO SHUFFLE ADVISORS? The UDF's Demokratsiya reports on 21 January, 
that Bulgaria's President, Zhelyu Zhelev, is contemplating changing 
certain advisors and presidential appointees in an effort to mend fences 
with the Union of Democratic Forces. The paper singles out people close to 
the president of whom the UDF has been critical, including Brigo 
Asparuhov, head of the National Intelligence Service, and Ani Kruleva, 
director of the National Investigative Service. Of late, Zhelev has been 
attempting to effect reconciliation with the anti-communist UDF coalition 
which he helped found in 1989. Duncan Perry, RFE/RL, Inc.

HUNGARIAN DEMOCRATIC FORUM'S CHAIRMAN TO VISIT SLOVAKIA'S HUNGARIAN 
MINORITY. MTI reports that Executive Chairman Sandor Lezsak and two vice 
chairmen of the Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) will pay a three-day 
visit, starting 21 January, to Slovakia's Hungarian-minority populated 
areas. Lezsak is the top officer of the governing MDF and was invited by 
Miklos Duray, the chairman of the Hungarian Coexistence Movement, the 
largest party representing the interests of the 600,000-strong Hungarian 
minority in Slovakia. Karoly Okolicsanyi, RFE/RL, Inc. 

CSCE COMMISSIONER ENDS VISIT TO SLOVAKIA. On 20 January the CSCE high 
commissioner for minorities, Max Van der Stoel, ended his two-day visit to 
Slovakia, TASR reports. Meeting with President Michal Kovac, Premier 
Vladimir Meciar, Foreign Minister Jozef Moravcik, and ethnic Hungarian 
leaders, Van der Stoel was preparing a visit of CSCE experts scheduled for 
mid-February to examine the status of the Hungarian minority in Slovakia 
and the Slovak minority in Hungary. In his meeting with Kovac, Van der 
Stoel said he appreciated the president's efforts to hold round table 
discussions with ethnic minorities. He said that "whatever the solution to 
ethnic questions may be, the territorial integrity of Slovakia cannot be 
affected." During the CSCE visit in February, the minority situation will 
be examined particularly in relation to the new alternative education 
system and the plans for the country's decentralization. Sharon Fisher, 
RFE/RL, Inc.

FRAGMENTATION IN THE CZECH PARLIAMENT. Nine deputies representing the 
coalition of communist and post-communist parties, the Left Bloc, left the 
coalition's caucus on 19 January and founded their own caucus, CTK 
reported on 20 January. The caucus of the Left Bloc, the second largest 
group in the 200-seat parliament, has thus been reduced from 35 to 26 
members. On 18 January, Tomas Jezek, chairman of the National Property 
Fund, resigned from the parliamentary caucus of Prime Minister Vaclav 
Klaus' Civic Democratic Party and from the party itself. He did this in 
protest against some of the party's policies, such as its approach to the 
regional administration reform. With Jezek's departure the CDP's caucus 
has 65 members. Following the latest round of political defections, the 
number of groups represented in the parliament has risen to 12 (plus one 
independent deputy) from the original 9. Jiri Pehe, RFE/RL, Inc.

BALTIC PREMIERS SAY KOZYREV'S STATEMENT A THREAT. In a communique adopted 
at their meeting in Jurmala on 19 January, the prime ministers of Estonia, 
Latvia, and Lithuania said that Kozyrev's address of 18 January included 
statements that were "directed against the sovereignty" of the Baltic 
States. The communique noted that Kozyrev's statements suggest that Russia 
has a new foreign policy concept which differs significantly from the one 
that was recently enunciated; therefore, the essence of the Partnership 
for Peace program is put into question. The communique also states that a 
new approach by Russia to the Baltic States would complicate the 
negotiations on the withdrawal of Russian troops from Latvia and Estonia 
and that this approach could effectively derail further negotiation 
processes on other Baltic-Russian issues, Baltic media reported on 19 
January. Kozyrev's remarks also elicited swift and strong reactions by 
other Baltic leaders even before the prime ministers had met. Dzintra 
Bungs, RFE/RL, Inc.

BALTIC PREMIERS STRESS SECURITY. At their meeting in Jurmala, the Baltic 
prime ministers focused on security issues and discussed Russian interests 
in the Baltic States. They agreed to strengthen their borders with Russia 
and to form a Baltic peacekeeping battalion. They also discussed ways to 
further economic cooperation, accords concerning consulates and the 
establishment of a common visa area, and matters relating to fuel and 
energy (especially what steps to take in case of a Russian oil embargo), 
Baltic media reported on 19 January. Dzintra Bungs, RFE/RL, Inc.

LITHUANIAN PRESIDENT VISITS FINLAND. On a 13-hour visit to Helsinki on 20 
January, Algirdas Brazauskas held talks with Finnish President Mauno 
Koivisto, Prime Minister Esko Aho, Foreign Minister Heikki Haavisto, and 
business leaders, Western agencies report. He told a press conference that 
while Lithuania has applied for full membership in NATO, "it is a pretty 
long way to NATO membership." He noted that the Baltic States should not 
be in the Russian sphere of influence and that there was a democratic, 
constructive government in Moscow with which he was able to do business. 
It was too early to judge the impact of ultra-nationalist Vladimir 
Zhirinovsky since he was still not in power. Saulius Girnius, RFE/RL, Inc.

PROGRESS TOWARDS POLISH-LITHUANIAN ACCORD? Polish Deputy Prime Minister 
Marek Borowski and Lithuanian Finance Minister Eduardas Vilkelis signed a 
bilateral agreement eliminating double taxation on 20 January in Warsaw, 
PAP reports. The agreement will facilitate cooperation between Polish and 
Lithuanian firms; there are already 500 firms in Lithuania operating with 
Polish capital. Poland has signed similar arrangements with Estonia and 
Latvia. Both ministers stressed the political significance of the economic 
agreement; they said it will help break an impasse of several months in 
Polish-Lithuanian relations and may promote the conclusion of the 
long-delayed bilateral friendship treaty. Polish TV reports that only two 
of twenty-six clauses in the treaty are still contested: the historical 
assessment of Polish-Lithuanian relations and the legal status of the 
Polish minority. Some new friction was caused by a petition addressed to 
the Polish government on 7 January by seventy-two Sejm deputies, most from 
the ruling Democratic Left Alliance and Polish Peasant Party (PSL), who 
demanded "administrative autonomy" for the Polish minority in Lithuania. 
Prime Minister Waldemar Pawlak, the Polish foreign ministry, and leaders 
of both coalition parties have since condemned the petition as 
"irresponsible." Many deputies have withdrawn their signatures, prompting 
PSL leaders to remind party members to read documents before signing them. 
Louisa Vinton, RFE/RL, Inc.

WORLD BANK OFFICIALS IN VILNIUS. On 20 January Basil Kovalsky, the 
director of the World Bank's Europe and Central Asia department, told a 
press conference that excessive bureaucracy and imperfect laws were 
hindering Lithuania's economic reforms, the RFE/RL Lithuanian Service 
reports. He noted that more than 75% of the $60 million credits given 
Lithuania earlier had been used primarily to purchase fuel and food. He 
said that the World Bank was discussing giving credits in 1994 for 
projects in agriculture, housing construction, environmental protection, 
and social security. He also thought that it was necessary to increase the 
capital of Lithuania's commercial banks and deal more effectively with 
inflation. Saulius Girnius, RFE/RL, Inc. 

DNIESTER BANS ELECTIONS. The "Dniester republic's" President Igor Smirnov 
and Supreme Soviet on 19 January forbade the holding of Moldova's 
parliamentary election in the territory under their control and declared a 
state of emergency until 1 March, banning public gatherings, imposing 
restrictions on the media, stipulating criminal prosecution of persons 
engaged in electoral activities, and alerting the Dniester paramilitary 
forces, Basapress reported. Moldova's elections are scheduled for 27 
February, but the Dniester communist authorities have not accepted the 
multi-party system. On the same day the "Dniester republic" introduced 
customs duties for goods transiting its territory, except those of Russia, 
Ukraine, and Belarus; and Smirnov threatened to cut off the flow of 
electricity and gas to Moldova on grounds (which Chisinau disputes) that 
Moldova had not paid for them, Interfax reported on 20 January. Vladimir 
Socor, RFE/RL, Inc. 

LEBED THREATENS DNIESTER LEADERS. The state of emergency also responds to 
the escalating anti-corruption campaign being waged by Lt.-Gen. Aleksandr 
Lebed, commander of Russia's 14th Army, against the Dniester leadership. 
The latter on 19 January cabled the Russian Federation's leadership asking 
for sanctions against Lebed, Russian TV reported. The 14th Army's military 
council had the previous day made public a statement threatening the 
Dniester leadership with retaliation for unspecified "offensive" acts 
against Army facilities and personnel, Moldovapres reported. The same day 
Lebed called in Izvestiya for elections in the "Dniester republic" to 
"oust the odious characters and bring more credible figures to power." 
Lebed has over the last year sought an alternative to the hardline 
communist leaders in Tiraspol but it is not clear whether he has found one 
and whether he has Moscow's support in this effort. Vladimir Socor, 
RFE/RL, Inc. 

NAZARBAYEV IN KIEV. On 20 January the president of Kazakhstan, Nursultan 
Nazarbayev, arrived in Kiev for a two-day meeting with President Leonid 
Kravchuk, UNIAN reported on 21 January. During the visit the two 
presidents signed a declaration in which they expressed concern over 
inter-ethnic conflicts and attempts to destabilize newly independent 
states from outside. The document goes on to say that NATO's Partnership 
for Peace plan has a great positive potential. Also signed were a Treaty 
on Friendship and Cooperation and eight agreements which regulate mutual 
indebtedness and establish further cooperation in the space, military and 
industrial spheres. At a press conference following the signing of the 
agreements, Nazarbayev said he wished to introduce a single monetary unit 
called "altyn" on the territory of the former Union and also travel cards 
which would ensure freedom of movement on the territory of the CIS states. 
The two presidents also expressed their negative attitudes towards dual 
citizenship in the CIS, and reiterated their desire to develop bilateral 
relations. Ustina Markus, RFE/RL, Inc.

NO-CONFIDENCE VOTE IN SHUSHKEVICH? The Belarusian parliament has been 
meeting behind closed doors since 19 January in a debate over the handling 
of the "Lithuanian case," Reuters, Belinform and Interfax reported on 20 
January. The incident involves the handing over of two Lithuanian 
communists accused of involvement in crushing anti-Soviet protests in 
Vilnius in 1991 by the interior ministry to Lithuanian authorities. The 
action has been criticized by a number of deputies and Prime Minister 
Vyacheslau Kebich who sees it as an illegal kidnapping. Deputies have 
reportedly called for the resignation of the interior minister, Uladzimir 
Yahorau, the minister of KGB, Eduard Shirkouski, and the prosecutor 
general, Vasil Shaladonau. Although the chairman of the Supreme Soviet, 
Stanislau Shushkevich, was not himself involved in the affair, he was 
reportedly put under pressure and offered to have his record put to a vote 
of confidence on 21 January. Rather than sacking the interior minister and 
KGB chief, deputies have reportedly accepted the confidence vote option. 
Yahorau and Shaladonau have admitted that there were violations of the law 
in the way in which the two Lithuanians were handed over to Vilnius. 
Ustina Markus, RFE/RL, Inc. 

[As of 1200 CET]

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