No. 23, 3 February 1994

RUSSIA

LOCAL ELECTIONS STARTED. Elections to the new local parliaments have 
started in Russia. Izvestiya on 2 February reported on the first of such 
elections in Penza oblast. The results were devastating for the democrats. 
40 of 45 seats in the oblast legislative assembly went to the old 
Communist Party nomenklatura although many candidates from the new 
democratic parties, such as Russia's Choice and Party of Russian Unity and 
Concord, as well as successful entrepreneurs took part. Observers noted 
that the victory of the old forces was a result of people's apathy. The 
"enlightened" electorate did not take part in the elections. Those who 
predominantly went to the polls were old pensioners and state agricultural 
workers who voted according to the "instructions" of the old nomenklatura 
apparatus. Alexander Rahr, RFE/RL, Inc.

SKOKOV THROWS HIS HAT IN THE RING. In an interview with Die Frankfurter 
Allgemeine Zeitung on 2 February, Yurii Skokov said he will run for the 
post of president in 1996 if Boris Yeltsin decides not to seek a second 
term. Skokov, who until last year held the post of secretary of the 
Russian Security Council and was sometimes described as "the second most 
powerful man in Russia after Yeltsin," now chairs the Federation of 
Russian Manufacturers, an umbrella organization that represents some of 
Russia's largest industries, including the oil industry, and has informal 
links with Russia's trade union federation. In the interview Skokov 
criticized the speaker of the Council of the Federation, Vladimir 
Shumeiko, as well as the leaders of Russia's Choice and the Party for 
Russian Unity and Concord, Egor Gaidar and Sergei Shakhrai, respectively, 
for having started their fight for the presidency too early and not 
thinking about the fate of Russia, thus damaging Yeltsin and the 
government. He went on to say that the major task of the president and 
government should be to prevent the disintegration of the Russian 
Federation. Alexander Rahr & Elizabeth Teague, RFE/RL, Inc. 

SHOKHIN ATTACKS GAIDAR. Aleksandr Shokhin, the reformist Minister of 
Economics and former ally of Egor Gaidar, has strongly criticized his 
one-time mentor in an interview with Ostankino TV "Bomond" on 1 February. 
Shokhin said that since the moment Gaidar returned to the government in 
September 1993, he and another reformer, Deputy Prime Minister Boris 
Fedorov, had permanently fought for the mantle of "chief ideologist of 
reform". Shokhin stated that President Boris Yeltsin provided Gaidar as 
First Deputy Prime Minister with all the powers to conduct economic reform 
and planned to build Gaidar up as a symbol of reform for the future. 
According to Shokhin, the reason for Gaidar's departure was his fear of 
responsibility. Shokhin said that he had spoiled his relationship with 
Gaidar in December 1992. Alexander Rahr, RFE/RL, Inc.

RESHUFFLE OF SECURITY COUNCIL. Boris Yeltsin has reduced the membership of 
the Russian Security Council (SB) by removing its radical reformists, 
ITAR-TASS reported on 1 February. (The SB is the supreme 
political-military body chaired by the Russian President and attached to 
the Presidential Office). According to Yeltsin's decree the new 
composition of the SB consists of: the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andrei 
Kozyrev; the Minister of Defense, Pavel Grachev; the Director of the 
Foreign Intelligence Service, Evgenii Primakov; the Chief of the Federal 
Counterintelligence Service, Nikolai Golushko; the Minister of Interior 
Affairs, Viktor Erin; the Minister of Justice, Yury Kalmykov; the Minister 
for Affairs of Nationalities and Regional Politics, Sergei Shakhrai; and 
the Minister of Civil Defense and Emergency Situations, Sergei Shoygu. 
Among those removed from the SB are: the retired Minister of Finances, 
Boris Fedorov; the retired First Deputy Prime Minister, Egor Gaidar; the 
Minister of Environment, Viktor Danilov-Danilyan; and the Minister of 
Health, Eduard Nechaev. Except for Kozyrev and Sakhrai the new members of 
the SB are the heads of agencies which are being reformed. This indicates 
that those agencies are not being reorganized through directives from a 
central authority, but are reforming themselves. Victor Yasmann, RFE/RL, 
Inc. 

DRAFT LAW RESTRICTING CONSTITUTIONAL COURT UNVEILED. The acting chairman 
of Russia's Constitutional Court, Nikolai Vitruk, told journalists at a 
press conference on 2 February that, according to a new draft law, the 
Constitutional Court in future will not be permitted to initiate an 
examination of whether specific legislation conforms to the constitution, 
and that it will also be prevented from scrutinizing top officials' 
actions against the constitution. According to the court's secretary Yurii 
Rudkin, these provisions will prevent a repetition of the March 1993 
crisis when the court judged President Yeltsin's TV address introducing 
"special rule" to be unconstitutional. The draft law also withdraws social 
organizations' right to bring a case before the court. A full text of the 
law was not made available to journalists, and Vitruk also refused to 
reveal how much judges would be paid. Wendy Slater, RFE/RL, Inc.

RUSSIA TO JOIN COUNCIL OF EUROPE IN 1994? A Russian parliamentary 
delegation visiting the headquarters of the Council of Europe in 
Strasbourg said that Russia should become a member of the Council of 
Europe not earlier than the end of 1994, ITAR-TASS reported on 2 February. 
The delegation consisted of deputy speaker of the Council of the 
Federation, Ramazan Abdulatipov, and Council of the Federation and State 
Duma deputies Evgenii Ambartsumov, Sergei Baburin, Sergei Glotov, 
Aleksandr Dzasokhov and Vladimir Podoprigoda. Ambartsumov criticized the 
West for trying to build "artificial barriers to Russia's entry into the 
Council," and urged leaders of the Council of Europe to visit Russia more 
frequently. Alexander Rahr, RFE/RL, Inc. 

ALTERNATIVE ECONOMIC PROGRAM UNVEILED. The alternative economic program, 
referred to in Izvestiya of 29 January, has been submitted to the 
president, the prime minister, and to parliamentary deputies, Interfax 
reported on 2 February. Authored by, inter alia, Leonid Abalkin, Nikolai 
Petrakov, and Stanislav Shatilin, the report is entitled "Social and 
Economic Transformations in Russia: the Modern Situation and New 
Approaches." It is said to advocate active state regulation during the 
formation of a market economy, to emphasize social considerations such as 
minimum pay, employment, allocations to education and health care, and to 
recommend the curtailment of "populist voucher privatization." According 
to a "reliable source" close to Deputy Prime Minister Anatolii Chubais, 
quoted by Interfax, President Yeltsin has shown a "negative response" to 
the possible involvement of Messrs. Abalkin, Petrakov, and Shatalin in any 
changes to the course of reform. Keith Bush, RFE/RL, Inc.

DUBININ, GERASCHENKO ON BUDGET. Acting Minister of Finance Sergei Dubinin 
and Russian Central Bank Chairman Viktor Gerashchenko are promising to 
hold Russia to fiscal austerity. Dubinin told the Budget Commission of the 
State Duma on 2 February that the federal deficit would be lowered within 
eight to ten percent of gross domestic product in 1994, Interfax reported. 
Dubinin noted that first quarter spending would be constrained by a 
maximum of 8.5 trillion rubles in state revenues. Gerashchenko told 
Interfax on the same day that an additional expenditure of 4 trillion 
rubles committed to liquidate state debt owed defense, agricultural and 
other state enterprises would have to be spread out over the year to avoid 
the inflationary implications of a sudden increase in deficit spending. 
Erik Whitlock, RFE/RL, Inc. 

OIL WORKERS THREATEN TO CUT PRODUCTION. Oil workers in western Siberia are 
threatening to reduce production if they do not receive overdue wages by 
10 February, Reuters and ITAR-TASS reported on 2 February. Some oil 
workers say they have not been paid since last October. Russia is the 
world's third largest oil producer and oil exports are Russia's main hard 
currency earner, but the present cash-flow crisis is caused by the failure 
of domestic consumers (regions as well as enterprises) to pay their bills. 
Elizabeth Teague, RFE/RL, Inc.

CENTRAL ASIA & TRANSCAUCASIA

KAZAKHSTAN REPORTED TO PROHIBIT RUSSIAN OVERFLIGHTS. Kazakhstan has 
prohibited overflights of its territory by a Russian search-and-rescue 
unit based in Chelyabinsk Oblast, ITAR-TASS reported on 2 February, 
quoting a Chelyabinsk oblast newspaper. Kazakhstani authorities have said 
that they regard such overflights as intrusions; the search-and-rescue 
unit is used to find and pick up manned and unmanned space vehicles 
launched from Baikonur. Talks underway in Moscow between Russian and 
Kazakhstani officials on the future of the Baikonur space complex in 
Kazakhstan have had no result so far, ITAR-TASS reported the same day. 
Russian negotiators have complained that though Kazakhstan agreed in 
January to lease the complex to Russia, Kazakhstani officials are still 
interested in creating an international joint-stock company to run 
Baikonur. Bess Brown, RFE/RL, Inc. 

GEORGIAN DEPUTY DEFENSE MINISTER KILLED BY BOMB. Georgian deputy defense 
minister Nikolai Kekelidze was killed when a bomb exploded in his 
apartment in the early morning of 3 February, Western agencies and 
ITAR-TASS reported quoting a Georgian Interior Ministry official. No group 
has yet claimed responsibility for the incident. Liz Fuller, RFE/RL, Inc. 

CIS

ABKHAZIA, SOUTH OSSETIA, PROTEST RUSSIAN-GEORGIAN FRIENDSHIP TREATY. 
Abkhaz Prime Minister Sokrat Dzhindzholia, parliament chairman Vladislav 
Ardzinba, and the latter's personal representative Andrei Dzhergenia have 
all expressed grave concerns to the Russian media concerning the 
implications for their respective autonomies of the Russian-Georgian 
treaty of friendship and cooperation due to be signed in Tbilisi on 3 
February. Dzhindzholia told Interfax on 28 January that the treaty would 
give Georgia access to Russia's military arsenals. Speaking at a press 
conference in Moscow on 1 February, Dzhergenia said that the Abkhaz 
parliament had asked the Russian leadership to postpone signing the treaty 
pending a settlement of the Abkhaz and South Ossetian conflicts, ITAR-TASS 
reported. On 2 February, according to ITAR-TASS, the parliament of South 
Ossetia likewise addressed an appeal to Russian President Boris Yeltsin 
not to sign the treaty until measures had been enacted to protect South 
Ossetia's security, and requested that the Russian Federation Council and 
State Duma not ratify the treaty as it referred to South Ossetia as an 
integral part of Georgia. Liz Fuller, RFE/RL, Inc.

GRACHEV PROPOSES PERMANENT RUSSIAN MILITARY PRESENCE IN GEORGIA. Speaking 
on his arrival in Tbilisi on 2 February, Russian Defense Minister Pavel 
Grachev announced that Russia would like to open three military bases in 
Georgia within the framework of the CIS Collective Security Treaty, and 
two more elsewhere in the Transcaucasus, with a total strength of 23,000 
men, ITAR-TASS reported. The current agreement on stationing Russian 
troops in Georgia expires in December 1995. Grachev stipulated, however, 
that future Russian assistance to Georgia in building up its own army is 
contingent on the stabilization of the social-political situation in 
Georgia and an acceptable solution to the political status of Abkhazia and 
South Ossetia. Liz Fuller, RFE/RL, Inc.

RUSSIAN OPPOSITION TO TREATY WITH GEORGIA. A group of Russian parliament 
deputies including State Duma chairman Ivan Rybkin and former first deputy 
Prime Minister Egor Gaidar have sent a letter to Russian President Boris 
Yeltsin arguing that signing of the Russian-Georgian Treaty on Friendship 
and Cooperation is premature and could destabilize the entire Caucasus 
region, Interfax reported on 2 February. Rybkin was quoted as stating that 
it was possible that the State Duma would refuse to ratify the treaty. 
Also on 2 February, AFP quoted unnamed presidential aides as saying that 
they had tried to dissuade Yeltsin from traveling to Tbilisi to sign the 
treaty both on political grounds and because security arrangements in 
Tbilisi were inadequate. Liz Fuller, RFE/RL, Inc.

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

TURKISH AND PAKISTANI PRIME MINISTERS IN SARAJEVO. International media 
reported on 2 February that Tansu Ciller and Benazir Bhutto paid a brief 
visit to the besieged Bosnian capital in a show of solidarity. Security 
was tight as the two heads of government met with Bosnian officials and 
visited a hospital. In a joint statement the women noted that "rarely in 
the annals of human history has a nation been subjected to such merciless 
savagery in the full view of the world." Bosnian officials were pleased 
with the visit, but the 3 February Belgrade Politika dismissed it as a 
"'humanitarian' call for bombardment." Meanwhile, Bosnian Prime Minister 
Haris Siladjic said that his government is considering leaving the peace 
talks, which it regards as ineffective and biased. "We've used this 
medicine for two years, and the medicine obviously did not cure the 
illness. Instead, it cost 200,000 lives. We have to start something new," 
the New York Times quotes him as saying. Patrick Moore, RFE/RL, Inc.

SERBS DRAFT REFUGEES. As discussion continues in Germany and elsewhere in 
western Europe about the legality and morality of deporting war resisters 
and other draft-age young men back to Serbia-Montenegro and Croatia, 
indications are that the war machines in the former Yugoslavia are seeking 
fresh cannon fodder. Late last year the self-proclaimed Croatian Community 
of Herceg-Bosna set down draconian measures aimed not only at deserters 
and draft-dodgers but at their families as well. Now the Daily Telegraph 
of 2 February and the Washington Post of 3 February report that Bosnian 
Serb authorities with the support of officials in Serbia proper are 
dragooning young men among Bosnian Serb refugees in Serbia. The Bosnian 
Serb defense minister said that "they are our people... and according to 
the decision of the military headquarters, we are getting them back so 
they can finish their military obligations." Patrick Moore, RFE/RL, Inc. 

WHOSE TROOPS ARE FIGHTING IN BOSNIA? That same Bosnian Serb official also 
denied press and UN reports that rump Yugoslav troops are active in 
Bosnia. Meanwhile, publicity over alleged Croat units in that embattled 
republic continues, especially in British and Serbian media amid strong 
hints that sanctions should be imposed on Croatia as punishment. In 
Vjesnik on 31 January, a top Croat spokesman had said that only some 
1,500-2,000 demobilized Croat sol 

[error in transmission]

quoted UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali as claiming
that 3-5,000 Croatian soldiers are active in Bosnian and
identifying their units in a letter to the Security Council.
News agencies quoted German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel as
saying that he has no proof that Croatian units are in Bosnia
and that he opposes sanctions against Zagreb. Patrick Moore,
RFE/RL, Inc.

POLITICAL FALLOUT IN SERBIAN PARLIAMENT. On 3 February both
Borba and Politika report extensively on the fallout
surrounding the election of Dragan Tomic, a Socialist Party
of Serbia member, to the post of president of the Serbian
parliament. According to Politika accounts, Tomic, who
received 125 votes from a pool of a possible 250 deputies,
managed to win because only 247 deputies were on hand to vote
(only 121 of the 123 Socialists being present) and because
four opposition parliamentarians threw their lot in with the
SPS. The dailies report that members of Zoran Djindjic's
Democratic Party (DS) allegedly voted for Tomic, an
allegation that Djindjic himself flatly denies. According to
Djindjic, all DS members agreed to cast their votes for
Tomic's Serbian Radical Party opponent. He added that future
voting should be undertaken publicly in order to avoid false
allegations and possible vote rigging. Stan Markotich,
RFE/RL, Inc.

BULGARIAN CRIMINALS INTIMIDATE UN MONITORS. On 2 January
Reuters reported that United Nations monitors stationed along
the Bulgarian-Serbian border have urged Sofia to provide
their teams with better protection, following an incident in
which sanction-busters appeared threatening. The Deputy Head
of the UN Sanctions Assistance Mission in Sofia, Henning
Stanislawski, said a group of criminals on 29 January
surrounded two monitors at a border crossing and then chased
the UN monitors for 150 km, back to Sofia. Stanislawski told
the agency that this is the second time sanction-breakers
have intimidated UN personnel in recent months and that the
incident suggests that well-organized gangs of smugglers
continue to operate along Bulgaria's border with Serbia. He
said that monitors for security reasons had also pulled out
of the border area in late 1993, when the customs officials
had lost control of the situation and some 80-85 small
vans--apparently loaded with fuel--each day drove into
Serbia. After meeting with Interior Minister Viktor Mihaylov,
however, Stanislawski said he had now received assurances
that Bulgarian law enforcement agencies would extend more
support. In January Mihaylov acknowledged that Bulgarian
firms have participated in systematic sanction-busting and
the government also sacked the head of Bulgaria's UN
Sanction's Control Commission. Kjell Engelbrekt, RFE/RL, Inc.

POLAND SIGNS NATO PARTNERSHIP PACT. On the first day of his
two-day visit to Brussels, Polish Prime Minister Waldemar
Pawlak signed an agreement at NATO headquarters signaling
Poland's entry into the Partnership for Peace program. Poland
is the third country to do so, after Romania and Lithuania.
Pawlak said the program offers "contacts that could
eventually guarantee Poland's security." He praised the
program's "open formula." In remarks to the European
Parliament on 2 February, Pawlak said that Poland is not
fully satisfied with the partnership but accepts it on the
assumption that it will lead to full membership in European
security structures. Pawlak also called for full membership
in the EU and better Polish access to European markets; on
several occasions he argued for a "partnership for growth" to
complement the NATO plan. The Polish prime minister is
scheduled to visit the European Commission and meet with its
chairman, Jacques Delors, on 3 February. In a move timed to
coincide with the entry into force of Poland's association
agreement with the EU, the Polish government also submitted a
request for full membership in the OECD on 1 February,
Rzeczpospolita reports. Louisa Vinton, RFE/RL, Inc.

KLAUS CRITICIZES AUSTRIA OVER NUCLEAR PLANT CONTROVERSY.
Speaking to reporters in Prague on 2 February, Czech Premier
Vaclav Klaus rejected attempts by Austria to convince the
Czech Republic to abandon its Temelin nuclear power plant
project. Klaus's remarks came in response to statements by
Austrian Chancellor Franz Vranitzky, made in Vienna on 1
February. Vranitzky said that he will again approach Czech
leaders with the offer to rebuild the nuclear plant into a
power plant using gas and that he will repeat Austria's
arguments against Temelin. Klaus said that the Czech
Republic's decision last year to complete the nuclear plant
"was not a joke" and that Austria should realize that.
According to Klaus, Austria protests only against the Czech
nuclear power plants but not against nuclear power plants in
Germany and Switzerland. He argued that Austria has mounted
the campaign against the Czech Republic because it considers
it "a weaker partner." Klaus said: "I have to declare that we
are not a weaker partner in this affair." Jiri Pehe, RFE/RL,
Inc.

SLOVAK MINISTER REPORTS ON FOREIGN POLICY. On 2 February
Foreign Minister Jozef Moravcik presented a report to the
parliament on foreign policy in 1993 and priorities in 1994,
TASR reports. According to Moravcik, his ministry's most
important achievements in 1993 were the clarification of
Slovakia's orientation towards West European security
organizations, as well as its association agreement with the
EU and membership in the Council of Europe. Moravcik said
that in 1994 the country will direct itself towards NATO and
the WEU. Moravcik stressed his concern that Slovakia has
still not managed to dispel doubts about the country's
domestic stability, which has led to low foreign investment.
He also criticized Hungary for its attempts "to question
Slovakia's credibility at international forums" and its
"exaggerated focus on the status and rights of the ethnic
Hungarian minority" in Slovakia. Representatives of various
embassies accredited in Slovakia also attended the session,
and Hungarian Ambassador to Slovakia Lajos Varadi said that
aside from "some extreme political voices, we think that no
irredentist attempts in relation to Slovakia can be found in
Hungary." Sharon Fisher, RFE/RL, Inc.

CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS AGAINST HUNGARIAN FASCIST PARTY. The
chief prosecutor's office announced on 2 February that
criminal proceedings are underway against two members of the
extreme-right party, World National Popular Rule, and that
the Budapest chief prosecutor has requested that the party be
dissolved, MTI reports. According to the chief prosecutor's
office, the party has violated the constitution by inciting
hatred against minorities. The party, whose members are
mostly skinheads, have particularly been targeting Jews and
Gypsies. Last month police raided the Budapest headquarters
of the party and seized party documents and Hungarian
arrow-cross insignia. The government condemned the party's
activities after the it held an openly anti-Semitic meeting
in which it denied the existence of the Holocaust. The party
had planned to run in the next general election. Edith Oltay,
RFE/RL, Inc.

ROMANIAN PARTIES SIGN FORMAL COALITION ACCORD. The ruling
Party of Social Democracy in Romania and the
ultra-nationalist Party of Romanian National Unity on 2
February signed a formal agreement paving the way for a
coalition cabinet. The new coalition, which will include
three more PSDR parliamentary allies, is expected to be
completed by the end of February. Radio Bucharest quoted PRNU
vice-chairman Ioan Gavra as describing the accord as "the
most significant political event [in Romania] since the
September 1992 elections." Romania's democratic opposition
has repeatedly criticized the PSDR's decision to share power
with left-wing and nationalist parties, warning against its
possible impact on Romania's image abroad. Dan Ionescu,
RFE/RL, Inc.

SENATE MAKES ROMANIA'S DEFAMATION A CRIMINAL OFFENSE.
Romania's Senate on 2 February voted by a wide margin to
punish "defamation in public of Romania and the Romanian
nation" with one to five years in prison. Similar jail terms
are provided for those accused of disseminating "false
information and news posing a treat on state security and
Romania's international relations," Radio Bucharest reports.
The author of the legislation, Senator Valer Suian of the
PRNU, said during debate that the rules are needed to defend
the country's prestige against inner and foreign detractors.
He singled out Russian nationalist leader Vladimir
Zhirinovsky as an example. The legislation, which was
introduced as an amendment to the Penal Code, was approved by
a 75 to 25 vote, with five abstentions. It must go before the
Chamber of Deputies before coming into force. Opposition
Senators expressed fears that the law could be used to
repress political opponents or members of ethnic minorities.
Dan Ionescu, RFE/RL, Inc.

UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT TO DEBATE CRUCIAL POLITICAL AND SECURITY
ISSUES. In its final sessions before the elections that will
elect a new legislature, the Ukrainian parliament is set to
debate several fundamental political and security issues. The
speaker of the parliament Ivan Plyushch announced at the
start of proceedings on 3 February that the parliament will
turn its attention to the following outstanding questions:
the overhaul of local government, whether or not a referendum
will be held on 27 March on the basic principles of the
division of powers, and the parliament's attitude toward the
trilateral nuclear agreement signed in Moscow on 14 January
by Presidents Clinton, Yeltsin and Kravchuk. Some deputies
are also pressing for changes in the election law which was
approved last November. Somewhat surprisingly, the situation
in Crimea has been kept off the agenda. Bohdan Nahaylo,
RFE/RL, Inc.

BELARUSIAN TRADE UNIONS CALL STRIKES. On 2 February the
National Strike Committee, which includes a number of trade
unions in Belarus, issued a call for nation-wide strikes
beginning on 15 February and lasting indefinitely, ITAR-TASS
and Interfax reported. The committee's main demand is the
resignation of Prime Minister Vyacheslau Kebich's government
and early parliamentary elections. The leader of the
Independent Trade Unions of Belarus, Henadz Bykau said the
decision to strike was prompted by the recent dismissals of
the interior minister, the head of the KGB, and the Chairman
of the Supreme Soviet, Stanislau Shushkevich. The new
Chairman of the Supreme Soviet, Mechyslau Hryb, has ordered
the acting head of the KGB, Henadz Lavitsky, to investigate
the strike call which he said amounted to a call for the
overthrow of state and authority. Ustina Markus, RFE/RL, Inc.

MOLDOVAN-UKRAINIAN RAPPROCHEMENT CONTINUES. The Ukrainian
Foreign Ministry's Information Department director, Yurii
Serheev, told a media briefing in Kiev that he was officially
authorized to urge that "foreign troops" be withdrawn from
Moldova, Moldovan media reported on 1 February. Interfax
reported that Serheev made his remarks in the context of
expressing the Ukrainian government's concern over Russian
Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev's remarks on Russia's alleged
right to intervene to protect minorities in the "near
abroad." Meanwhile, Ukraine's Ambassador to Moldova, Vitalii
Boiko, commented in the Moldovan parliamentary weekly Sfatul
Tarii of 20 January on the continuing improvement of the
situation of Moldova's largest ethnic minority, the
Ukrainians, saying that "a real sea change is taking place
regarding the revival of the Ukrainian language and culture
in Moldova." The ambassador concluded that "Moldova's state
policy is oriented toward creating the conditions for the
rebirth of the cultures of nationalities, as you may also
witness in the government's support for Ukrainian cultural
institutions in Moldova." Vladimir Socor, RFE/RL, Inc.

SVIRIN, ROZHOK, DUMA ON RUSSIANS IN ESTONIA. Petr Rozhok, a
representative of Russian Liberal Democratic Party, while
visiting Estonia, told the Sillameski Vestnik that Estonia is
"ancient Russian territory" and advised all Russians in
Estonia to apply for Russian citizenship. Furthermore, Rozhok
also urged retired Russian officers and soldiers in Estonia
to form military units to defend their honor and dignity and
asserted that they should be "aware of the protection and
support of the great Russia." BNS of February 1 also reported
that the Russian parliament intends to send representatives
to Estonia in February to tour the Russian-Estonian border
area and to suggest measures to protect the rights of
Estonia's Russian-speaking population. On the eve of the
resumption of the Russian-Estonian talks, Russian delegation
head Vasilii Svirin told Interfax on 1 February that he would
offer an "improved" schedule for the withdrawal of Russian
troops from Estonia; he wanted Estonia to show concern for
the rights of Russians in Estonia, especially the Russian
military retirees living there. Svirin also deplored
Estonia's "persistence" in its territorial claims against
Russia. Dzintra Bungs, RFE/RL, Inc.

POPULARITY POLL IN LITHUANIA. A poll of 1,198 people by the
British-Lithuanian company Baltic Surveys showed that the
popularity rating of all political figures except for
opposition leader Vytautas Landsbergis dropped in January
compared to December, BNS reported on 1 and 2 January.
Landsbergis' rating increased by 3 points to 40%. The three
most popular figures were President Algirdas Brazauskas with
a 58% rating (dropping 4 points), Seimas deputy chairman
Egidijus Bickauskas with 53% (-5%), and Center Union chairman
Romualdas Ozolas with 47% (-5%). A majority of the
respondents (56%) were opposed to holding early presidential
elections with 20% favoring them. The desire for early
parliament elections was greater, 28% in favor and 45%
opposed. If parliament elections were held now, 22% said that
they would not participate in the elections, while 17% would
vote for the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party, 12% for the
Christian Democratic Party, 6% for Sajudis, 5% for the
Conservative Party, 4% for the Center Union, 3% for the
Democratic Party, and 2% each for the Liberal Union and the
Social Democratic Party. Saulius Girnius, RFE/RL, Inc.

[As of 1200 CET]

Compiled by Ustina Markus & Kjell Engelbrekt
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