FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA
        FEDERAL MINISTRY FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS
 

YUGOSLAV DAILY SURVEY
 
BELGRADE, 13 May 1999    No. 2324
 
 

C O N T E N T S:

FROM THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA
- MILUTINOVIC PROMOTES SERBIAN POLICE CHIEF IN PRISTINA
- LILIC: EFFORTS FOR PEACE AND POLITICAL RESOLUTION OF CRISIS
- MAROVIC FELICITATES MONTENGRIN INTERIOR MINISTRY MEMBERS
- YUGOSLAV DEPUTY FM RECEIVES NIGERIAN AMBASSADOR
- U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICIAL VISITS NIS RESIDENTIAL AREA RAIDED BY NATO

NATO AGGRESSION - THE HAGUE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
- HEARING CONCLUDED ABOUT YUGOSLAV CHARGES

NATO AGGRESSION - BOSNIA,REPUBLIKA SRPSKA
- MILOVANOVIC: SFOR IS STEPPING UP TROOPS IN BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA
 

NATO AGGRESSION - INTERNATIONAL REACTIONS
- CHINA'S JIANG SAYS END TO NATO BOMBING VITAL FOR RENEWAL OF TALKS
- ZHU: NATO MUST IMMEDIATELY HALT BOMBARDMENT OF YUGOSLAVIA
- CHINA REPEATS DEMAND FOR END TO NATO BOMBARDMENTS OF YUGOSLAVIA
- RUSSIAN DUMA CREATES COMMISSION FOR NATO WAR CRIMES IN YUGOSLAVIA
- STATE DUMA ACCUSES RUSSIAN TV COMPANIES OF PRO-NATO COVERAGE
- RUSSIA'S CHERNOMYRDIN PLEASED WITH TALKS WITH U.S. TALBOTT
- PORTUGAL DOES NOT WANT TO TAKE PART IN NATO OPERATIONS IN ALBANIA
- DIPLOMACY ONLY WAY FOR RESOLVING CONFLICT, JACKSON SAYS
- FUJIMORI: BRUTAL NATO ATTACKS ON YUGOSLAVIA NO MISTAKE
 
 

        FROM THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA :

        MILUTINOVIC PROMOTES SERBIAN POLICE CHIEF IN PRISTINA

Serbian President Milan Milutinovic has issued a decree on the occasion of National Security Day marked on May 13, promoting Major General Sreten Lukic, Serbian police chief in Kosovo and Metohija's chief city of Pristina, to the rank of lieutenant general.
Serbian Interior Minister Vlajko Stojiljkovic has promoted to higher rank 72 senior and 307 junior officers on the occasion, the press section said.
(Tanjug, Belgrade, May 13)

        LILIC: EFFORTS FOR PEACE AND POLITICAL RESOLUTION OF CRISIS

        Federal Vice-Prime Minister Zoran Lilic visited Uzice on Wednesday to see the effects of the NATO bombing of this city whose citizens live under air strike alerts 18 hours a day. By targeting the centre of Uzice and destroying the post office communication links, NATO has in the worst possible way violated the human rights it so ardently advocates by stripping 18,000 subscribers of the right to communicate, Lilic said.
"Our interest and wish is for the bombings to stop, and today this is the interest of the international community, especially Europe which should come to see that we are its part and the aim of our efforts is for all problems to the resolved in the right place, primarily in the United Nations," Lilic said.
He set out that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is willing to accept a U.N. mission, to discuss its structure, mandate and duration and is ready for political negotiations with the members of all national communities living in Kosovo and Metohija.
The Yugoslav Government and President Slobodan Milosevic fully agree and guarantee the safety and return of all refugees regardless of their nationality, Lilic said.
"We are ready to withdraw our military and police forces up to pre-war levels and want to be fully engaged in the resolution of all problems which currently heavily burden Yugoslavia. We are entitled to demand this from the international community despite the fact that on the example of Yugoslavia legalized has been the right to secession, mass terrorism by NATO and we have seen the violation of international laws and the U.N. Charter," Lilic said.
He underscored that, if the international community wants to survive and return to the responsible resolution of all problems, it should return to within the framework of the United Nations where all existing problems should be solved solely through peaceful means because the continuation of the bombings can only result in greater distancing from the existing problems. (Tanjug, Uzice, May 13)

        MAROVIC FELICITATES MONTENGRIN INTERIOR MINISTRY MEMBERS

 Montenegrin Parliament Speaker Svetozar Marovic on Wednesday sent a message of felicitations to the members of the security service of the Montengrin Interior Ministry for their day which is marked on May 13.
 "Your service marks its day on Thursday, which is also the 51st day of the aggression, suffering, violence and injustice which allows the powerful to kill those less powerful, the strong to punish the weak, and the guilty to accuse the innocent," Marovic said.
 He underscored the wish "for the members of the security service to continue their efforts, together with the Yugoslav Army, to protect each other and jointly to protect this country together with everyone, the civilian authorities, the citizens, church, religions, good will and above all with wisdom in order to preserve what is of the greatest importance for everyone in Montenegro - its peace and future." (Tanjug, Podgorica, May 13)

        YUGOSLAV DEPUTY FM RECEIVES NIGERIAN AMBASSADOR

Yugoslav Deputy Foreign Minister Zoran Novakovic received on Wednesday the new Nigerian Ambassador to Belgrade Samuel Adelan Otuyelu, who presented him with his credentials.
Novakovic informed Otuyelu of Yugoslavia's views on the character, goals and effects of the NATO aggression and of the civilian casualties and the devastation it has caused so far. This demonstrates that NATO has flagrantly violated the UN Charter and international law and committed a crime against peace and humanity and the crime of genocide, he said.
 Yugoslavia appreciates Nigeria's decision to send an Ambassador to Belgrade at this time, and sees it as a demonstration of friendship and understanding between the two peoples, and of Nigeria's principled support to Yugoslavia in the defense of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, Novakovic said.
 Novakovic said he expected Nigeria to make an even stronger commitment in this regard within the Nonaligned Movement and the UN.
Underlining that Nigeria, like Yugoslavia, is committed to the UN Charter, Otuyelu said that all international problems must be resolved in line with the Charter and that the current situation in Serbia's Kosovo-Metohija province and Yugoslavia must be resolved by peaceful and political means with a decisive role played by the UN.
Alleged protection of human rights can turn into injustice if a majority of people is harmed, Otuyelu said.
The Ambassador said his arrival in Belgrade symbolized his Government's support to Yugoslavia's Government and people in their endeavors for a peaceful settlement and in their national defense. (Tanjug, Belgrade, May 13)

        U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICIAL VISITS NIS RESIDENTIAL AREA RAIDED BY NATO

U.N. human rights official Mary Robinson, who, together with foreign TV crews, visited the Duvaniste residential area in Nis, southeastern of Serbia, on Wednesday afternoon, saw crimes committed by NATO against the city's residents. Visibly upset by the scene caused by countless cluster bombs, Robinson had seen for herself that there were no military nor police facilities in the area where only blocks of flats, houses and schools are situated.
Shocked by what they had seen, foreign reporters tried to spot facilities
NATO claims to have been the reason for committing the unprecedented crime.
All they could see, however, were unexploded parts of cluster bombs.
(Tanjug, Nis, May 13)

        NATO AGGRESSION - THE HAGUE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

        HEARING CONCLUDED ABOUT YUGOSLAV CHARGES

A hearing ended Wednesday at the International Court of Justice in The Hague about the charges filed by the Yugoslav Government against ten member countries of the NATO pact. Judges of the International Court of Justice in The Hague, after hearing both sides, will continue to study the Yugoslav charges after what they are to decide whether they will bring a temporary measure on the cessation of NATO bombardment. It is difficult to say at this moment when the judges will conclude their work.
Concluding the hearing, the President of the Court, Christopher Veramantri (Sri Lanka), did not specify the time frame when the decision would be made.
 According to unofficial sources, The Hague Court could make a decision "most probably next week." Lawyers and legal experts, members of the Yugoslav team, denied in the Court on Wednesday all the assertions of the defense made by representatives of the countries again which charges have been filed.
In the explanation of the positions from the demand of the Yugoslav Government, it was stressed that the aggression on the FRY was carried out without the approval of the U.N. Security Council, which constitutes a breach of the U.N. Charter and of the Geneva Convention. (Tanjug, Brussels, May 13)

        NATO AGGRESSION - BOSNIA,REPUBLIKA SRPSKA
 
        MILOVANOVIC: SFOR IS STEPPING UP TROOPS IN BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA

Republika Srpska (RS) Defence Minister General Manojlo Milovanovic has said that the international Stabilization Force SFOR is stepping up its troops in Bosnia-Herzegovina as a result of the NATO aggression on the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
Underscoring the fact that every six months SFOR replaces its continents, Gen. Milovanovic told the Banjaluka weekly Reporter that much bigger troops than usual had arrived in the SFOR bases. Milovanovic linked this to the tensions in Bosnia-Herzegovina over the NATO aggression on Yugoslavia.
"The population of RS is opposed to the aggression, while the population in the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina supports the aggression and this is why SFOR's obligations have become complicated," Milovanovic said. He recalled that NATO Commander for Europe General Wesley Clark was superior officer to SFOR Commander for Bosnia-Herzegovina, General Montgomery Miggs.
According to Milovanovic, SFOR's activities have been stepped up especially in eastern RS due to the proximity of the Drina River.
Milovanovic added that the majority of incidents between SFOR members and the population take place in the eastern part of the Serb entity in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Regarding the activities of the army of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Federation, Milovanovic stated that RS gives all data about unusual and illegal activities of the Bosnia-Herzegovina muslim army to SFOR so that it could prevent all negative consequences. (Tanjug, Banjaluka, May 13)

        NATO AGGRESSION - INTERNATIONAL REACTIONS

        CHINA'S JIANG SAYS END TO NATO BOMBING VITAL FOR RENEWAL OF TALKS

Chinese President Jiang Zemin said in a meeting with German Chancellor
Gerhard Schroeder late on Wednesday that an immediate end to NATO air strikes against Yugoslavia was a key condition for re-opening talks on the Yugoslav republic of Serbia's Kosovo and Metohija Province.
Schroeder, paying a one-day working visit to China, was informed of China's position also by Prime Minister Zhu Rongji and Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan.
 Jiang stressed China's other key position that any plan on the political resolution of the issue must be approved by Yugoslavia.
Schroeder said he had discussed the Kosovo and Metohija issue with Zhu, saying that, despite differences, he had agreed with the Chinese side that the issue should be immediately referred back to the U.N. Security Council in order to find a political solution to it. (Tanjug, Beijing, May 13)

        ZHU: NATO MUST IMMEDIATELY HALT BOMBARDMENT OF YUGOSLAVIA

China insists on an immediate end to the NATO bombardment of Yugoslavia, as a condition for a political solution to problems in Kosovo and Metohija, Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji on Wednesday told German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who is on an one-day visit to China. "China, as a permanent U.N. Security Council member, will not agree that any plan for a political solution be discussed in that body unless the bombardment stops," Premier Zhu categorically set out.
Metohija has Yugoslavia's approval," for he said "it will not be implemented otherwise."
Chancellor Schroeder was told that Beijing had urged "all peaceable countries to make a positive contribution to halting the bombardment and finding a political solution to the crisis." Chinese Premier Zhu presented all of China's consistent positions on Kosovo and Metohija and termed "extremely dangerous" the use of force by NATO.
"In the 50 days of barbarian bombardment of Yugoslavia, NATO has killed or wounded a large number of civilians and left many of them without a home, creating, under the pretext of humanitarian protection, the biggest humanitarian tragedy in post-war Europe," Premier Zhu set out.
He said that the Chinese could not accept NATO's explanation that the attack on the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade was an "error," and underscored that the Chinese Government had "requested a thorough investigation and the punishment of those responsible."
The Chinese news agency Xinhua quoted Chancellor Schroeder as saying that a "political solution to the crisis must be found as soon as possible, because there is no other choice," and voicing hope that China played a role in the resolution of the Kosovo and Metohija crisis. (Tanjug, Beijing,
May 13)
 
        CHINA REPEATS DEMAND FOR END TO NATO BOMBARDMENTS OF YUGOSLAVIA

Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan on Wednesday told visiting German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder that an immediate halt to the NATO bombardment of Yugoslavia was the first condition for a political solution to problems in Kosovo and Metohija. "It is not realistic to discuss a political solution while Yugoslavia is bombarded," Minister Tang set out.
Tang said that the other key Chinese position was that "every political solution must have the approval of Yugoslavia, a sovereign state," for he said any agreement would otherwise be useless.
The Chinese Xinhua news agency said that Schroeder, speaking on behalf of Germany and NATO, offered to Tang an "unconditional apology for the missile attack on the Chinese Embassy."
 Minister Tang said the explanation so far given by NATO was "far from sufficient" and the Chinese Government had the full right to demand a "comprehensive, thorough and in-depth investigation and the establishing of responsibility" for the attack on its Embassy.
The Chinese Foreign Minister told the German Chancellor that the "bestial bombardment of Yugoslavia by the U.S.-led NATO has caused an immense humanitarian catastrophe." He underscored that China had throughout urged a political solution and opposed the use of force, and set out that the use of force made problems "more complex and effected dangerous consequences."
"The bypassing of the United Nations and the use of force against Yugoslavia are definitively violations of the U.N. Charter," the Chinese Minister stressed. (Tanjug, Beijing, May 13)

        RUSSIAN DUMA CREATES COMMISSION FOR NATO WAR CRIMES IN YUGOSLAVIA

The Russian State Duma decided on Wednesday to create a commission for collecting and processing information on crimes committee by NATO during its aggression on Yugoslavia. The document underlines that the NATO aggression on Yugoslavia must be considered a war crime for which NATO leaders must be punished.
Mechanisms for collecting information on serious violations of international law by NATO must also be set up in order to present evidence to the International Court of Justice.
The commission will work until the end of the present Duma term and will present a report on its findings by December 1.
The commission will also undertake consultations with the Parliaments of the member-states of the OSCE to create an international parliamentary commission for investigating NATO crimes in Yugoslavia. (Tanjug, Moscow, May 13)

        STATE DUMA ACCUSES RUSSIAN TV COMPANIES OF PRO-NATO COVERAGE

The Russian State Duma on Wednesday adopted a resolution accusing the leading domestic TV companies of a "pro-NATO coverage of the developments in Yugoslavia."
The document about the "impermissibility of the use of Russian media in psychological NATO operations" said that a series of Russian media had in the more recent days displayed an "abrupt upturn in the pro-NATO orientation."
The resolution set out that the "unobjective coverage of the Balkan conflict by leading Russian TV companies is a reflection of the NATO aspiration to use Russian media to spread propaganda in Russia with a view to justifying the military bloc's aggression on Yugoslavia."
The State Duma recommended to the Russian President and Government "radically to limit the use of the TV companies and news agencies of the aggressor-countries in the programs of Russian TV companies which cover NATO aggression on Yugoslavia."
 The State Duma resolution also urged the Federal Radio and TV Service to develop a system of measures for the control of the Russian media coverage of the armed conflicts which directly or indirectly concern Russia's security interests. (Tanjug, Moscow, May 13)

        RUSSIA'S CHERNOMYRDIN PLEASED WITH TALKS WITH U.S. TALBOTT

Russia's Presidential envoy for Yugoslavia Viktor Chernomyrdin said he is very pleased with his Wednesday talk with visiting U.S. Under Secretary of State Strobe Talbott, and announced further meetings over the next two days.
Chernomyrdin said he did not rule out the possibility of travelling with Talbott to "a European state," and possibly also to Yugoslavia.
Moscow and Washington have brought their positions closer together and understood the necessity of bringing peace to Yugoslavia, Chernomyrdin said.
Talbott, speaking after the meeting, was less optimistic and, when asked if NATO's original demands for halting the war operations in the Balkans had been changed, answered with a curt "No, not at all." (Tanjug, Moscow, May 13)

        PORTUGAL DOES NOT WANT TO TAKE PART IN NATO OPERATIONS IN ALBANIA

The Portuguese Government has informed the NATO Command that it did not want to contribute troops for the announced operation in Albania aimed at accommodating refugees from Kosovo-Metohija. Defense Minister Viega Simao said Portuguese troops would not take part in the action in which engineering units of nearly all NATO member-states will participate.
The Defense Ministry confirmed on Wednesday that this decision was not a consequence of any organizational or technical problems but a result of political views. (Tanjug, Lisbon, May 13)
 
        DIPLOMACY ONLY WAY FOR RESOLVING CONFLICT, JACKSON SAYS

U.S. civil rights leader the Rev. Jesse Jackson said on Tuesday evening that he will pursue efforts for ending the crisis around Kosovo and Metohija, even though he was not officially engaged by Washington.
Jackson, who recently mediated in Belgrade the release of three U.S. soldiers, said that he met these days with U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan and that he on that occasion called for a greater role of the world organization, especially once the aggression ends and there is a need for the engagement of neutral countries for controlling the ceasefire.
Jackson ruled out the possibility that an eventual international mission in Kosovo and Metohija includes also representatives of NATO member countries.
He added that it was amply clear that the use of force did not yield any results and that now only diplomacy can end the violence. (Tanjug, Greenville, May 13)

        FUJIMORI: BRUTAL NATO ATTACKS ON YUGOSLAVIA NO MISTAKE

Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori said that the UN must raise its voice against the disproportionate, extreme, brutal and massive NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, and urged on Tuesday South African President Nelson Mandela to lead a movement of countries which would oppose the NATO aggression.
Let us not be naive, this is not a mistake, Fujimori said referring to explanations given by NATO commanders for strikes on civilian targets, including the bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade.
Fujimori expressed on behalf of Peruvian Government his deepest condolences to China for the unjust loss of life, and voiced his indignation with the use of force outside the UN Charter mechanisms.
Peru is endeavoring to create an anti-bombing movement and has consequently urged Mandela as a historic leader of the defense of ethnic and human values to publicly urge other countries to join in.
The situation in Yugoslavia has reached a point of violence that should leave no one indifferent, Fujimori said. (Tanjug, Lima, May 13)