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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 2, No. 75, 98-04-20Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 2, No. 75, 20 April 1998CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] KOCHARIAN NAMES NEW ARMENIAN GOVERNMENTArmenian President Robert Kocharian issued several decrees on 20 April approving the new cabinet of Prime Minister Armen Darpinian. Acting Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian was confirmed as foreign minister, while Defense Minister Vazgen Sargsian and Interior and National Security Minister Serzh Sargsian (no relation to Vazgen) retained their posts. Eduard Sandoian, the head of the Armenian Central Bank Department for Control, Regulations, and Licensing, was named to replace Darpinian as finance and economy minister. Levon Mkrtchian of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun), which was legalized by Kocharian immediately after the February resignation of President Levon Ter-Petrossian, was appointed minister of education and science. Addressing the parliament last week, Darpinian had said his ministers will be selected on the basis of their professionalism, regardless of their party affiliation. LF[02] ABKHAZIA ASKS GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT TO RECOGNIZE ITS INDEPENDENCEThe Abkhaz parliament on 17 April issued a statement requesting that the Georgian parliament formally recognize the region's independence, Interfax reported. The statement said that no lasting peace is possible until Georgia abandons its "unjustifiable and unworthy" claims on Abkhazia. The following day, Abkhaz Foreign Minister Sergei Shamba criticized what he termed Russia's policy of agreeing to all Georgia's demands to increase pressure on Abkhazia. Shamba rejected as "unacceptable" measures outlined in the draft document "Decision on Additional Measures for Resolving the Conflict in Abkhazia," which is to be discussed at the upcoming CIS summit. In particular, he rejected the proposed creation in Abkhazia's southernmost Gali Raion of an interim administration that would include representatives of the UN and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. LF[03] GEORGIA SAYS BAKU-SUPSA PIPELINE TO BE COMPLETED ON SCHEDULETwo Georgian companies engaged in repairs to the Georgian sector of the Baku- Supsa oil export pipeline issued a statement on 17 April denying press speculation that completion of the project may be delayed, Russian agencies reported. The statement affirmed that the pipeline will be completed on schedule by the fourth quarter of 1998, but it conceded that a decision has still not been taken on whether to expand the pipeline's capacity (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 7 April 1998). If such a decision is taken, the schedule for completion of the project will be amended, the statement added. Also on 17 April, a spokesman for the Turkish company repairing the Azerbaijani sector of the pipeline told Turan that work on that sector is 80 percent completed. LF[04] U.S. AGAIN AFFIRMS SUPPORT FOR CASPIAN ENERGY CORRIDORU.S. Ombudsman for the Newly Independent States Jan Kalicki and U.S. Assistant Energy Secretary Robert Gee held talks in Baku on 17 April with Azerbaijani President Heidar Aliev, Foreign Minister Tofik Zulfugarov, and Azerbaijan state oil company chairman Natik Aliev. The U.S. officials underlined Washington's support for the planned construction of an oil export pipeline from Baku to the Turkish port of Ceyhan and of Trans- Caspian oil and gas pipelines to complement the existing northern pipeline from Baku via Grozny to Novorossiisk and the Caspian pipeline from Tengiz via Astrakhan to Novorossiisk, Turan reported. Heidar Aliev said Azerbaijan will "speed up" implementation of both the Baku-Ceyhan and the Trans- Caspian projects. But a final decision on their construction has not yet been taken, and it is unclear how they will be funded. LF[05] TURKMEN OPPOSITION LEADER DETAINED IN ASHGABATTurkmen authorities took opposition leader and former Foreign Minister Avdy Kuliev into custody upon his arrival in Ashgabat on 17 April, RFE/RL correspondents reported. Kuliev was accompanied by his wife and Russian human rights activist Vitaly Panamarov. Kuliev's wife was briefly detained also, but Panamarov was put on a airplane back to Moscow. Kuliev is charged with trying to organize a coup, extortion, and organizing an unauthorized protest rally in July 1995. He told RFE/RL correspondents in early April that he would return to Turkmenistan following President Saparmurat Niyazov's announcement to the parliament in February that he is prepared to allow opposition parties in the country (see also "End Note"). BP[06] RAKHMONOV ELECTED PARTY LEADER IN TAJIKISTANPresident Imomali Rakhmonov has been elected chairman of the Tajik People's Democratic Party, Interfax and ITAR- TASS reported on 18 April. Rakhmonov, who has been president since November 1994, is not a member of any party. His membership in the party paves the way for his nomination to the presidency in 1999 elections. BP[07] RUSSIAN RADIO BECOMES VICTIM OF UZBEK CENSORState censors in Uzbekistan are prohibiting the dissemination of information about the launching of the radio station Evropa Plus Tashkent, "Kommersant-Daily" reported on 17 April. The station is an affiliate of Moscow's Evropa Plus, and its broadcasts are in the Russian language. "Kommersant-Daily" noted that the radio station is not the first Russian organization to have problems with the Uzbek censor. Articles about Uzbekistan in the Russian newspapers "Argumenty i Fakti" and "Trud" (which are also printed in Uzbekistan) are regularly cut by local censors and replaced with "Uzbek advertising blocks." BP[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[08] CHIRAC PLEDGES SUPPORT TO MONTENEGROFrench President Jacques Chirac told his Montenegrin counterpart, Milo Djukanovic, in Paris on 17 April that he is "concerned by the attitude" of Yugoslav officials and that France fully supports Montenegro, AFP reported. Chirac said he will initiate a request within the EU to grant aid to Montenegro. He stressed that dialogue is the only way to resolve the crisis in Kosova. Djukanovic said Chirac also pledged to try to spare Montenegro from any sanctions that may be imposed on the former Yugoslavia for its handling of the crisis. The Montenegrin president added that he had "extremely satisfactory" talks with Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine. PB[09] BELGRADE, TIRANA ACCUSE EACH OTHER OF PROVOCATIONSThe Albanian parliament has called for NATO troops to be stationed along Kosova's border with Albania after reported incidents there, AFP reported on 18 April. The parliament voted unanimously that troops be sent to Kosova to prevent an "expansion of the conflict and [to protect the] civilian population in the province." The resolution came after ethnic Albanian groups reported that the Yugoslav army had moved troops near the Albanian border and that they were involved in shooting incidents there on 16 April. Meanwhile, a Yugoslav army statement said there was a "serious border incident" in which Albanians had fired shots at a joint Albanian-Yugoslav commission sent to investigate a shooting incident at the site earlier the same day. PB[10] TALBOTT RULES OUT U.S. TROOPS IN KOSOVAU.S. Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott said on 18 April that the U.S. does not envision deploying troops in Kosova. Talbott made that statement after meeting with Albanian President Rexhep Meidani and Premier Fatos Nano in Tirana. But Talbott did stress that the U.S. will maintain its military presence in Macedonia. Talbott is in the Balkans for meetings ahead of a report to be given to the Contact Group in Rome on 29 April. Talbott said he hopes the Albanian government will persuade ethnic Albanians to refrain from violence during the crisis in Kosova. PB[11] PLAVSIC ACCUSES MILOSEVIC OF INTERFERENCE IN BOSNIABosnian Serb President Biljana Plavsic accused her Yugoslav counterpart, Slobodan Milosevic, of attempting to install nationalist politicians in the Bosnian Serb government, AFP reported on 18 April. Plavsic said in an interview with B-92 radio that Milosevic pressured Bosnian Serb Prime Minister Milorad Dodik to use members of the Serbian Democratic Party and the ultra-nationalist Radical Party to replace certain ministers in Dodik's government. Plavsic accused Milosevic of attempting to halt the work of Dodic's moderate government. She added that she is opposed to further sanctions against Yugoslavia, which, she said, could result in hundreds of thousands of refugees returning to Bosnia. PB[12] DEPUTY MAYOR SACKED AFTER DEATH OF SERBIAN COUPLECarlos Westendorp, the international community's high representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina, has dismissed the deputy mayor of Drvar in response to the murder of a Serbian couple in the Croat-controlled town, AFP reported. Westendorp said "hardliners...will not stop the return process and we will not tolerate any obstructions or violence." Drago Tokmakcija, a Croat, was fired from his post on 17 April for failing to uphold the Dayton peace accords, which allow for all refugees the right of return to their homes. Tokmakcija said on Bosnian television that his sacking is an attempt to "spread fear among Croats." Westendorp also ordered that 15 Serbs be added to the police force in the town. The couple was among some 1,000 Serbs that have returned to the northwestern town of Drvar--which was overwhelmingly Serb before the war--to reclaim their homes. The mayor of Drvar is an ethnic Serb. PB[13] CROATIAN PARLIAMENT DEBATES RETURN OF SERB REFUGEESDeputies on 17 April began to review a government plan on the repatriation of ethnic Serbian refugees to Croatia. Deputy Jadranka Kosor said the plan is based on the simple right of each person to return to the home they had before the war. saying this is provided for by the Croatian constitution as well as the Dayton accords. As many as 180,000 Serbs fled Croatia in 1995 when it recaptured Croatian territory that had been seized by Serbs. Croatian President Franjo Tudjman has said that Serbs are welcome to return to Croatia but that a huge influx of them would create an unstable situation that could lead to violence. PB[14] MACEDONIAN OFFICIAL RESIGNS OVER AFFAIR ALLEGATIONSKaterina Kocevska, the cultural adviser to Macedonian President Kiro Gligorov, resigned on 17 April over allegations that she had an affair with Gligorov, AFP reported. Gligorov said the press reports, which referred to him as the "Macedonian Clinton," were an "unscrupulous attempt" to hurt his reputation ahead of parliamentary elections later this year. Kocevska, a former actress, said the allegations have damaged her and her family and forced her resignation. PB[15] ALBANIAN PRIME MINISTER ACCUSES PRESIDENT OF PROVOKING CRISISFatos Nano said on 18 April that President Rexhep Meidani is throwing the country into a political crisis after he refused to approve most of Nano's new ministers in a cabinet reshuffle, Reuters reported. Meidani agreed the previous day to only two of the nine ministers presented to him by Nanos, whose Socialist Party called on the president to correct "this absurd situation." Nanos argued that Meidani should have jurisdiction only over the nomination of the prime minister and that his rejection of the ministers "without necessary explanations" put the country into an "institutional crisis." A statement from the President's Office said there is no power vacuum as a result of Meidani's decision because previously sacked ministers would maintain their posts until the president approved a new cabinet. Also on 18 April, Meidani sacked Interior Minister Neritan Ceka, ATA reported. He was replaced by Perikli Teta, until now a deputy defense minister. PB[16] ROMANIAN CABINET SWORN INPresident Emil Constantinescu on 17 April swore in the members of Radu Vasile's cabinet, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. Constantinescu said the government cannot afford to fail in its task. He added that while Victor Ciorbea's government had been "one of hope," Vasile's "must be one of certainty," because following the recent political crisis, reforms and privatization have slowed down and have negatively affected Romania's image and attraction for foreign investors. A government "can lose a battle, but the population cannot afford to lose the war [for reform and economic recovery] and it will not lose it," the president said. In a televised address marking Orthodox Easter on 19 April, Constantinescu called on the country to "overcome the moral crisis" that runs parallel to the economic one by "rediscovering its traditional Christian values." MS[17] OPPOSITION PARTY CHOOSES CANDIDATE FOR BUCHAREST MAYORThe Party of Social Democracy in Romania (PDSR) on 17 April selected surgeon Sorin Oprescu as its candidate for mayor of Bucharest, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. The mayoralty became vacant after Ciorbea resigned both as premier and as mayor of Bucharest last month. The Greater Romania Party has already announced it will back police-general Niculae Nitu for the job. The Democratic Party said it will not back the candidate of the Democratic Convention of Romania, who is likely to be acting Bucharest Mayor Viorel Lis. The PDSR says the Democrats may back Oprescu if the race is decided in a runoff. The date of the election has not yet been fixed. MS[18] LUCINSCHI, SNEGUR ON COALITION PARLEYSReturning to Chisinau from Germany, where he recently underwent surgery, President Petru Lucinschi said he "regrets" the fact that the parleys under way for setting up the new coalition have "stalled over the distribution of portfolios." Lucinschi said he intends to re-establish contacts with the leaders of all factions elected to the new parliament in order to give new impetus to the talks, BASA-press reported on 17 April. Meanwhile, Mircea Snegur, the co- chairman of the Democratic Convention of Moldova, told "Nezavisimaya Moldova" on 17 April that he is "worried" about rumors that Lucinschi would like the coalition to include all parties represented in the legislature. Snegur said reform will not be possible if the Communists are in the coalition, adding that the only viable alternative is a center-right government. MS[19] BULGARIAN INTERIOR MINISTRY OFFICIALS RESIGNTwo state secretaries at the Ministry of Interior and the chief of the border police resigned on 17 April, BTA reported. They offered no reason for their resignations, but the media reported that the two secretaries, Liutskan Liutskanov and Georgi Georgiev and the border police chief, Georgi Teterekov, were suspected of having tolerated violations of border and customs regulations, RFE/RL's Sofia bureau reported. MS[C] END NOTE[20] WHEN INTERESTS COLLIDEby Paul GobleTurkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov's visit to the U.S. this week highlights the difficulties Western countries often face in combining the economic, political, and geopolitical interests they have in many of the post- Soviet states. At the same time, his visit calls attention to the dangers of pursuing one set of interests to the exclusion of others. It consequently highlights the need for an approach that takes all those interests into account. As media coverage in advance of Niyazov's arrival has made clear, Turkmenistan now presents three very different faces to the world, some extremely attractive to the West and others precisely the opposite. First, Turkmenistan has one of the largest reserves of natural gas in the world. Because of that, Ashgabat has already attracted enormous Western interest. Several former senior U.S. officials have taken up the cause of developing the gas fields there. And many of them have suggested that U.S. interests in securing access to this energy source should define U.S. policy toward Turkmenistan. Indeed, while some of those former officials have argued that the development of Turkmenistan's natural gas sector will lead to economic and later political change in that country, most have suggested that the stability provided by the current regime is so valuable that it should be exempt from the kind of withering criticism that its political system would seem to invite. Second, the Turkmen government is one of the least democratic in the entire region. Not only does Turkmenistan have a dismal record on human and civil rights, as documented by the U.S. Department of State and human rights groups, but the Turkmen authorities continue to show their contempt for both Western public opinion and the rule of law. With an eye on his upcoming visit, Niyazov said on 26 March that he would be willing to yield some of his enormous political powers to the parliament and that he favors giving the citizens of his country an expanded role in the government. He even announced plans to amend the constitution to do so just that. Not unexpectedly, Niyazov's promises were greeted by many in the West as an indication that "Turkmenbashi," as Niyazov styles himself, really plans to change. But any optimism on that score must be tempered both by his own statement and by the more recent actions of his officials. While the Turkmen president said he was prepared to devolve power to the parliament and the people, he noted that he would introduce the necessary constitutional changes only after the December 1999 elections. And on 17 April, on the eve of Niyazov's visit to the U.S., Turkmen officials detained Avdy Kuliyev, the former Turkmen foreign minister and leader of the opposition in Turkmenistan, as he attempted to return to Ashgabat from Moscow. Third, Turkmenistan--by virtue of its geographic location--will play a key role in the establishment of a new, post-Soviet balance of power in Central Asia and the Caspian basin. How Ashgabat relates to Russia, Iran, and the other countries of this region will define not only the direction Turkmenistan is likely to go but also the status of other countries as well. If Turkmenistan remains dependent on Russia for pipeline routes to the West, then Moscow will be able to project power far more easily across all Central Asia. If it reaches an accommodation with Iran, the geopolitical balance will tilt in a different direction. And if it moves its gas in another direction, that balance will again shift. Because the consequences of Turkmenistan's decisions are so fateful, many foreign policy analysts have urged that they should be at the center of U.S. and Western concerns and should determine how the U.S. and other Western countries deal with Ashgabat on economic and human rights concerns. Advocates of giving primary attention to one of these three areas--economic, political, and geopolitical--often take positions that suggest the West should virtually ignore the other two. For example, supporters of economic involvement urge that the West downplay its human rights concerns, and human rights advocates sometimes dismiss the West's obvious economic interests. While superficially attractive, a Western approach to Turkmenistan or other countries in the region that reflects only one of these sets of interests will almost certainly prove self-defeating, just as has happened elsewhere when Western countries have focused on only one of the three and neglected the other two. Consequently, President Niyazov's visit offers an opportunity to demonstrate that the West's interests in Turkmenistan are far broader than natural gas: they include a commitment to the democratic transformation of that country and a new geopolitical arrangement that gives the Turkmen people the chance to have a better future, both politically and economically. 20-04-98 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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