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FOREIGN PRESS BUREAU DAILY BULLETIN

NOVEMBER 28, 1995



CLINTON SPEECH TO SEND U.S. TROOPS

U.S. President Bill Clinton gave a televised speech on

Monday hoping to sway American public opinion behind his

plan to send U.S. troops to Bosnia to implement peace.

Clinton said the people of Bosnia, America's NATO

partners, and the whole world was counting on U.S.

leadership and asked Americans to support him by saying,

"Let us Lead. That is our responsibility as Americans."

Clinton said the U.S. mission will be limited, focused

and under the command of an American general.  Clinton

said without the U.S., NATO would not be going in and

that would mean the collapse of peace and the resumption

of war; a war that has already taken so many lives and

could spread, posing a threat to European stability.



The U.S. would be contributing one third of the 60

thousand-strong NATO force for Bosnia.  The forces would

work on separating the warring sides in order to secure

safe conditions for the return of refugees, elections,

and the return of normal life.  Clinton said the mission

would last one year and would pose minimal risk to U.S.

troops.  At the end of the 20 minute address, Clinton

said he will be asking for the support of Congress on

sending U.S. forces, meanwhile he would allow a small

number of troops in a NATO advance mission that will

establish HQ's and set up communications.



AMERICAN OPINION ON SENDING TROOPS

The latest CNN and gallop polls taken following President

Clinton's speech, indicate fewer Americans than before

oppose the plan to send U.S. troops to Bosnia. However,

the polls show Clinton is still short of a majority.

With a margin of error of plus or minus four percentage

points, the poll found 46 percent favored sending troops

while 40 percent were opposed.  The poll also found that

by a 53-35 margin, Americans believed sending troops

would lead to a long-term involvement in Bosnia,

apparently rejecting Clinton's assurance that the NATO

force would finish its job in a year.



CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS DISCUSS SENDING OF TROOPS

The U.S. Republican Senate Majority leader, Bob Dole,

called Clinton's speech a good first step in convincing

Americans to send 20 thousand U.S. troops to Bosnia.

However, Dole said there are no guarantees congress would

back the President.  He said the support of congress

depended on American action.  Dole, house speaker Newt

Gingrich and other congressional leaders will meet with

Clinton on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the issue.



RUSSIAN ROLE IN NATO LED PEACE FORCE

At NATO HQ in Brussels, U.S. Secretary of Defense,

William Perry, began talks on finalizing plans for the

deployment of NATO-led international forces to Bosnia and

to try and clear up the dispute over Russia's role in the

mission.  Perry will meet with Russian Defense Minister,

Pavel Grachov this afternoon to try and convince Moscow

that only NATO can have political control of the

operation.



NATO MISSION IN BOSNIA

British Defense Secretary, Michael Portillo, said that

NATO troops would not tolerate violations of the Bosnian

peace agreement and will withdraw within 12 months.

Portillo warned that the international peace plan would

fall apart if the U.S. did not send its military might to

enforce it.  He also stressed that the rules of

engagement are different from the role of the UN

peacekeeping force, and added that this force would be

more powerful, robust, and have a more precise mission

than the UN.



FIRST SESSION OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

The first session of the Croatian Parliament's new house

of representatives convened this morning.  The house has

named its new speaker, Vlatko Pavelic, of the Croatian

Democratic Union.  Deputies will be meeting the members

of the new government who will be sworn in after a vote

of confidence.



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FOREIGN PRESS BUREAU DAILY BULLETIN

DECEMBER 1, 1995



TUDJMAN MEETS WITH U.S NEGOTIATORS

President Tudjman has met with a team of U.S.

negotiators, including Christopher Hill and U.S.

ambassador to Croatia, Peter Galbraith.  The meeting

focused on the implementation of the basic agreement on

eastern Slavonia, Baranja, and western Srijem and the

Dayton accords.  Mr. Hill stressed that preparations for

the implementation of these agreements were going well.

President Tudjman stressed that the UN Security Council

must define the transitional administration for these

areas and adopt a resolution authorizing the Russian and

Belgium UN battalions, already in eastern Slavonia, to

begin implementing the agreement.



UN MANDATES EXTENDED

The UN Security Council accepted a resolution last night

effectively extending the UNCRO mandate in Croatia with a

transitional period until January 15, 1996.  Under the

resolution, UNCRO could find its mandate even earlier

should the Security Council make a decision on deploying

new international forces to eastern Slavonia to implement

the basic agreement.  The S.C. has asked Secretary

General Boutros Ghali to report on all aspects of setting

up the transitional authorities and the deployment of the

new force by January 14 at the latest.  The S.C. also

voted to extend the UN mandate in Bosnia until Jan. 31,

by which time the groundwork should be finished for the

arrival of the NATO led force that is to implement the

Dayton accords.  The Macedonian mandate has been extended

for 6 months.



200 NATO TROOPS ARRIVE IN CROATIA

The deployment of some 200 NATO troops in Croatia will

begin today.  The troops are in charge of the

establishment of military HQ, communications systems as

well as the system of transport and logistics.  The

Croatian ambassador to Brussels, Janko Vranyczany-

Dobrinovic and the NATO secretary general's aide for

political issues, Allen Keiswetter, held talks in NATO HQ

in Brussels on the conditions and means of the deployment

of NATO troops to Croatia.



2,600 TROOPS ARRIVE IN BiH

The ambassador of the 16 member states of NATO, have

agreed upon the sending of 2,600 U.S., French and British

soldiers to Bosnia-Hercegovina, according to Reuters news

agency.  This early contingent of soldiers will prepare

the way for the arrival of another 60,000 NATO troops who

will oversee the maintenance of peace in Bosnia.



BOB DOLE SUPPORTS SENDING TROOPS

U.S. Senate majority leader, Bob Dole, announced Thursday

he would support President Clinton on sending U.S. troops

to Bosnia.  Dole said he was drafting a resolution of

support for the Bosnian mission and urged congress to

back it.



32,000 U.S. TROOPS TO BE DEPLOYED IN CROATIA AND BIH

The Pentagon has announced that about 32 thousand U.S.

troops would be deployed in Bosnia, and neighbouring

Croatia and Hungary.  Washington had been talking about

20 thousand troops up until now; however, that is the

number that will only be deployed in Bosnia.  The total

32 thousand-strong U.S. contingent will be joined by an

additional 11 thousand Americans stationed on U.S. air

carriers in the Adriatic and air bases in Italy.



KARADZIC MAKES DEAL TO RELEASE FRENCH PILOTS

The French newspaper, Le Figara, has reported that the

Bosnian Serb leader, Radovan Karazdic, was seeking French

backing for a better deal for Serbs in Sarajevo in

exchange for the release of two French pilots held

prisoners in Bosnia. Le Figaro stated that the demand had

been conveyed to Paris by an Italian writer, Daniel

Schiffer, who had often passed messages from the Serbs

since the start of the conflict in the former Yugoslavia.

Schiffer was quoted as saying "uncontrolled elements"

among the Bosnian Serbs were holding the two men, whose

plane was shot down in a NATO air raid near the Bosnian

Serb stronghold of Pale.





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FOREIGN PRESS BUREAU DAILY BULLETIN

5 DECEMBER 1995



REINTEGRATION OF WESTERN SLAVONIA

Foreign Minister Mate Granic met with the U.N. High

Commissioner for Refugees, Sadako Ogata this morning in

Zagreb.  Minister Granic assessed at this moment Croatia's

number one priority is to re-integrate the areas of Eastern

Slavonia, Baranja, and Western Srijem, stressing it's

readiness to co-operate with international organisations in

this process which he said will lead to a normalisation of

relations with Yugoslavia.  Ms. Ogata said that the

implementation of the  Dayton agreement will create

favourable conditions for the return of a large number of

refugees.  She said she hoped the productive co-operation

between the UNHCR and the Croatian government would

continue.



CLINTON CONSIDERS SARAJEVO

U.S. President Bill Clinton is considering a visit to

Sarajevo to demonstrate how committed the United States is

toward the peace process, according to the Washington Post.

An unnamed senior administration official is quoted as

saying that if he goes ahead with the trip, it would take

place right after the final peace accord that is to be

signed by all parties in Paris on December 14.



NEW NATO CHIEF NAMED

NATO Foreign Ministers officially appointed Spanish Foreign

Minister Javier Solana as NATO Secretary General.  In his

acceptance speech, Solana said he is becoming Secretary

General at a time when NATO faces one of it's greatest

challenges in it's history, referring to the alliance's

planned deployment of 60 thousand troops to implement the

peace plan for Bosnia-Herzegovina.



CROATIAN-AMERICANS APPROVE DAYTON AGREEMENT

The National Federation of Croatian-Americans has sent a

letter to U.S. President Bill Clinton expressing their

support for the Dayton agreement and for the sending of

American troops to enforce it.  The NAFCA believes the U.S.

has a moral obligation, along with it's NATO allies, to stop

the bloodshed and secure a lasting peace in Bosnia

Herzegovina, says the organisation's president, Steve

Rukavina, in the letter.  The NAFCA is also asking for

guarantees that the Bosnian Federation will be armed to

establish a balance of force in the region and defend itself

from potential Serb attempts at expansion in the future.



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FOREIGN PRESS BUREAU DAILY BULLETIN

8 DECEMBER 1995



ORGANISATION FOR SECURITY AND CO-OPERATION IN EUROPE

The foreign ministers of the organisation for security

and co-operation in Europe concluded a meeting in

Budapest at which they discussed the role the

organisation should play in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Commenting on this issue, Croatian Foreign Minister

Mate Granic said that an important test for the OSCE

will be its role in the reintegration process of

Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Srijem.  He

explained that if the organisation contributed to the

peaceful reintegration of the region as foreseen by

the agreement then it will be able to assist in the

swift and successful strengthening of all democratic

institutions in Croatia and at the same time create

the condition for complete adherence to the highest

European standards in human and minority rights.  In

regards to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Granic said it is

likely to be the most demanding task which the OSCE

will encounter.



LONDON PEACE CONFERENCE

A two day conference on the implementation of the non

military aspects of the Dayton peace agreement is set

to begin in London today.  Conference participants

will include Foreign Ministers and representatives

from over 50 countries and international

organisations..  Mate Granic will head the Croatian

delegation.

The conference will be opened by British Prime

Minister John Major.



Prior to the London conference, UN Secretary General

Boutros Ghali announced that the UN will play an

important role in Post-war Bosnia but added he is glad

the UN will not head the multinational coalition.

The primary task of the UN according to Ghali, will be

facilitating the return of the displaced, the

protection of human rights and the participation of UN

civilian police in Bosnia.



"DAYTON PEACE AGREEMENT" FOREVER

The US state department has rejected a French proposal

that the Dayton Peace Agreement be named after the

Elyse Palace in Paris where the agreement will be

signed on December 14.  State Department spokesman

Nicholas Burns said that such proposals are very

imaginative but that it is already known that the

agreement will go own in history as the Dayton

agreement.



IMPLEMENTATION FORCE

Troops responsible for the logistic preparations prior

to the arrival of IFOR in Bosnia and Herzegovina will

be deployed by the middle of next week, announced the

operations director at the joint headquarters of the US

armed forces, General Howell Estess.  The troops should

be on the Ground by December 13.  Croatia and Bosnia

will receive 700 personnel each, while some three

thousand will be dispatched to Hungary.  Estess added

that the "America" aircraft carrier should dock in the

Adriatic Sea on the 12th of this month.



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FOREIGN PRESS BUREAU DAILY BULLETIN

12 DECEMBER 1995



REFUGEE PROBLEM FOR CROATIA AND BOSNIA

A delegation from the Council of Europe has completed a four

day tour of Croatia and has called on the Croatian and

Bosnian governments to find a quick solution to the problem

of several thousand Bosnian Muslim refugees from Northwest

Bosnia, who are living in squalid conditions in Kuplensko,

Croatia.  The head of the delegation, Pierre Van De Linden,

described the living conditions of the refugees as being out

in the open, in temporary shelters and in freezing cold

winter conditions.  He said that they need guarantees as

soon as possible so that they could return back to their

homes in Bosnia.



AID TO BOSNIA

According to Austria's State Secretary and Foreign Ministry,

Austria will tie its financial aid to Bosnia on the

conditions that human and minority rights are respected.

Austria will secure 100 million shillings for the rebuilding

of Bosnia, mostly in the sphere of private houses, schools

and universities.



FRENCH PILOTS TO BE RELEASED

The two missing French pilots which were captured by the

Bosnian Serbs after their plane had been shot down over

Bosnian Serb territory last August will be released very

shortly according to the police sources in the Bosnian town

of Zvornik near the Serbian border.  According to the French

press, the French Chief of Staff, General Jean Philippe

Drouin, was in Zvornik to welcome the men who were expected

too arrive shortly.







From: Foreign Press Bureau-Zagreb <fpbzg@zagreb.matis.hr>
Reply-To: fpbzg@zagreb.matis.hr
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.croatia
Subject: FPB Bulletin 15.12.95
Date: Fri, 15 Dec 1995 17:44:24 +0100 (MET)
Message-ID: <199512151548.QAA08861@zagreb.matis.hr>

FOREIGN PRESS BUREAU DAILY BULLETIN

15 DECEMBER 1995



PEACE AGREEMENT

Speaking at the press conference for domestic and foreign

journalists, Croatian President Franjo Tudman discussed

yesterday's signing of the Peace Agreement on Bosnia and

Hercegovina in Paris and other leading issues.  The non

signing of an agreement, on the Normalisation of Relations

between Croatia and Serbia and mutual recognition between

Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.  According

to Tudman, this should not be interpreted as a negative

effect on the implementation of the Basic Agreement on

Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Srijem as the Serb

side maintains it's support for this agreement.



President Tudman stated that, an agreement for the

normalisation of relations was not signed because the Serbs

demanded the signing of a Bilateral Agreement on Prevlaka.

President Tudman explained that the Croatian Delegation was

ready for an International Arbitration Commission to analyse

and propose a solution to land and sea borders.  The Serb

side however, has rejected this proposal.



SERB LEADER ANNOUNCES,  "END OF WAR"

News Agency Reuters, reports that the Bosnian Serb leader

Radovan Karadzic has officially announced, the end of the

war in Bosnian Serb held territory.  According to the

report, the status of Sarajevo which would fall under the

control of the Croat-Muslim Federation in line with the

Dayton Agreement, will be announced at a later date.



MORE NATO SOLDIERS ARRIVING

The UN Security Council has begun to discuss the Draft

Resolution, which would authorise the NATO Force to

implement the Peace Agreement in Bosnia and Hercegovina. The

approval from the Security Council is required for NATO to

deploy troops legally to Bosnia and Hercegovina.



The majority of US soldiers will most likely be arriving in

Bosnia by the end of this week on planes from Italy.

Immediately after this, a greater part of these forces will

enter Northern Bosnia from Hungary via Croatia.











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