MAK-NEWS 19/04/99 - (MAKFAX) - 2
Novinska Agencija - Skopje RM
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Skopje - St. "11 Oktomvri" 36/3 P.O. Box738
e-mail: mak...@makfax.itl.com.mk
DAIMS /diplomatic and international mission service/ 1
19.04.99. /end/
NATO has already commenced the phase three of the
air campaign - "Air-ground strikes at the area covered
by Pristina's Corps", setting up the battle field inside
Albania "and the ground invasion could also takes place
from the territory of Macedonia" - the Commander of
Pristina's Corps - General Major Vladimir Lazarevic said
late Sunday.
In his statement for Serb state television,
Lazarevic said that "A ground aggression had started at
the front some 15 - 20 km inside Albanian soil, and,
NATO had engaged thousands of terrorists from West
Europe and deployed them in Macedonia and Albania, along
with the Albanian armed forces, furthermore, NATO
conducts an continious and fierce air support to the
entire battle filed at the border with Albania",
Lazarevic said. The main objective of the phase three,
as the Yugoslav General outlined, is "isolation of the
battle field". The Commander of Pristina's Corps
concluded that "so far Pristina Corps acts at main
concentration of NATO aggression and there is a
possibility the ground invasion to continue from the
territory of Macedonia". /End/ /end/
NATO plans to deploy squadrons in Turkey in order
to conduct new air strikes against Yugoslavia, this is
the main reason for NATO's request to use the Bulgarian
air space - the President of Atlantic Club in Bulgaria
Solomon Pasi said.
According to Pasi, as "Makfax" reports, this is
the price that Bulgaria will have to pay to show its
loyalty to the Alliance, and the reword will be
Bulgaria's association with NATO. The NATO's official
request had been put forward during the Saturday's
telephone conversation between the U.S. President Bill
Clinton and the Bulgarian Prime Minister Ivan Kostov.
According to the reports in today's media in Sofia,
Bulgarian state leaders have already discussed this
issue with the leaders of the political parties, and,
Prime Minister Kostov requested an urgent meeting with
NATO Ambassadors which is much likely to take place
Tuesday in Brussels. /End/ /end/
Only 31 Kosovo's refugees entered Macedonia this
morning through Blace border crossing, the
representative of Macedonian Police Operational Centre
stated for "Makfax". No refugees occurred today at
Jazince border crossing, whilst, no data were available
on the situation in Tabanovce border crossing.
According to the Operational Centre, two planes
with a total of 270 refugees took off from Macedonia and
headed to Poland. One plain carrying 161 passengers
headed to Warsaw, while the other one - carrying 109
refugees headed to Krakow. /end/ /end/
The President of the Italian Parliament
representative house Luciano Violante is expected today
in a two-day official visit to Macedonia upon the
invitation of the Chairman of Macedonian Parliament Savo
Klimovski.
According to the announcement, Klimovski and
Violante are to discuss over the crisis in the region
and resolving the Kosovo conflict, as well as on
stepping up the process of Macedonia's Euro-Atlantic
integration and reinforcing the co-operation between the
Macedonian and Italian Parliaments. /End/ /end/
A delegation of Russian Federation's area of
Saratov, leaded by the International relations Minister
Boris Chinchuk is to meet today with the Trade Minister
Nikola Gruevski, the Agriculture Minister Vladimir
Djabirski and also with other government's
representatives and managers of several Macedonian
enterprises, the Information Ministry announced.
The Saratov's Health Minister Valentin Zavalev and
the Trade Minister Alexander Lando as well as
representatives of Russian Federation Embassy in Skopje
are also expected to attend the meetings in Skopje.
/end/ /end/
Turkey: Elections - the Ecevit's Democratic leftists
party has so far gained the majority of votes
Ankara, 19.04.99 ("Makfax") - Democratic Leftist
Party (DSP) of the present Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit,
as everybody expected, had obtained the majority of
votes at the pre-term parliamentary elections taking
place Sunday in Turkey. However, as "Makfax" reports,
despite the apparent majority of votes, Ecevit could not
form a new government by his own party only, therefore,
he is to seek for coalition partners.
According to the first unofficial and uncompleted
results, the Ecevit's party gained 21,5 percent of the
votes. Almost unexpectedly, the ultra-right
nationalistic movement party MHP leaded by Devlet
Bahceli gained 18.7 percent of the votes. On the third
place is the islamist Virtue party leaded by Recai Kutan
with 14.9 percent of the votes.
The conservative Motherland party (ANAP) leaded by
Mesut Yilmaz, i.e. DJP party leaded by Tansu Chiller
gained as many as 13,2 oft he votes. Such score of the
parties leaded by two former Prime Ministers is
commented as a defeat even a fiasco of the Turkish
moderate leftists. However, the social-democrats leaded
by Denise Baikal are much likely to leave the Parliament
because it is still uncertain whether they had gained
the minimum census of 10 percent. /end/ /end/
The Greek Former Foreign Minister Theodoros
Pangalos in the interview for the conservative Athens'
daily "Ta Nea" said that during his mandate in the Greek
Foreign Ministry, "all technical details on signing the
agreement with Skopje regarding the name Republic of
Macedonia-Skopje, have been already prepared".
Pangalos, as "Makfax" reports, explained that he
did not mention this suggestion during the talks in the
Government and has also estimated that Skopje, according
to his evaluation, "has mistaken by its abstain and
therefore the agreement was not signed". /end/ /end/
The Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou said
today the atmosphere in NATO "is not positive" regarding
the deployment of ground troops in Yugoslavia, adding
that also not discussions had been made regarding the
engagement of "Kosovo Liberation Army".
In his statement to the reporters prior to the
meeting of the Balkans Foreign Ministries
representatives in Athens, Papandeou, as "Makfax"
reports, said that, according to unofficial information,
"there is no need to worry about" the radioactivity
level in the region as the result of air strikes taking
unfolding in Yugoslavia. /end/ /end/
Official Tirana "insists that Macedonian
government should not mar the atmosphere and the ties"
between the two countries, the Albanian Foreign Minister
Paskal Milo said in the interview for Skopje's Albanian
language daily "Flaka". When asked how he estimates the
situation in Macedonia "after the Blace problem", Milo
answered "the situation is still hard, delicate and
fragile".
"As far as the relations with Macedonians and the
Macedonian state we have been much sincere so far, and
we wish to stick to this course, because we believe in
Balkans' co-operation and understanding, we believe in
our common future, our strategy for European
integration", the Albanian Foreign Minister said. /End/
/end/
The U.S. President Bill Clinton had reconfirmed
that Washington guarantees the security of Albania,
during the telephone conversation with the Albanian
President Rexhep Mejdani, the Albanian state radio
reported. President Clinton, as "Makfax" reports, added
that NATO air strikes will continue until Milosevic
complies with the terms set up by the Alliance.
Albanian President Mejdani underlined that Albania
remains open for the new refugees and it will allow NATO
to use Albanian territory for attack on FRY. Mejdani
estimated that the situation at the north-eastern border
with Yugoslavia got tensed up, nevertheless, he added
that the Albanian army is ready to respond to any
Yugoslav attacks. /End/ /end/
Deployment of Alliance's ground troops in Kosovo
is still one of the options, this issue is much likely
to be discussed at the up coming NATO summit in
Washington - the NATO Secretary-General Adviser on
political issues Peter Kliber said for Berlin's radio
"Deutschland".
As "Makfax" reports, Javier Solana's Adviser
estimated that if NATO takes a decision on deploying
ground troops, it will take at least six weeks to deploy
the troops on the terrain. /End/ /end/
Russia will not let West to defeat the Yugoslav
President Slobodan Milosevic and to set up a control on
Yugoslavia, Russian President Boris Yeltsin said.
The U.S. President "Bill Clinton hopes that
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic will capitulate
and surrender the entire Yugoslavia. We will not let
this to happen, Yugoslavia has a strategical location",
Yeltsin said. The Russian agency "Itartas" reported that
this Yeltsin's statement was released after the meeting
with the Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov and the
newly appointed envoy on Kosovo crisis Victor
Chernomyordin. According to another Russian agency :Ria
Novosti", Yeltsin had stated that Russia "will be
abstinent" regarding the crisis, nevertheless, Russia is
to further sustain its close ties with Milosevic. /End/
/end/
The British Defence Secretary George Robertson
said today that the NATO's objective is not to take down
Slobodan Milosevic. Robertson said for BBC that
Milosevic "is likely be taken down by his own nation
because of the damage he had caused to his country".
In his statement for BBC, Robertson acknowledged
that President Milosevic had demonstrated more tenacity
than they have expected. "His persistency is a
surprising one, however, the reality is that he must
take into account our long-term determination",
Robertson said. /End/ /end/
Late Sunday and early Monday NATO aircraft
conducted large-scale offensive combat sorties across
Yugoslavia, particularly in Kosovo territory, the Serb
media reported.
Earlier today, NATO warplanes hit the relay
station in Mokra Gora near Pristina. Over the night, as
many as 12 missiles had been launched at the same area,
mainly on Slatina airport. The targets in Kosovo were
the broader area of the Goles mountain, the area of
coal-mine Belacevac in district of Obilic, the district
of Bair near Kosovska Mitrovica and Poduevo. As far as
targets in Serbia, , the targets that had been hit were
Novi Sad, Sremska Mitrovica, Subotica. According to same
sources, NATO had damaged the "25 May" bridge connecting
Backa Palanka and Ilok. Bombing attacks also took place
in Paracin, south-west from Kraguevac as well as the
bridge in the village of Visoka - at the highway
Kursumlija-Pristina. /end/ /end/
Yugoslavia breaks off the diplomatic ties with
Albania on fully basis, under the accusation that Tirana
has been supporting and taking part in NATO air strikes
against FR of Yugoslavia.
"Yugoslav government announced that official
Belgrade had took such decision on the basis of the
direct engagement of Albania on the side of the United
States and NATO against FR of Yugoslavia", the Albanian
Foreign Ministry announced. Official Tirana had rejected
all accusations lodged by Yugoslav side. /End/ /end/
Montenegro is much likely to hold a referendum if
Russia and Belarus accept the Yugoslav application for
association with Russia-Belarus Alliance.
This statement was released by the Montenegrin
President's Adviser Miodrag Vukotic in the interview for
Podgorica's newspaper "Pobjeda". According to Vukotic,
the association with this Alliance anticipates an
alteration of the Yugoslav constitution, including here
the constitutional status of Montenegro. Vukovic said
that the statute of Rusia-Belarus Alliance anticipates
that Russian language should be the common language and
also a common currency is anticipated. /END ALL/