RFE/RL Daily Report 22 OCT, 1993

The RFE/RL Daily Report is a digest of the latest developments in Russia, Transcaucasia and Central Asia, and Central and Eastern Europe. It is published Monday through Friday (except German holidays) by the RFE/RL Research Institute (a division of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Inc.). Copyright 1993 RFE/RL, Inc.

RFE/RL Daily Report

No. 204, 22 October 1993

US SECRETARY OF STATE IN HUNGARY. On 20 October, on his way to Moscow and Kiev, US Secretary of State Warren Christopher paid a one-day official visit to Hungary, MTI reports. Prior to his arrival, Christopher telephoned Prime Minister Jozsef Antall, who remains hospitalized in Cologne after a recent operation. In Budapest, Christopher held official talks with Foreign Minister Geza Jeszenszky, President Arpad Goncz, and Interior Minister Peter Boross, who is standing in for Antall. A main topic of discussion was NATO’s potential role in filling the regional security gap in Eastern Europe. Christopher stressed that, at NATO’s next summit meeting in January, the door could be opened to NATO’s expansion as an “evolutionary process.” The time has come, Christopher stressed, “to change the relationship between NATO and the new democracies.” However, the Secretary of State also emphasized that the actual NATO membership for Hungary is still a matter for the distant future. Christopher also met with US businessmen in Budapest and encouraged them to invest in Hungary. Judith Pataki, RFE/RL, Inc.

REACTION TO MILOSEVIC’S DISSOLUTION OF PARLIAMENT. Serbian opposition leaders have reacted with protest and alarm to Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic’s decision to dissolve the National Assembly and call new parliamentary elections for 19 December. Most threatened to boycott the elections if opposition parties are denied equal access to the Socialist-controlled broadcast media. Serbian Radical Party (SRS) leader Vojislav Seselj said Milosevic has “lost his head as well as his nerve” in an effort to save the Socialist government, while opposition Democratic Party leader Dragoljub Micunovic called the move “surprisingly premature.” Vuk Draskovic told both the Belgrade and international media that Milosevic’s decision was “a totalitarian move” and accused him of wanting to reestablish one-party rule. He added that under such “extraordinary circumstances” all democratic forces must unite, forget their past disagreements and urgently formulate conditions for the elections and “insist on them without backing down.” Janos Vekas of the Democratic Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians stated his party is again accepting the challenge, as in all previous multi-party elections in Serbia. The last elections were held in December 1992. Radio Serbia and Croatian TV carried the report on 21 October. Milan Andrejevich, RFE/RL, Inc.

ALBANIAN OPPOSITION PARTY ENDS BELGRADE VISIT. Radio Serbia and Reuter report on 21 October that leaders of the Albanian opposition party Aleanca Demokratike (Democratic Alliance) returned from a controversial visit to Belgrade aimed at opening a dialogue between the Balkan rivals. Spartak Ngjela of the Democratic Alliance, told a news conference in Tirana that talks with Serbian leaders “impartially analyzed the situation” and relations between Albania and Serbia. Ngjela said the three Democratic Alliance leaders held talks with Serbian opposition and government leaders, including deputy prime minister Danilo Markovic, foreign minister Vladislav Jovanovic, and opposition leader Vuk Draskovic. Earlier in the week, Albania’s ruling Democratic Party and the official media sharply criticized the three-day visit to Belgrade, accusing the delegation of supporting “Serb violence, terror and oppression against Albanians in Kosovo.” ATA carried a statement by the ruling Democratic Party saying, “Their mission gives world-isolated Milosevic an argument to claim he is talking with Albanians.” Milan Andrejevich, RFE/RL, Inc.