Headlines
- SFOR troops arrested a Serb General, Radislav Krstic
- President Poplasen convened an extraordinary session of the RS Supreme Defence Council
- The RS NA resumed to deal with the discussion on the draft Law on the Cessation of Application of the Law on the Use of Abandoned Property
- The FRY Government to reconsider restoration of payment operations with the RS shortly
- A two-day meeting of OSCE member states commenced in Oslo with Kosovo as the main topic to be discussed
According to a statement by the NATO Secretary- General, SFOR troops this morning arrested the Commander of the RS Army 5th Corps, General Radislav Krstic, who has been indicted with alleged war crimes by the Hague Tribunal. Following this development, President Poplasen convened an extraordinary session of the RS Supreme Defence Council for 19:00 hrs today. The statement by Solana did not specify the location and the way in which Krstic had been arrested but stressed that preparations were already under way to transport Krstic to the Hague Tribunal.
1:27
Today’s round of the second session of the RS NA saw a lengthy discussion on the Draft Law on the Cessation of Application of the Law on the Use of Abandoned Property. The discussion was interrupted with an address by President Poplasen prompted by the arrest of a Serb Army General, Radislav Krstic, by SFOR troops. In his speech to the session, Poplasen stated that while arresting Krstic SFOR troops had overstepped their powers given to them under the DA and described the way in which Krstic was arrested as “drastic” and as being in violation of the verified procedure anticipated in cases of war crime indictees’ arrests. Poplasen went on to say that this was an organised action and that any further such actions would lead to the erosion of the DA and of the authority of RS state bodies. The session is now expected to resume at 20:00 hrs, discussing the above draft Law and also the platform to be taken by the RS delegation that will be attending the forthcoming Madrid Conference.
03:06
Discussion on the Draft Law on the Cessation of Application of the Law on the Use of Abandoned Property that started last night, today resumed before the RS NA. The majority of about 50 amendments proposed, some of which have already been incorporated into the draft proposed by the Government, referred to Article 6 of the draft Law, which states that: “If a temporary user is not able to return to the apartment in which s/he lived until 30 April 1991, and s/he has not been able to move into another apartment, the responsible Ministry for refugees and DPs shall provide an alternative accommodation within the deadline set in the eviction decision. A temporary user who is in the possession of evidence that a claim for the repossession of her/his property has already been submitted shall not be forcibly evicted until he/she is not able to return or to freely dispose of his/her property in line with Annex 7 of the DA, or until appropriate accommodation has been provided in another way within one year”.
2:52
The FRY Government is expected to reconsider the restoration of payment operations with the RS shortly. However, the matter will not be on the agenda of tomorrow’s session of the Federal Parliament.
01:02
The SP RS, at a press conference in BL today, stated their position on the restoration of payment operations, and, globally, on special parallel relations with the FRY. The SP RS supported the decision by the RS Government cancelling its earlier decision on fixing the exchange rate between the KM and the Yugo dinar at 1:7.5. Igor Radojcic, the Spokesperson for the SP, stated that the RS Government should take care to reduce available financial assets now and to efficiently regulate the exchange of assets between the RS and the FRY.
1:18
President Poplasen met with the Spanish Ambassador in BiH, Jose Angel Lopez Jorrin, in BL today. At the meeting, the Spanish Ambassador extended an invitation to President Poprasen to attend the forthcoming conference in Madrid. President Poprasen hoped that the conference would discuss all issues of importance for the full implementation of the DA and that the powers of the HR would be considerably reduced.
0:50
Representatives of the RS Association of Families of Captured and Missing Serb Soldiers and Civilians held a press conference today which appealed to all those involved in resolving the problem of missing soldiers and civilians to include this issue amongst their top priorities. The representatives of the Association also met with Prime Minister Dodik. The meeting discussed the problems faced by the members of the Association, as well as possible changes to the relevant legislation aimed at improving their situation.
1:59
The RS Association of families of captured and missing soldiers and civilians, at today’s press conference, stated that while certain progress had been made on exhumations this year, if the exhumation works continued at the same pace the entire process would take over ten years.
3:00
(Kosovo-related news)
04:01
The RS Minister of Education, Nenad Suzic, the U.S. Ambassador in BiH, Richard Kauzlarich, and the Director of the US AID, Craig Buck, today officially handed over the repaired mixed Primary school of “Petar Kocic” to the municipal authorities in Srbac. The official celebration also marked the completion of urgent repair works conducted to repair the local sewage system. The total U.S. financial support for the RS has, thus, amounted to U.S. 100 million this year.
1:51
The U.S. Ambassador in BiH, Richard Kauzlarich, and the Director of the US AID, Craig Buck, today attended a celebration organised to mark the completion of works on a children playground in Banja Luka sponsored by the US AID and the ARC.
0:41
(Federation-related news)
1:32
An agreement was signed between the state of BiH and the UN MAC in Sarajevo today aimed at ensuring technical and financial support for the efforts by the BiH authorities to fully take over de-mining activities.
1:36