OMRI DAILY DIGEST
No. 189, 28 September 1995

HUNGARIAN COALITION REMAINS INTACT--FOR TIME BEING. Hungary's two ruling
coalition partners still have not reached agreement over the issue of
cabinet reform, Magyar Hirlap reported on 28 September. The two parties,
fiercely criticized by the opposition for openly discussing their
"internal" disputes, previously agreed to settle any disagreement by 26
September. Socialist leader and Premier Gyula Horn and Gabor Kuncze,
Horn's deputy coalition leader from the Alliance of Free Democrats, said
at a press conference on 27 September that the failure to reach an
agreement does not mean the dissolution of the coalition, since the
original coalition agreement is still in force. Socialist deputy Imre
Szekeres recommended that if the coalition stays together, its internal
differences be patched over until next year so that the government can
focus on the 1996 budget proposal and draft tax legislation still to be
presented to the parliament. -- Zsofia Szilagyi

[As of 12:00 CET]

Compiled by Jan Cleave


Thursday, 28 September 1995
Volume 2, Issue 188


REGIONAL NEWS
-------------

**NATO VAGUE ON NUKE ISSUE**
  US General John Shalikashvili, the chairman of the joint chiefs
  of staff, met yesterday with his Hungarian counterpart, Janos
  Deak. Shalikashvili is on a tour of four central European
  countries that coincides with NATO's  expected release today
  of a report  detailing how and why the alliance will expand.
  Central European countries like Hungary, the Czech Republic,
  and Poland will probably be the first nations admitted to NATO
  when it expands.  According to some reports, the NATO document
  requires new members to give the alliance the right to deploy
  nuclear weapons on their soil during wartime.  Shalikashvili
  wouldn't confirm that when commenting on the NATO report.

  "It addresses the issue of nuclear systems, concludes that
  arrangements in effect now are satisfactory but that the
  alliance reserves the right to make adjustments."

  Any deployment of NATO nuclear weapons in central Europe would
  almost certainly upset Russia which is vehemently opposed to
  NATO expansion.  But Western officials have said no outside
  country will be  allowed to veto the alliance's expansion.
  And central European countries are eager to join the alliance.
  Shalikashvili said he and Deak discussed the Hungarian
  military's compatibility with NATO forces, especially  in
  doctrine and communications.

  "I think we were able to conclude at the end of our discussions
  that we are of one mind where we stand and feel very good
  about the progress made to date."

  Shalikashvili began his trip in the Czech Republic and stopped
  in Slovakia before heading to Hungary.  He'll travel to Poland
  later today.  That'll be the final stop of his visit. --David
  Fink


BUSINESS NEWS
-------------

**BIDDING BEGINS FOR CROATIAN PIPELINE**
  The Croatian Privatization Fund has gotten two bids for 15
  percent of its Adriatic oil pipeline.  The two bidders:
  Austria's OMV and Hungary's MOL.  A total of 111,427 shares
  were advertised for sale through an international tender which
  closed yesterday.  The stake was priced at about $75 million.
  The Austrian bid included no fixed price for the shares but
  OMV considered the 15-percent stake to be worth between $33.5
  million and about $60 million.   The final price will depend
  on an evaluation of the pipeline's exploitation profitability.
  MOL bid the nominal price of shares, but said it's interested
  in buying only 10 percent of the pipeline.  The pipeline runs
  from the Adriatic deep-sea port of Omisalj through Croatia to
  Hungary and central Europe.  It has a capacity of up to 1.2
  million tons of crude a year.



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(Elnezest az esetleges kisbetukert, de az eredeti szoveg csupa
nagybetuvel volt irva, amit at kellett cserelnem.)

Buchwald Amy

*****************************************************************

date=9/27/95
type=correspondent report
number=2-186012
title=Hungary / U-S (l-only)
byline=Stefan Bos
dateline=Budapest
content=
voiced at:

Intro:  The U-S chairman of the joint chief of staff, General
John Shaliskashvili, says non Nato-countries, such as former
Warsaw Pact Nations, are welcome to join a peace keeping force in
Bosnia.  Stefan Bos reports from Budapest, General Shaliskashvili
made his comments Wednesday after talks with Hungarian government
officials.

Text:   U-S General John Shaliskashvili told reporters a new
peace keeping force in Bosnia, should not only include soldiers
from Nato countries.

General Shaliskashvili says he hopes non-member states, such as
former Warsaw Pact Nations, can join the force that will be
established after the warring factions sign a peace treaty.

                  // Shaliskashvili act.  #1 //

         We would welcome nations to participate in this
         implementation force.  Whether they are Nato or not
         belonging to Nato.

                         // End  act. //

The U-S chairman of the joint chief of staff says he would
welcome Russia's participation in the military peace operation.
But he also says he does not know whether a Moscow proposal to
form a joint command between Nato and Russia can become a
reality.

                  // Shaliskashvili act. #2 //

         It is equally important useful if Russia were to
         participate.  So I think we need not to continue the
         discussions and see what it is that is possible to bring
         those two concepts in line.  So that at the one hand we
         have a military sound operation and on the other hand
         find a way that would permit Russia to participate.

                         // End  act. //

General Shaliskashvili also stressed he would understand why some
former Warsaw Pact Countries that have common borders with former
Yugoslavia would refuse to cooperate in the peace keeping force.

Hungary has raised objections because of fears that it could
undermine already strained relations with former Yugoslavia,
where a large Hungarian minority lives.(Signed)



neb / sb / bd-t/pt

27-Sep-95 6:36 pm edt (2236 utc)
nnnn

source: Voice of America


(Elnezest az esetleges kisbetukert, de az eredeti szoveg csupa
nagybetuvel volt irva, amit at kellett cserelnem.)

Buchwald Amy

*****************************************************************

date=9/27/95
type=background report
number=5-31222
title=Romania looks to the west
byline= Ed Warner
dateline= Washington
content=
voiced at:

Intro:  On a trip to Washington this week to talk to President
Clinton and other U.S. Officials, Romanian President Ion Iliescu
stressed the need for his country to be more closely tied to the
west, in particular Nato.  V-o-A's Ed Warner attended a speech
given by the Romanian leader (Tuesday, 9/26), and has this
report.

Text:  Romanian President Ion Iliescu says Romania suffered under
a harsh dictatorship and still has plenty of problems, but its
progress should be recognized.  He made the plea in an address to
the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington
this week.

Mr. Iliescu said radical change is occurring in his country:

                               // Ilescu actuality //

         Our nation, in effect, was reborn.  All of our
         institutions have been built anew: the parliament as a
         genuine expression of the popular will, parties as
         independent political structures, free elections as the
         foundation of political freedom -- all have been
         reinvented in the last six years.

                                    // End act //

President Iliescu said this progress was due in part to outside
help from financial institutions like the International Monetary
Fund and the World Bank.  He added that Romania is a member of
the Council of Europe, has an association agreement with the
European Union and has joined Nato's partnership for peace
program.

He said he looks forward to full membership in Nato, and was
encouraged by his conversation with President Clinton:

                              // Iliescu actuality //

         We are confident that Romania has its place in the
         widened structures of security, provided by an enlarged
         Nato.  In Romania, there is a large political consensus
         on this strategic goal.  All political forces share the
         belief that our integration with Europe and
         Euro-Atlantic institutions is where our present and
         future lie. We are prepared to take the necessary steps
         to be accepted as a full member of Nato at the earliest
         opportunity.

                                   // End act //

President Iliescu went on to say that Romania had launched a
diplomatic initiative to resolve the problem of minorities with
neighboring Hungary:  Hungarians in Romania and Romanians in
Hungary.  Better relations with Hungary, he said, would help both
countries gain membership in Nato.

While welcoming President Iliescu's appeal, some observers
questioned Romania's progress to date and cited the influence in
the governing coalition of extremist parties well populated by
former communists.  Republican congressman David Funderburk, a
former U.S. ambassador to Romania, circulated a letter saying
most favored nation status should  not  be renewed for Romania
until it establishes more freedoms and property rights and curbs
the activities of the secret police.  (Signed)

neb/ew/mmk

27-Sep-95 9:02 am edt (1302 utc)
nnnn

source: Voice of America