> http://english.pravda.ru/main/2002/03/18/27042.html
Pravda.RU:Top Stories:More in detail
15:40 2002-03-18
YUGOSLAVIA: ANOTHER ACT OF CAPITULATION
The people in plain clothes who broke in a restaurant in
Belgrade destroyed the Serbian-American idyll. The peaceful
talks of Serbias Deputy Prime Minister Momcilo Perisic and
First Secretary of the US Embassy in Belgrade David Neibor
at the Saric motel will mean a failure in the political
career of the former. It will also once again mar the
reputation of the democratic authorities of Serbia and
Yugoslavia. Momcilo Perisic is a close companion to Serbian
Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, and he was a governmental
official in charge of the army and security services.
Belgrade has already started improving its soiled
reputation. Yesterday evening, President of
Yugoslavia Voislav Kostunica initiated an extraordinary
session dedicated to Momcilo Perisic. The
eaders of the federal and republican governments,
the Foreign Ministry, the General Staff, and
Yugoslavias State Security department discussed
the spy scandal for five hours.
On the sessions conclusion, a document was issued.
It reads as follows: the details and aspects
of the Serbian vice-premiers detention are to be
thoroughly studied to perform the
investigation without any pressure. The incident
has caused the state and military leaders to
create a National Security Council for the
coordination of all security services. The federal
parliament is to support the initiative.
In addition, Belgrade is going to inform the
people more about the activity of the military and
civilian security services. However, beforehand,
the issue is to be seriously analyzed and
approved of.
The Serbian Democratic Party thinks that it
is really very important now to create a mechanism
for civilian and parliamentary control over the
activities of the security services. In
addition, as it is stated in the partys declaration,
the judicial authorities are to investigate
whether the vice-premier of the republican
government has committed a spy crime or not and find
the instigators," Radio Jugoslavija reports.
Momcilo Perisic was the head of Yugoslavias General
Staff between 1993-1998; now, he is the head
of the parliamentary committee for defense and
security. He is suspected of handing over of the
General Staffs secret documents concerning ex-
president Milosevics military activity to the USA.
Perisic and the US diplomat were detained on
March 15 at the moment when the US diplomat was
putting the tapes with the General Staffs secret
materials in the case and was then taken to the
detention center. Perisic was released two days
after the initial interrogations, and protests
from the USA helped free the diplomat as well.
Speaker of the US State Department Richard Boucher
told Belgrade: We protest against actions of
the kind performed by the Yugoslavian army and local authorities.
Yugoslavias Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic made
excuses to the USA for the hasty actions of
the military services who had detained the US
diplomat illegally." Serbian Prime Minister Zoran
Djindjic promised to punish the head of the military
security service, who is guilty of the
diplomats arrest. ORT Russian television quoted
President Voislav Kostunica, who said the
problem was really acute for the country, as
relations with the USA were delicate. At the same
time, authorities should not be doubtful when it
concerns the revelation of the military secret
that means the actions applied to the Serbian vice-
premier were legal.
The Prosecutors Office will consider the Perisic
case. The vice-premier may be deprived of the
judicial immunity after that.
The accident with Perisic is not so surprising:
it was Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic and
other members of the government who started delivery
of the state and national interests of the
country when, in contravention of the decision
of the Constitutional Court, Milosevic was
delivered to the Hague tribunal. In addition,
here is another act of capitulation performed by
Djindjic and friends: the live broadcasting of
the sessions in Hague have been suspended in
Serbia.
Sergey Stefanov
PRAVDA.Ru
Translated by Maria Gousseva
In the photo: Momcilo Perisic
Read the original in Russian:
> http://pravda.ru/main/2002/03/18/38335.html
Pravda.RU:Top Stories:More in detail
15:40 2002-03-18
YUGOSLAVIA: ANOTHER ACT OF CAPITULATION
The people in plain clothes who broke in a restaurant in
Belgrade destroyed the Serbian-American idyll. The peaceful
talks of Serbias Deputy Prime Minister Momcilo Perisic and
First Secretary of the US Embassy in Belgrade David Neibor
at the Saric motel will mean a failure in the political
career of the former. It will also once again mar the
reputation of the democratic authorities of Serbia and
Yugoslavia. Momcilo Perisic is a close companion to Serbian
Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, and he was a governmental
official in charge of the army and security services.
Belgrade has already started improving its soiled
reputation. Yesterday evening, President of
Yugoslavia Voislav Kostunica initiated an extraordinary
session dedicated to Momcilo Perisic. The
eaders of the federal and republican governments,
the Foreign Ministry, the General Staff, and
Yugoslavias State Security department discussed
the spy scandal for five hours.
On the sessions conclusion, a document was issued.
It reads as follows: the details and aspects
of the Serbian vice-premiers detention are to be
thoroughly studied to perform the
investigation without any pressure. The incident
has caused the state and military leaders to
create a National Security Council for the
coordination of all security services. The federal
parliament is to support the initiative.
In addition, Belgrade is going to inform the
people more about the activity of the military and
civilian security services. However, beforehand,
the issue is to be seriously analyzed and
approved of.
The Serbian Democratic Party thinks that it
is really very important now to create a mechanism
for civilian and parliamentary control over the
activities of the security services. In
addition, as it is stated in the partys declaration,
the judicial authorities are to investigate
whether the vice-premier of the republican
government has committed a spy crime or not and find
the instigators," Radio Jugoslavija reports.
Momcilo Perisic was the head of Yugoslavias General
Staff between 1993-1998; now, he is the head
of the parliamentary committee for defense and
security. He is suspected of handing over of the
General Staffs secret documents concerning ex-
president Milosevics military activity to the USA.
Perisic and the US diplomat were detained on
March 15 at the moment when the US diplomat was
putting the tapes with the General Staffs secret
materials in the case and was then taken to the
detention center. Perisic was released two days
after the initial interrogations, and protests
from the USA helped free the diplomat as well.
Speaker of the US State Department Richard Boucher
told Belgrade: We protest against actions of
the kind performed by the Yugoslavian army and local authorities.
Yugoslavias Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic made
excuses to the USA for the hasty actions of
the military services who had detained the US
diplomat illegally." Serbian Prime Minister Zoran
Djindjic promised to punish the head of the military
security service, who is guilty of the
diplomats arrest. ORT Russian television quoted
President Voislav Kostunica, who said the
problem was really acute for the country, as
relations with the USA were delicate. At the same
time, authorities should not be doubtful when it
concerns the revelation of the military secret
that means the actions applied to the Serbian vice-
premier were legal.
The Prosecutors Office will consider the Perisic
case. The vice-premier may be deprived of the
judicial immunity after that.
The accident with Perisic is not so surprising:
it was Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic and
other members of the government who started delivery
of the state and national interests of the
country when, in contravention of the decision
of the Constitutional Court, Milosevic was
delivered to the Hague tribunal. In addition,
here is another act of capitulation performed by
Djindjic and friends: the live broadcasting of
the sessions in Hague have been suspended in
Serbia.
Sergey Stefanov
PRAVDA.Ru
Translated by Maria Gousseva
In the photo: Momcilo Perisic
Read the original in Russian:
> http://pravda.ru/main/2002/03/18/38335.html