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F.................................................................M............M
                       RFE/RL Daily Report

                                  No. 165, August 28, 1992

                   SUCCESSOR STATES TO THE USSR

MORE FIGHTING IN ABKHAZIA. Three people were killed on 27 August
when a civilian hydrofoil was attacked by an unmarked helicopter
in Georgian territorial waters, ITAR-TASS reported. According to
Interfax, a clash between some 100 supporters of ousted Georgian
President Zviad Gamsakhurdia and Georgian National Guard troops
resulted in several casualties on both sides. Georgian State
Council Chairman Eduard Shevardnadze ruled out an immediate
ceasefire because of the presence on Georgian territory of
volunteers from the North Caucasus. Meanwhile, Georgian Foreign
Minister Aleksandre Chikvaidze invited CSCE observers to visit
Abkhazia on a fact-finding mission. In a statement published in
Krasnaya zvezda on 28 August, Russian President Boris Yeltsin
appealed to all parties involved in the fighting to begin peace
talks, as Russia's security would be threatened by an escalation
of the fighting. (Liz Fuller)

COMMISSION FOR NORTH CAUCASUS ESTABLISHED IN RUSSIAN SECURITY
COUNCIL.  Russian Minister of Justice Nikolai Fedorov told TASS
that a Commission for the North Caucasus had just been set up in
the Russian Federation's Security Council, ITAR-TASS reported on
27 August. Fedorov said that the main task of the commission,
which will have direct access to Yeltsin and function on a
permanent basis, is to forestall interethnic conflict in the
region, which is frequently described as a powder-keg.  Fedorov,
who is deputy chairman of the commission, said it would include
representatives of the Russian ministries of security, defense,
finance, and economics, and would have quarters in the North
Caucasus as well as Moscow. (Ann Sheehy)

MOUNTAIN PEOPLES' CONFEDERATION PROSECUTED.  The Russian
Prosecutor General's Office has initiated criminal proceedings
against the Confederation of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus for
inciting national discord, carrying out terrorists acts, and for
taking hostages, ITAR-TASS reported on 27 August.  The
Prosecutor's press center said that the confederation, which was
an unregistered association, had ignored warnings about the
illegal nature of the actions it had undertaken in connection with
developments in Abkhazia. (Ann Sheehy)

CEASEFIRE AGREED IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH? Armenian President Levon
Ter-Petrossyan accepted unconditionally the 60-day ceasefire
proposal made by CSCE mediator Mario Rafaelli in Erevan on 26
August, although the proposal lacks enforcement mechanisms, his
press secretary Ruben Shugaryan told ITAR-TASS.  According to an
unconfirmed KazTAG report, the Armenian and Azerbaidjani foreign
ministers signed a Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire agreement at a
meeting in Alma-Ata convened by Kazakh President Nursultan
Nazarbaev on 27 August. According to this agreement, all fighting
in the region should cease on 1 September. (Liz Fuller)

UKRAINE DENOUNCES RUSSIAN PROPOSAL TO CREATE "CONFEDERATION."
Ukrainian authorities have denounced the terms of a
Ukrainian-Russian treaty proposed by Russia which would
effectively result in a "political confederation" of the two
states.  Both sides had agreed in June at the Ukrainian-Russian
summit in Dagomys to prepare a wide-ranging political treaty which
would govern future bilateral relations.  But after the appearance
this week of the Russian proposal in a Kiev newspaper, the
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Anatolii Zlenko told Reuters on 27
August that the proposed treaty reflected "an extreme position put
forward in order to satisfy (Russia's) interests." He added that
confederation of any sort with Russia "is totally out of the
question." Ukrainian foreign ministry officials have also
disclosed that three alternative versions of the treaty are under
preparation. (Bohdan Nahaylo)

UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENTARY LEADER SLAMS MOSCOW'S "GREAT-STATE
CHAUVINISTS." Meanwhile, the head of the Ukrainian parliament,
Ivan Plyushch, in an interview given to Trud on 27 August, accused
Moscow politicians of continuing with their old "imperial"
thinking.  Vestiges of "great-state" chauvinism, he said, were
causing all sorts of problems, including the delay in withdrawing
Russia's troops from the Baltic states and Moldova. As for Ukraine
and Russia, he charged that: "Someone clearly is not interested in
maintaining stability in our relations. Someone still wants to see
Ukraine play the role of "little brother." "All we ask is one
thing," Plyushch stressed: "Don't interfere in the affairs of our
sovereign state." (Bohdan Nahaylo)

RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT OPTIMISTIC ABOUT 1993 INFLATION.  Russian
government advisor, Aleksei Ulyukaev, said that current budget
projections for next year assume a monthly inflation rate of 7-8%,
according to ITAR-TASS on 27 August.  The figure is down from the
double-digit levels of this spring and equivalent to this July's
monthly rate reported by Gaidar two days earlier. Existing
government plans to jack up domestic energy prices to world levels
over 1993-4 put the inflation forecast in some doubt, however.
(Erik Whitlock)

RUBLE EXCHANGE RATE DROPS. The exchange rate for the ruble on the
Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange dropped on 27 August from 168.1
rubles to 205 rubles to the dollar, Western and Russian agencies
reported. Trading was very narrow, with only $20.8 million on
offer.  The decline was attributed to several factors, including
the introduction of new import tariffs scheduled for 1 September,
the proposed further restrictions on commodity exports, and the
anticipated relaxation of credit policy. Most observers expected
further declines in the exchange rate of the ruble. Indeed, in
view of the domestic inflation so far in 1992--variously estimated
at between 800% and 2,000%--the ruble exchange rate has held up
rather well. (Keith Bush)

EX-IM BANK SIGNS FIRST DEAL WITH RUSSIA IN 18 YEARS. The US
Export-Import bank signed an agreement with the Russian Federation
guaranteeing $102 million worth of loans for the purchase of
American machinery, ITAR-TASS reported on 27 August.  The
agreement was the first deal in nearly two decades between the
EX-IM Bank and the countries of the former Soviet Union. Such
deals were stopped by the United States in objection to emigration
policies of the Soviet regime. Eugene Lawson, vice chairman of the
EX-IM bank, expects a great deal more activity in the future,
since his agency has a backlog of 5.1 billion dollars worth of
credit applications. (Erik Whitlock)

RUSSIAN MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS FAULTS PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE
FOR MYOPIA, SECRECY. MFA spokesman Aleksandr Rozanov questioned
the judgment of the Parliamentary Committee for International
Relations and Foreign Economic Ties for focusing on the Kurile
Islands question despite the emergence of other pressing
international issues. "We cannot impose an agenda on the deputies
but we would like to remind them that the Foreign Ministry would
like to rely on the opinion of Russian lawmakers as regards a
broad range of international issues," Rozanov said. He also
faulted the committee for excluding the MFA leadership from a
recent session devoted to Yeltsin's approaching visit to Japan,
saying: "surprisingly, the [committee] prepared and discussed
Proposals for a state visit to Japan' without the [MFA]." Rozanov
noted that the Japanese media had been notified of the discussion
in advance, ITAR-TASS reported on 26 August. (Suzanne Crow)

MORE ON MEETING OF RUSSIAN/CHINESE DEFENSE MINISTER. Chinese
Defense Minister Qin Jiwei, visiting Moscow, seems to be in the
market for jet fighters, but no public mention has been made of
previous Chinese interest in Russian-built surface-to- surface
missiles. ITAR-TASS on 26 August reported that Qin and Russian
Defense Minister Pavel Grachev discussed the possible delivery of
Russian MiG-27 fighters and "air defense complexes," in addition
to the already-announced Chinese purchase of Su-27 jet fighters.
Although Grachev talked about contracts for twenty-four of the
Sukhoi aircraft, press reports indicated that China had shown an
interest in purchasing up to seventy-two. (Doug Clarke)

RUSSIA CALLS FOR BETTER PROTECTION FOR "BLUE HELMETS". On August
25, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that
Russia would support "energetic and if need be tough measures to
influence those who are held responsible for encroachments on the
life and security of servicemen manning U.N.  military contingents
in Yugoslavia." According to ISAR-TASS, the statement called on
the U.N. Security Council to "take the most decisive measures to
ensure the security of the peacekeeping force's personnel." The
report noted the "alarming situation" in Sarajevo, where the
Ukrainian contingent has come under fire, resulting in the deaths
of two soldiers and injuries to eight others. (Doug Clarke)

DEFENSE COOPERATION BETWEEN RUSSIA AND TURKEY.  The Istanbul
newspaper "Daily News" reported on 27 August that there would be
cooperation in the future between Turkish and Russian defense
industries, which could include military technology transfer from
Russia to Turkey.  The paper, quoting Turkish "official sources,"
said that plans for Turkey to purchase Russian-made guns,
aircraft, and helicopters were being discussed during the current
visit to Ankara of Russian State Secretary Gennadii Burbulis.
According to the report, which was carried by the Chinese Xinua
news agency, Turkish Foreign Ministry officials confirmed that
Turkey was seeking to buy weapons from Russia. The paper quoted
Vechislav Mironov, a member of Burbulis' delegation, as saying
that the purchase of weapons required by the Turkish gendarmerie
was "a beginning." (Doug Clarke)

TRANSCAUCASUS MILITARY DISTRICT TRANSFORMED; NEW COMMANDER NAMED.
ITAR-TASS reported on 27 August that Russian President Boris
Yeltsin has issued a decree transforming the Transcaucasus
Military District into the Group of Russian Troops in
Transcaucasia, with its headquarters in Tbilisi.  The change,
which parallels that which occurred in the Baltic States in
November of 1991, is in recognition of the fact that the former
Soviet troops in the region are now on foreign territory.
ITAR-TASS also reported that Lt.  Gen. Fedor Reut has been named
commander of the group, apparently replacing former military
district commander Col.  Gen.  Valerii Patrikeev.  Reut was born
in 1946 in the Moscow oblast.  Most recently, he had served as
commander of the Seventh Guards Army, based in Armenia. According
to the report, he is a proponent of the phased withdrawal of that
army from Armenia. (Stephen Foye)

KRAVCHUK THREATENS TO EXPEL "SUBVERSIVE" VISITORS. Angered by
oustpoken criticism of political and economic conditions in
Ukraine by some of the more hardline "emigre" participants in the
recent World Forum of Ukrainians, Ukrainian President Leonid
Kravchuk has threatened to have "subversive" visitors in Ukraine
deported and banned from reentering. According to a statement
issued on 26 August by Ukrinform on Kravchuk's instructions,
visitors to Ukraine, regardless of their citizenship, will be
expelled if they violate the laws of Ukraine by carrying out
activity that undermines the country's unity, political stability
and ethnic harmony. (Bohdan Nahaylo)

UKRAINIAN COORDINATING COUNCIL FOR ECONOMIC REFORM ESTABLISHED.
On 27 August, the Ukrainian parliamentary newspaper Holos Ukrainy
published the presidential decree of 19 August establishing a
Coordinating Council For Questions of Economic Reform in Ukraine
"to accelerate" economic reforms. It is headed by newly appointed
First Deputy Prime Minister, Valentyn Symonenko, and its other
seventeen members include: Oleksandr Yemelyanov,the State Duma's
councillor on economic matters, the head of the Ukrainian National
Bank, Vadym Hetman, and the ministers for machine-building, the
military-industrial complex and conversion, investment and
construction, labor, foreign and economic trade relations, and
finance. (Bohdan Nahaylo)

REMAINS OF EXILED UKRAINIAN CHURCH LEADER RETURNED TO LVIV. On 27
August, the remains of Cardinal Iosyf Slipyi, the former head of
the Ukrainian Catholic Church, who died in exile in Rome in 1984,
were returned to Ukraine. According to Reuters, tens of thousands
of people turned out in Lviv to pay tribute to the indomitable
religious leader who spent 18 years in Soviet prisons and labor
camps before being exiled to Rome in 1963. Cardinal Slipyi's
remains will be reburied in Lviv's St.  George's Cathedral on 29
August. (Bohdan Nahaylo).

UPDATE ON TAJIKISTAN. Eight members of parties in Tajikistan's
opposition coalition were killed on 27 August in Kurgan-Tyube by
supporters of the Communist leadership, AFP reported from
Dushanbe. Five members of the Democratic Party of Tajikistan were
gunned down in their offices and three members of Lali Badakhshan
were killed in their homes. The pro-Communist Ashkara group, which
has been fighting against supporters of the democratic coalition
for two months, had demanded on 24 August that the opposition
leave Kurgan-Tyube by 27 August, and that opposition members of
the government resign. (Bess Brown)

RUSSIAN REGIMENT TO BE WITHDRAWN FROM CHISINAU.  On 26 August the
Russian defense minister, Gen.  Pavel Grachev, and the Moldovan
defense minister, Maj. Gen.  Pavel Creanga, signed an agreement in
Moscow on the withdrawal from Moldova of Russia's 300th paratroop
regiment, which is currently stationed in central Chisinau,
Moldovapres reported.  The regiment's withdrawal had been agreed
upon in principle by Russian and Moldovan military authorities in
May, at which time the Russian General Staff announced their
intent to transfer the regiment to Siberia.  The regiment is not a
part of Russia's 14th Army, which is stationed in eastern Moldova
and is involved in the military conflict there. (Vladimir Socor)

                    CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

SOME POSITIVE SIGNS FROM LONDON CONFERENCE .  .  .  The UN-EC
sponsored international conference concluded on 27 August. A
long-term plan for a peace settlement was created through the
establishment of an international forum which will begin mediating
with the purpose of solving the crisis in the former Yugoslavia
next week in Geneva. Six working groups directed by a steering
committee of 22 nations will support the efforts towards reaching
a peaceful solution.  The groups will be co-chaired by UN envoy
Cyrus Vance and EC mediator Lord Owen. The conference also adopted
13 principles regarded as measures for a settlement of the crisis
in Bosnia-Herzegovina.  The main points call for a cessation of
violence; the handing in of all heavy weapons within 96 hours;
bringing all forces under central control; full collaboration by
all parties in the delivery of humanitarian aid; the unconditional
release of all detained civilians and the closure of all detention
camps; and stronger enforcement of UN imposed sanctions in the
region. (Milan Andrejevich)

. .  .  WILL THE AGREEMENT HOLD? British Prime Minister John Major
admitted that the world "cannot rely on the goodwill of the
parties" but said pressure would be exerted and intensified as
necessary to force a political solution. Nonetheless, doubts have
been raised over the question of the parties' respect for their
commitments.  For example, lacking a definition of what is meant
by withdrawing from a "substantial portion" of seized territory
enabled Radovan Karadzic, the Serb leader in Bosnia to say that he
will abide by the principles while adding that the Bosnian Serbs
are willing to negotiate the return of only 20% of the territory
they control. (Milan Andrejevich and Michael Shafir).

A MIXED BAG OF REACTIONS. Radio Serbia reports that Slobodan
Milosevic told Belgrade TV that the conference represents the
"most significant step so far for the Yugoslav crisis to be
finally settled".  However, Western press reports say that
Milosevic was rebuked by Milan Panic, the prime minister of the
rump Yugoslavia. France's foreign minister Roland Dumas told
reporters that the two men quarreled in front of the full
conference.  According to Radio Croatia, Panic told Milosevic that
he was out of line when speaking about the situation in Serbia's
province of Kosovo, adding that no one in his delegation was
allowed to speak without his permission.  An RFE correspondent in
London reported that when Milosevic was asked for his assessment
of the talks, he replied "Talks? What Talks",? as he stormed out
of the conference hall. Croatia's President Franjo Tudjman told
reporters that he is appreciative of the efforts made in adopting
the resolution, but cautioned that "the international community
has not yet found an effective mechanism for ending" the conflict.
(Milan Andrejevich)

BULGARIA STRICTLY OBSERVING UN SANCTIONS AGAINST RUMP YUGOSLAVIA.
"We are deeply impressed by the rigor with which Bulgaria is
enforcing the sanctions against Serbia and Montenegro" -- so said
Jessica Pierce, leader of the group of experts from the EC and the
US who are evaluating the UN sanctions imposed on rump Yugoslavia,
according to BTA.  The group, which is visiting Sofia, noted that
Bulgaria is the only state bordering on the former Yugoslavia that
is strictly observing the UN resolution, and called for more
stringent enforcement of the ban with respect to Danube traffic.
The matter of compensating Bulgaria for losses suffered as a
consequence of the embargo was also discussed.  Deputy minister of
industry Kiril Velev estimated the losses at 45 million US dollars
per month. (Duncan Perry)

OBSERVERS TO BE STATIONED ON BORDER BETWEEN FORMER YUGOSLAVIA AND
BULGARIA? BTA announced that discussions concerning the
possibility of stationing observers along Bulgaria's border with
the former Yugoslav state were held in Sofia on 27 August between
two officers representing the EC and deputy defense minister
Valentin Dobrev and chief of the general staff Lyuben Petrov.  The
visit is in response to Bulgaria's request for third party
observers. Questions of how such observers would function, the
extent of their authority and financing the mission were
addressed.  (Duncan Perry and Kjell Engelbrekt)

JESZENSZKY: AUTONOMY FOR MINORITIES IS KEY TO SOUTH SLAV PROBLEMS.
Geza Jeszenszky told journalists attending the London conference
that without the protection of minority rights there will be no
true peace in former Yugoslavia, reported an RFE/RL correspondent.
Jeszenszky said that autonomy in various forms was the best way to
achieve the double goal of ensuring the rights of minorities while
at the same time reassuring the state in which they live. The
recognition by the leading European politicians that minority
relations are crucial could help solve not only the Yugoslav
problem but also contribute to all-European security, he said.
Jeszenszky also praised the Democratic Community of Hungarians
(DCH) of Vojvodina, saying that this organization's legitimate and
constructive attitude had been demonstrated in several elections;
although the DCH was a Hungarian political organization it was
loyal to the republic of Serbia, Jeszenszky said.  (Karoly
Okolicsanyi and Michael Shafir)

WALESA OPENS NEW OFFENSIVE. Embarking on one of his periodic
"activist" campaigns, president Lech Walesa dispatched letters to
the Sejm leadership and Poland's chief prosecutor on 27 August.
Walesa asked that the Sejm give priority to issues vital to the
nation: economic recovery and law and order. He chided the justice
ministry for sluggishness and expressed impatience that
prosecutors had not heeded his suggestions about fighting
corruption.  In an interview with PAP the same day, Walesa
emphasized the need "to transform justified protest into creative
solutions and effective work." He returned to his idea of a
"master plan" for reform that would make clear exactly who had
responsibility for what.  So far he had left things up to
democracy, he said, but if no improvement occurs in six months
time, "presidential actions" will be necessary.  The president is
to visit the Gdansk shipyard today.  (Louisa Vinton)

KLAUS PREDICTS CZECHOSLOVAK PARLIAMENT WILL APPROVE CONSTITUTIONAL
AMENDMENT. Speaking at a press conference in Prague on 27 August,
Czech prime minister Vaclav Klaus said he hoped that the federal
parliament would approve a constitutional amendment abolishing the
Czechoslovak federation, CSTK and Western media report. Currently,
only a referendum can be used to decide on the question of the
continuing existence of the federation. The amendment would permit
two options for a break up -- either through a vote of the federal
parliament or by agreement between the republican parliaments.
(Paulina Bren)

CZECH-SLOVAK EXCHANGE RATE TO BE FIXED EARLY.  Czech premier
Vaclav Klaus said on 27 August that two independent currencies
would be set after the break up of Czechoslovakia, with a fixed
rate of exchange of 1:1, CSTK reported. According to Klaus,
independent currencies with fixed rates of exchange must be set
when the economies of the two republics are still identical and
not "too far apart." He added that disparate economic developments
in the Czech republic and in Slovakia could change the exchange
rate. The vice-chairman of the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia,
Augustin Marian Huska, made a similar statement, adding that the
process would be implemented so as not to harm the citizens.
(Paulina Bren)

NEW CANDIDATES REGISTER IN ROMANIA'S PRESIDENTIAL RACE.  On 26
August, Ion Minzatu, leader of Romania's Republican Party,
registered with the authorities as a presidential candidate in the
forthcoming elections.  Minzatu is a controversial political
figure, known for his collaboration with the former regime. Two
further candidates registered on 27 August, namely Caius Traian
Dragomir, running on the ticket of the National Salvation Front
and Mircea Druc, who runs as an independent.  Dragomir, who is one
of the NSF's main strategists, told Radio Bucharest that his party
was striving for "national reconciliation." Druc, a former
Moldovan prime minister who became a Romanian citizen this year,
advocates Romania's rapid reunification with the republic of
Moldova. He was the sixth contender to officially join the
presidential race.  (Dan Ionescu)

POLISH POLICE STEP IN AT FSM A decisive test of strength seems to
be approaching in two of the illegal strikes now underway in
Poland. Early on 28 August, Katowice authorities sent in the
police to remove the 40 members of the radical union Solidarity
'80 who had taken over the management offices of the FSM auto
plant in Tychy the previous afternoon, PAP reports.  The strikers,
who first locked management personnel inside the building and then
forced them to leave, fled when police arrived.  The strikers
apparently sought to prevent the plant's directors from following
through with their threat to fire all strikers who did not return
to work by 8:00 a.m. on 28 August. The FSM strike committee says
it will ignore this ultimatum. (Louisa Vinton)

CONFLICT SHARPENS AT STRIKING MINE IN POLAND. Industry minister
Waclaw Niewiarowski announced on 27 August that strikers occupying
management buildings at the Rozbark coal mine (the only mine still
on strike) will be fired as well, along with the strike committee.
According to a PAP report, the strikers had forced the works
council to suspend the director when he refused to raise wages,
only to have the industry minister impose direct control over the
mine and reappoint the same director. A group of predominantly
female employees attempted to harangue the strike committee into
allowing them to work, at which point the committee ordered all
women and supervisors to leave the mine. In announcing his
decision, Niewiarowski explained that "no one can accuse the
government or the industry ministry of not demonstrating a maximum
of good will, but we cannot permit a situation in which all
conceivable transgressions are committed in a drastic fashion."
Peaceful talks took place between the government and strikers from
the Ursus tractor factory. (Louisa Vinton)

PRICES IN CZECHOSLOVAKIA TO BE INCREASED.  A finance ministry
official revealed on 27 August that a ten percent rise in prices
is expected in Czechoslovakia by mid-1993, CSTK reported.  The
official said that in the first half of 1992 the inflation rate
had been only 3 %. Price increases will in part be caused by the
introduction of a value-added tax in January 1993 and the further
reduction of subsidies. There will also be other price increases,
especially for water, coal, electricity and postage fees. (Paulina
Bren)

NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN THE IMF AND HUNGARY.  Talks in Budapest
between the Hungarian government, the National Bank and the IMF
about present and future trends in the Hungarian economy
continued, reported MTI. The IMF registered the positive signs of
decreasing inflation and a favorable balance of payment, but
expressed concern about the smaller than planned gross domestic
product, a much larger than planned budget deficit and growing
unemployment.  The negotiators also examined how the large budget
deficit could be reduced while maintaining low interest rates and
avoiding inflation. Further discussions will take place in
September, during the IMF's general assembly session.  (Karoly
Okolicsanyi and Michael Shafir)

ESTONIAN-RUSSIAN ECONOMIC TALKS. During the latest round of
economic talks with Russia on 27 August, Russia proposed that both
sides simply wipe the slate clean by forgiving each other's
outstanding debts.  Estonia's minister for the economy, Olari
Taal,told BNS that the Russian side also reiterated Russia's offer
from earlier this year to assume Estonia's share of the former
USSR's foreign debt.  Economic talks continue on 2 September at
the prime minister level. (Riina Kionka)

SWEDISH PRIME MINISTER VISITS LITHUANIA.  On 27 August Swedish
prime minister Carl Bildt arrived in Vilnius on an informal visit,
Radio Lithuania reports.  He held talks with Lithuanian Supreme
Council chairman Vytautas Landsbergis that focused on the
continued presence of the Russian army in the Baltic States and
economic problems.  Bildt returned to Stockholm on 28 August.
(Saulius Girnius)

UNEMPLOYMENT IN LITHUANIA.  As of 17 August, 5,587 unemployed
persons were registered at Lithuania's labor exchange, of whom
5,181 were being paid benefits, BNS reported on 27 August.
(Saulius Girnius)

DEVELOPMENTS IN BULGARIAN TOURISM. Preliminary figures indicate
that 1992 will be a significantly better year for Bulgaria's
tourism industry than the disastrous 1991, BTA reported on 27
August. According to statistics presented at a press conference by
chairman of the committee on tourism Slaveyko Bozhinov, there has
been a 75% booking of hotel beds at major sea resorts, while the
number of foreign visitors is up by 23-25%.  Bozhinov disclosed
that within its PHARE program, the EC has agreed to release one
million Ecu for privatization of Bulgaria's tourism sector, and
said the transformation of state enterprises into joint-stock
companies would pave the way for successful businesses. (Kjell
Engelbrekt)

CDU MEETING IN HUNGARY.  The German Christian Democratic Union
parliamentary deputies from Berlin are holding consultations in
Hungary, reported MTI.  Over 100 deputies and other city leaders,
including the mayor of Berlin, flew to Debrecen, using for the
first time an abondoned Soviet airport.  The meeting will actually
take place in the south Hungarian city of Szeged. (Karoly
Okolicsanyi)

[As of 1200 CET]
Compiled by Hal Kosiba & Michael Shafir


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Newsgroups: talk.politics.soviet