FEDERATION COUNCIL ASSAILS BEREZOVSKII ON COSSACK QUESTION.
FederationCouncil deputies on 23 January strongly criticized Security Council DeputySecretary Boris Berezovskii's proposal to arm Cossacks living near Chechnya,Russian and Western media reported (seeOMRI Daily Digest, 16 and 20January 1997). Deputies intially considered calling on President Boris Yeltsinto sack Berezovskii, but a demand for his dismissal was not included in thefinal version of a resolution discussing the situation in the North Caucasus.Federation Council Speaker Yegor Stroev said that although the upper house hasnothing personal against Berezovskii, any plan to arm a civilian population inthe Caucasus is "madness" and could lead to another war in the region, EkhoMoskvy reported. -- Nikolai Iakoubovski

FEDERATION COUNCIL REJECTS BILL ON DEPUTIES' HOUSING ...
TheFederation Council voted unanimously on 23 January to reject an amendment tothe law on the status of deputies that would have entitled them to about 300million rubles ($60,000) each from the federal budget to purchase housing inMoscow (seeOMRI Daily Digest, 21 January 1996). According toSegodnya on 24 January, members of the parliament's upper housesuggested that the Duma deputies allocate the money they were prepared to spendon themselves--some 135 billion rubles--to pensions and social benefits.Izvestiya noted that not all Duma deputies had supported the amendment:four members of the Yabloko faction sent a letter to the Federation Councildeploring the proposal. It is not clear what will happen to the 14 deputies whohave already received housing compensation payments. -- Penny Morvant

... AND TWO OTHER BILLS.
The Federation Council has rejected a billthat would have introduced a 0.5% tax on purchases of foreign currency byindividuals, ITAR-TASS reported on 23 January. Deputies said that thelaw--which was passed by the State Duma in December 1996--would violateindividual rights and resurrect the black market in foreign currency. Themeasure would have raised an estimated 2.3 trillion rubles ($410 million) forthe 1997 federal budget. The Council also rejected a draft law regulating thedestruction of Russia's chemical weapons stockpile. Deputies felt the billinadequately addressed environmental and safety issues. The lack of appropriatelegislation has hindered efforts to begin liquidating Russia's 40,000 metrictons of chemical weapons, as called for in the 1993 Chemical WeaponsConvention, which Russia has signed but not ratified. -- Natalia Gurushina andScott Parrish

DUMA DISCUSSES BUDGET, POSTPONES DISCUSSION OF CHUBAIS'S TAXES.
TheState Duma postponed a scheduled discussion of tax evasion allegations againstPresidential Chief of Staff Anatolii Chubais in order to devote its 24 Januarysession entirely to the fourth and final reading of the 1997 budget, NTVreported on 23 January. A resolution demanding that Yeltsin dismiss Chubais andthat the Procurator-General's Office investigate Chubais's financial dealingswill be debated in early February, according to the 24 JanuaryNezavisimayagazeta. Duma Security Committee Chairman Viktor Ilyukhin proposed thehearings on Chubais following a series of publications in the weeklyNovayagazeta, which claimed that Chubais did not pay taxes on $278,000 he earnedin 1996 while working on President Yeltsin's re-election campaign (seeOMRIDaily Digest, 16 and 22 January 1997). -- Laura Belin

CHERNOMYRDIN SLAMS LIVSHITS, YASIN.
Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdinhas announced that Finance Minister Aleksandr Livshits and Economics MinisterYevgenii Yasin will be reprimanded for failing to make a significant dent inthe payment of wage arrears, which topped 52 trillion rubles ($9.3 billion) inDecember 1996, ITAR-TASS and NTV reported on 23 January. The key reasons forthe worsening arrears situation include poor implementation of the federalbudget and a lack of financial discipline among companies and organizations.Yasin has stressed that the government will not resort to printing money inorder to resolve the problem. Chernomyrdin gave First Deputy Prime MinisterVladimir Potanin two weeks to prepare a package of measures to deal with theproblem. Chernomyrdin also said taxes should be reduced for industrialcompanies in 1997 and that the 1998 budget should include such cuts. -- NataliaGurushina

GROZNY RENAMED DZHOKHAR-GALA.
A crowd of 8,000 gathered at apro-independence rally in central Grozny on 23 January, which was addressed byacting Chechen President Zelimkhan Yandarbiev and former Chief of Staff AslanMaskhadov, both leading candidates in the 27 January presidential election,Russian and Western agencies reported. Yandarbiev told the cheering crowd, someof whom carried banners reading "Freedom or Death," that the Chechen parliamenthad posthumously promoted late Chechen President Dzhokhar Dudaev to the rank ofgeneralissimo. He also announced that he was renaming the Chechen capitalDzhokhar-Gala in honor of the late president, who was killed in a Russianmissile attack last April. Maskhadov, whose running mate has been accused ofkidnapping, called on his presidential rivals not to sow dissent and allow thevoters to calmly pick their next leader, ITAR-TASS reported. -- Scott Parrish

CONTROVERSY OVER OSCE ROLE IN CHECHNYA CONTINUES.
Russian ForeignMinister Yevgenii Primakov spoke by telephone on 23 January with Danish ForeignMinister Niels Helveg Petersen, who currently holds the rotating chairmanshipof the OSCE, AFP and ITAR-TASS reported. Primakov expressed concern that theOSCE was directly financing the Chechen Electoral Commission without permissionfrom Moscow. According to a Foreign Ministry spokesman, Russia supports OSCEfinancing for international election observers and technical aid such as ballotboxes but still regards the election as an "internal matter" of Russia.Primakov called on the OSCE to convince the Chechen authorities to allowrefugees outside the republic to vote. He also told Petersen that the OSCEmission in Chechnya should be reviewed after the 27 January elections. Russianofficials are concerned that the OSCE role in the elections, which are beingheld without financial assistance from Russia, will bolster Chechen claims toindependence. -- Scott Parrish

SUSPECTED ABDUCTORS OF ORT JOURNALISTS DETAINED.
Chechen First DeputyInterior Minister Vakha Zakriev announced on 23 January that two men suspectedof abducting Russian journalists Roman Perevezentsev and Vladislav Tibeliushave been detained, ITAR-TASS reported. Perevezentsev and Tibelius,correspondents for Russian Public TV (ORT), went missing on 19 January en routefrom Grozny to the capital of Ingushetiya, Nazran. Zakriev said witnesses hadseen the journalists alive and healthy on the evening of 22 January. -- LauraBelin

SHAIMIEV ENDORSES CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS.
In an interview publishedin the 24 January edition of the newspaperRespublika Tatarstan, TatarPresident Mintimer Shaimiev advocated constitutional amendments to increase thepowers of the parliament, ITAR-TASS reported on 24 January. He noted, "We allknow how [the constitution] was prepared, in what circumstances it wasadopted." (Drafted by Yeltsin's associates, the constitution was passed by acontroversial referendum in December 1993, little more than two months aftertanks shelled Yeltsin's parliamentary opponents out of the Supreme Soviet.)Shaimiev acknowledged that the constitutions of many of Russia's 21 republicscontradict the federal constitution; he advocated amending both federal andrepublican constitutions as a compromise solution. Like Federation CouncilSpeaker Yegor Stroev, who has also called for increasing parliamentary powers,Shaimiev is normally a loyal Yeltsin ally. His comments suggest that aconsensus in favor of constitutional amendments may be forming in the upperhouse of parliament. -- Laura Belin

POLITICAL CRISIS IN ALTAI REPUBLIC.
The Altai Republic legislaturepassed a resolution on 23 January dismissing the republican government, headedby Vladimir Petrov, ITAR-TASS reported. At a morning session of the 27-memberState Assembly (El Kurultai), scheduled to discuss the republic's draftconstitution and budget for 1997, a majority of deputies present called for theresignation of the government on the grounds that it had failed to tackle therepublic's economic difficulties and lost the trust of the people. Later thesame day, 18 of 22 deputies taking part in the session voted in a secret ballotto sack the government. The deputies gave parliament Chairman Valerii Chaptynova week to nominate new candidates for the post of government head. Somedeputies also called for the resignation of Chaptynov. The Altai Republic isexperiencing a severe economic crisis, with lengthy delays in the payment ofwages, pensions, and other benefits. -- Penny Morvant

REACTIONS TO START III PROPOSAL.
Russian parliamentary deputies on 23January reacted guardedly to reports that Washington is ready to proposerapidly opening talks on START III in order to facilitate ratification of STARTII, Western agencies reported. Duma International Affairs Committe ChairmanVladimir Lukin said START III is a good idea, "if we can go ahead withoutratification of START II." Communist Deputy Aleksei Podberezkin also supporteda START III agreement, but linked it with "America fulfilling differentconditions," a possible reference to NATO enlargement. Pentagon spokesman KevinBacon confirmed the same day that Washington will propose opening talks on aSTART III agreement reducing each country's strategic arsenal far below the3,500 warhead ceiling set by START II. Such an agreement could address someRussian concerns over the cost of implementing START II, but Bacon emphasizedthat Washington will still insist on ratification of START II before openingnew talks. -- Scott Parrish


ARMENIAN PRIME MINISTER ON RELATIONS WITH RUSSIA, U.S.
Armen Sarkisyanon 23 January refuted Armenian media reports that the country plans to sign aconfederative agreement with Russia similar to the April 1996Russian-Belarusian community treaty, Armenian and Russian media reported.Sarkisyan said Armenia will continue to cooperate with Russia on an "equal andmutually beneficial" basis. He described the agreement with Gazprom on settingup a joint Russian-Armenian venture (seeOMRI Daily Digest, 23 January1997) as "extremely important," saying it is a "first step to end Armenia'seconomic blockade." Sarkisyan said he is satisfied with his recent visit to theU.S., adding that 1997 will see "a new page" in relations between the twocountries. He also said U.S. politicians and entrepreneurs are expressing agrowing interest in Armenia. Sarkisyan denied that the U.S. put pressure onArmenia to hold early parliamentary elections. -- Emil Danielyan

RUSSIAN GENERAL: RUSSIAN TROOPS ARE LIKELY TO REMAIN IN ARMENIA.
Maj.-Gen. Aleksei Tretyakov, commander of Russian troops stationed in Armenia,said the March 1995 agreement between the Russian and Armenian presidents onthe Russian military base is unlikely to be revised, Snark reported on 21January. Recent reports in the Russian media have suggested that the RussianGeneral Staff is questioning the strategic value of maintaining Russian troopsin Armenia and Georgia. Tretyakov said the troops are "protecting the interestsof Russia and Armenia" along the external border of the CIS, adding that theywill not intervene in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. -- Emil Danielyan

AZERBAIJANI AMBASSADOR SUES PAPER.
Azerbaijani Ambassador to RussiaRamiz Rezaev has sued the Russian newspaperPravda-5 for defamation ofcharacter after the paper published an article alleging he was a heavy drinkerand unwelcome in various diplomatic settings, Radio Rossii reported on 23January. Rezaev is reportedly seeking 15 billion rubles (about $2.5 million) indamages.Pravda-5 has apologized to Rezaev for the publication. --Lowell Bezanis and Emil Danielyan

NEW REGULATIONS FOR FOREIGNERS STAYING IN ASHGABAT.
Ashgabat's mayor hasissued an order requiring all visitors to the Turkmen capital to stay inofficially approved hotels, RFE/RL reported on 23 January. Foreigners arrivingin Ashgabat with their families will be exempted from the new rule if they signleases with the city authorities. The order also obliges all government officesand businesses inviting foreigners to Turkmenistan to register their presencewith the local authorities. -- Lowell Bezanis

THREE KILLED IN TAJIK CAPITAL.
Three Russians, two of them women, werekilled in Dushanbe on 23 January, AFP reported. Oleg Motus, described as a"Cossack military commander," was shot at close range along with his mother andhis fiancee. Motus, born in Tajikistan, had returned to work on a humanitarianaid project. While open warfare in Tajikistan has been brought to a halt sincethe 23 December signing of a ceasefire agreement between the government and theUnited Tajik Opposition, Russian soldiers serving in Tajikistan have recentlybecome targets of a terror campaign. Civilians have not been exempt from randomacts of violence but have not usually been singled out as targets. -- BrucePannier


CRIMEAN GOVERNMENT REJECTS PARLIAMENT'S VOTE TO OUST IT.
The Crimeanparliament voted to oust Arkadii Demidenko's government by 52 votes to 19,Ukrainian and international agencies reported on 23 January. The officialreason for the motion was a new law that modifies the name of the Crimeangovernment to that of "council of ministers." Demidenko, who is backed by theUkrainian leadership, said the vote was illegal and that only the Ukrainianpresident can dismiss the Crimean government. He said he would protest toPresident Leonid Kuchma and the Constitutional Court. Kuchma's press servicesaid on 22 January that he would oppose Demidenko's dismissal. It was the fifthtime in three years that the autonomous parliament voted to oust thepeninsula's government. -- Oleg Varfolomeyev

BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT DEMOTES CLOSE AIDE.
President Alyaksandr Lukashenkaon 23 January demoted Uladzimir Zamyatalin, his close aide and a supporter ofhis pro-Russian policy, Reuters reported. Zamyatalin was dismissed as deputyhead of the president's administration and put in charge of the state presscommittee. Zamyatalin was known for advocating pan-Slavism and integration withRussia, and helped Lukashenka win the presidential elections in 1994 andvarious referenda in the following years. But Lukashenka has recentlycomplained of slow progress in integration. -- Sergei Solodovnikov

ESTONIA'S COALITION PARTY ACCUSED IN APARTMENT SCANDAL.
Pro Patria UnionChairman Toivo Jurgenson demanded that the ruling Coalition Party quit both thegovernment and the Tallinn City Council because of suspicious apartmentprivatization deals in central Tallinn, ETA reported. City officials arealleged to have inappropriately allowed the privatization of at least 181apartments for privatization vouchers at a cost several times less than theirreal market value. Vacant apartments were declared to be the "residence areas"of enterprises and occupied by persons affiliated with those enterprises, whowere then allowed to purchase the apartments with vouchers. The vouchers wereintended to allow citizens to buy the flats they live in from the state at anominal price. Prime Minister and Coalition Party Chairman Tiit Vahi, whosedaughter purchased one of the apartments, said there was nothing illegal aboutthe deal. -- Saulius Girnius

LATVIA SIGNS BORDER AID DEAL WITH EU.
Prime Minister Andris Skele and EUCommissioner for Immigration, Justice, and Internal Affairs Anita Gradin signedthree agreements on 23 January providing Latvia with some 7 million ecu ($8million) plus a share of a 14 million ecu grant for the three Baltic states andPoland, Reuters reported. The money is for projects that will improvecommunications and efficiency among Latvia's border guards to help stop illegalmigration and smuggling. Funds will also be used for developing cooperationamong the states and for cleaning the badly polluted Baltic Sea. -- SauliusGirnius

LITHUANIAN FINANCE MINISTER OFFERS TO RESIGN.
Rolandas Matiliauskassubmitted a letter of resignation to Prime Minister Gediminas Vagnorius on 23January, explaining he wanted to "end political speculation" and avoid damageto the Lithuanian state, Reuters reported. In 1993 while employed at theKreditas Bank, Matiliauskas received an $18,000 low-interest loan, which hethen passed on to one of the bank's owners. The bank later went bankrupt andthe loan has not yet been fully repaid. It was not clear whether Vagnoriuswould accept the resignation of the 29-year-old minister. -- Saulius Girnius

POLAND, UKRAINE TO SIGN RECONCILIATION AGREEMENT IN MAY.
UkrainianPresident Leonid Kuchma and his Polish counterpart Aleksander Kwasniewskiannounced at a press conference in Warsaw that a declaration on reconciliationwould be signed when Kuchma returns to Poland in May, Polish media reported on24 January. Kwasniewski reiterated Poland's support for Ukraine's efforts tointegrate into European structures and the Central European Free TradeAgreement, and said NATO should conclude a partnership treaty with Ukrainesimilar to the one the alliance intends to sign with Russia. The two presidentsagreed that isolating Belarus would only worsen the situation there andendanger stability in Europe. The two countries' industry ministers signed amemorandum on trade liberalization similar to the one Poland signed with Russialast November, and Kuchma received an award from the Polish Business Club forboosting bilateral trade. Polish-Ukrainian trade was estimated at $1.4 billionin 1996. -- Beata Pasek

CZECH POLICE RAID REPUBLICANS' OFFICE IN PARLIAMENT.
Police raided theparliamentary offices of the right-wing Republican Party on 22 January, Czechmedia reported. Fifteen uniformed policemen and plainclothes officers stormedthe group's premises in search of Lubomir Votava, an assistant to RepublicanChairman Miroslav Sladek. Votava is wanted in connection with his failure toappear in court for charges of assaulting a TV reporter in 1994. RepublicanDeputy Petr Zajic was allegedly injured in the storming, and Interior MinisterJan Ruml charged that Republican Deputy Milan Loukota threatened to draw afirearm against the police. The raid failed to apprehend Votava, and resultedinstead in a parliamentary resolution condemning the police's behavior.Relations between parliamentarians and Ruml's ministry were already strained byallegations that the Counterintelligence Service has been shadowing oppositionand coalition politicians. -- Ben Slay

CZECH COURT REFUSES TO REHABILITATE ALLEGED SPY.
The Czech Supreme Courthas ruled that a former Czech diplomat sentenced in 1978 for spying for Franceis not eligible for rehabilitation, CTK reported on 23 January. FrantisekVojtasek had claimed that his decision to cooperate with the Frenchintelligence service was a form of protest against the Soviet occupation.Vojtasek served 12 years in a Czechoslovak prison before being amnestied byPresident Vaclav Havel in 1990. Former Justice Minister Jan Kalvoda lodged acomplaint with the Supreme Court in May 1996 after Vojtasek's petition forrehabilitation was rejected. However, the court ruled that Vojtasek's actionsbore no direct relation to anti-communist resistance or protest againstCzechoslovakia's occupation.
-- Ben Slay

SLOVAK PROSECUTOR SAYS WESTERN COUNTRIES DELAYING KOVAC JR.INVESTIGATION.
Slovak Prosecutor General Michal Valo said in Brno on 23January that third countries are delaying the criminal investigation into thefinancial activities of the son of Slovak President Michal Kovac, CTK reported.In response to press claims that the Slovak government is dragging out theinvestigation in order to embarrass Kovac, who is locked in a power strugglewith Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar, Valo hinted that the Dutch, German, andSwiss authorities' unwillingness to promptly assist the investigation is toblame for the delay. Only the Czech Republic had responded to the Slovakgovernment's requests for assistance in a timely manner, Valo said. -- BenSlay


POLICE CRACK-DOWN MOUNTS IN SERBIA.
Tensions between protesters andpolice escalated to violence in several parts of Serbia on 23 January,NasaBorba reported. The worst example was in the city of Kragujevac, whereprotesting motorists blocking access roads were clubbed by baton-wielding riotpolice. Radio B92 reported that at least several people were seriously wounded,including an opposition member of parliament. Opposition leaders were seeminglysingled out for physical abuse and detention. The developments were triggeredby an order from the ruling Socialists to Kragujevac police to occupy a localTV and radio facility. While several hundred police officers barricadedthemselves inside the building, several thousand demonstrators encircled thefacility and threatened to enter. In protest, local TV and radio journalists
stopped working, Beta reported. In Smederevska Palanka, five leadingmembers of the Zajedno opposition coalition were arrested for taking part in anauto blockade. Police also arrested an opposition leader in Kraljevo. Belgrade,relatively calm by comparison, saw continuing mass demonstrations, with atleast 10,000 people gathering in the capital on 23 January. Students alsocontinued their around-the-clock protest of the police cordon in centralBelgrade. Zajedno leader Vuk Draskovic told Belgrade protesters: "Ourdemonstrations will only stop after our electoral victory is acknowledged." --Stan Markotich

MUSLIM REFUGEES BEGIN TRIP HOME BEHIND SERB LINES.
Some 11 Muslimsreturned to the village of Gajevi just inside Serb lines in northeastern Bosniaon 23 January. They began removing mines and preparing for 36 families toarrive on 24 January, international and regional media reported. Muslimsstarted last August to try to exercise their right under the Dayton agreementto go home, but the Serbs charged that the move was a military provocation. Thecurrent group has completed a formal procedure sponsored by the UN and agreedto by all sides to ensure that those taking part are only bona fide refugeesfrom the village in question. Several incidents involving explosions orprotests by angry Serb crowds have delayed the return to Gajevi, which was tohave started on 20 January. U.S. and Russian SFOR troops surprised ten BosnianSerb police on 23 January in the act of setting an anti-personnel mine in thearea. SFOR has now restricted the movements of the police. The 36 families willbe housed in prefabricated buildings because the old village was destroyed. --Patrick Moore

OSCE LAUNCHES BOSNIAN LOCAL ELECTION SEASON.
The OSCE-sponsoredall-Bosnian-party Political Party Consultation Council announced on 23 Januarythat registration for parties and candidates for July local elections will runfrom 9 February to 8 March, AFP reported. The lists of those certified will bepublished on 7 May. However, the thorniest question, voter registration,remains open. The local elections were postponed from 14 September last yearbecause the Serbs in particular had systematically abused a loophole in theDayton agreement and registered thousands of Serb refugees to vote in formerlymainly Muslim or Croat areas where the refugees had never lived. The Muslimsand Croats have demanded that the loophole be closed, while the Serbs insistthat it remain. The issue must be clarified by the end of January. -- PatrickMoore

LE PEN PRAISES BOSNIAN SERBS.
Jean-Marie Le Pen of France's far-rightNational Front continued his Balkan tour on 23 January by meeting with theBosnian Serb leadership in Pale, AFP reported. He told Momcilo Krajisnik, theSerbian member of the Bosnian collective presidency: "I have come to express toyou the greetings of French patriots. All the patriots of the world have incommon a set of identical values which makes us all a community of civilizedmen and women. People today no longer know what attachment to the land and thecountry is. We understand this very well." Krajisnik replied: "We very rarelyhear such words. Usually what we hear are criticisms." Le Pen was slated toreturn to Belgrade on 24 January to sign a "political alliance" with theSerbian Radical Party of Vojislav Seselj, who has been his host. -- PatrickMoore

CROATIAN INDEPENDENT RADIO KEEPS ITS LICENSE.
Zagreb's Radio 101 won around in a prolonged legal battle with Croatian authorities on 24 January,Reuters reported. The station announced in a live broadcast: "We got it! Radio101 got its concession." The National Telecommunications Council had informedRadio 101 that morning that its license had been renewed. The authorities triedto take the station's license away last November but backtracked when thelargest crowds in years turned out in central Zagreb in support of the station.Radio 101's fight is far from over, however: it must settle an alleged"ownership dispute" by 31 October. The ruling Croatian Democratic Community'sgovernment is generally intolerant of independent media, and has hounded thefew independent dailies and weeklies with lawsuits and take-overs or driventhem out of business. The government is particularly tough with electronicmedia and allows no independent television. Most independent radio stationsbesides Radio 101 broadcast music and entertainment. -- Patrick Moore

ROMANIAN MILITARY CHIEFS REPLACED.
Gen. Dumitru Cioflina, chief of theGeneral Staff, and Gen. Florentin Popa, chief of logistics, have been replacedby Gen. Constantin Degeratu and Gen. Dan Zaharia, respectively, Prime MinisterVictor Ciorbea announced on 23 January. A government press release said thereplacements were in line with standing procedure and reflected Romania'sadherence to "democratic principles," while at the same time praising the twodismissed officers, Romanian media reported. Adrian Nastase, vice chairman ofthe previously ruling Party of Social Democracy in Romania said thereplacements were unexpected and unjustified and had a "serious politicalmotivation." In an interview withJurnalul National, Deputy DefenseMinister Dudu Ionescu hinted that Cioflina might be appointed Romania'srepresentative to either NATO or the UN. Meanwhile, Ion Diaconescu, leader ofthe main party in the governing coalition, told Romanian television that thecontroversial director of the Romanian Intelligence Service, Virgil Magureanu,will not be replaced. -- Zsolt Mato

ROMANIAN STATE PROPERTY FUND RESHUFFLED.
The Standing Bureau of theChamber of Deputies decided on 23 January to dismiss three members ofparliament appointed by the previous legislature from the State Property Fundand to replace them with members representing the new governing coalition. Thefund has been accused of slowing down privatization, mismanaging its assets,and selling undervalued state property to cronies, proteges, and supporters ofthe former government. Adrian Nastase, vice chairman of the Party of SocialDemocracy in Romania, protested against the decision, saying it was prompted bypolitical motives. Nastase's party colleagues and members of the Party ofRomanian National Unity walked out of the bureau meeting in protest, Romaniantelevision reported. -- Dan Ionescu

DNIESTER LEADER WANTS AGREEMENT WITH MOLDOVA UNCHANGED.
Igor Smirnov,leader of the breakaway Dniester Republic, insists that the memorandumnegotiated with Moldova be signed without any amendments, Infotag reported on23 January. In a message addressed to Moldovan President Petru Lucinschi,Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, as well asto the head of the OSCE permanent mission in Moldova, Smirnov said thememorandum should be signed in Moscow with Russia and Ukraine acting asguarantors. He criticized the Moldovan leadership for calling for revisionsimmediately after the document was initialed by both parties on 17 June 1996.Smirnov accused Lucinschi of reneging on his election campaign pledges toquickly sign the memorandum, despite the fact that he had signed it in hisformer position of chairman of the Moldovan parliament. -- Dan Ionescu

BULGARIA'S PRESIDENT TO GIVE THE SOCIALISTS A MANDATE?
In his first fullday in office, President Petar Stoyanov held separate meetings with leaders ofthe opposition and the Bulgarian Socialist Party aimed at finding a solution tothe current political crisis, national and international media reported. Bothsides were reportedly entrenched in their positions, with the Socialistsdemanding a mandate for a new government and early elections at the end of 1997and the opposition pressing for immediate elections and a caretaker cabinetchosen by the president. However, the opposition announced that Stoyanov wouldask the Socialists to form a cabinet before he leaves for Brussels on 28January. Opposition groups and trade unions promised to call a general strikeon the day that happens. Meanwhile, a few Socialist deputies proposed as a newvariant: that Stoyanov give a mandate to a different political group within thecurrent parliament. BSP leader Georgy Parvanov described that idea as an"improvisation" and promised to solicit the opinion of the best constitutionalexperts in the country. In other news, Bulgarian economic experts cited byPari said obvious signs of hyperinflation had emerged over the past twodays. "Stores are closing and people are not buying,"Kontinentwrote on24 January, adding that thousands of vendors were on unpaid vacations anddistributors were not supplying stores with goods. -- Maria Koinova

ALBANIA BANS PYRAMID SCHEMES.
The parliament voted unanimously on 23January to ban pyramid investment schemes and announced that a draft lawconcerning compensation for cheated investors will be discussed on 27 January.Police announced the arrest of 188 people including the leaders of thecollapsed companies Populli and Xhaferi, Bashkim Driza, and Rapush Xhaferi,Albania reported. The new law went into force immediately and calls forminimum 20 years imprisonment and the confiscation of all property of peoplerunning such schemes. People convicted of abetting them may receive 10-yearsentences. Meanwhile, in Shkoder, about 1,500 people gathered outside the townhall accusing the government of failing to warn them about the risks of pyramidschemes, while about 2,500 people turned out in Durres and several hundred inElbasan. Five leftist and rightist opposition parties in Durres have jointlypledged to keep up protests, and the Socialist Party in Tirana called foranother demonstration there on 26 January. -- Fabian Schmidt

ALBANIAN OPPOSITION FIGURES ARRESTED.
Police arrested several Socialistand Social Democratic leaders on 23 January, charged them with organizing a 19January demonstration that the government branded illegal, AFP reported. Thosecharged include Socialist Secretary-General Rexhep Meidani, Social DemocraticChairman Skender Gjinushi, two other Socialists, and seven other SocialDemocratic leaders. Human Rights Watch/Helsinki said on 24 January it "condemnsin the strongest terms the use of violence by President Sali Berisha to silenceanti-government protest." The group reported that a man died in Fier on 19January at a demonstration violently broken up by police. Police claim he had aheart attack. On 22 January, well-known dissident Edi Rama and two friends wereambushed and severely beaten by two unidentified men, believed to be secretpolice,Gazeta Shqiptare reported on 24 January. -- Fabian Schmidt

[As of 1200 CET]

Compiled by Victor Gomez and Tom Warner