- Title: BOSNIA HERZEGOVINA: NEGOTIATIONS TO UNITE CITY OF MOSTAR FAIL
- Date: 4th August 1996
- Summary: MOSTAR, BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA (AUGUST 5, 1996) (AGENCY POOL - ACCESS ALL) 1. GV EXTERIOR HOTEL ERO 0.05 2. LV HOTEL LOBBY 0.09 3. SCU MAYOR OF MOSLEM EASTERN MOSTAR, SAFET ORUCEVIC SAYING THE EU (EUROPEAN UNION) IS TALKING RIGHT NOW WITH THE OTHER SIDE TO FIND A COMPROMISE SOLUTION. WE HAVE TO SET UP A CITY COUNTIL MEETING AND ELECT A NEW MAYOR. WE PROPOSED THE CROAT SIDE A COMPROMISE SOLUTION AND THEY DIDN'T WANT IT. NOW THEY'RE OPPOSING SOMETHING ELSE AND PROBABLY WE'LL KNOW THE ANSWER TOMORROW (SERBO-CROAT) 0.29 4. LV HOTEL RECEPTION 0.31 5. SCU ORUCEVIJ SAYING NOTHING HAS BEEN SIGNED YET. ONE THING IS STILL NOT SORTED OUT BUT WE'VE AGREED TO EVERYTHING ELSE. THE QUESTION IS ABOUT THE CITY COUNCIL. THE CROAT SIDE IS INSISTING THAT THE PROBLEM OVER VOTING IN BONN BE SORTED OUT. UNDER THEIR PROPOSITION THE CITY COUNCIL WILL NOT WORK UNTIL THIS HAS BEEN RESOLVED. WE ARE ASKING JUST WHAT THE DEADLINE IS FOR THE CITY COUNCIL TO WORK. ACCORDING TO OUR LAWS THE CITY COUNCIL HAS TO MEET EVERY 60 DAYS AND WE ARE ASKING THAT THE COUNCIL SHOULD MEET MORE OFTEN. THE COURT HAS TO DECIDE AND EVERYBODY HAS THE RIGHT TO PETITION THE COURT. IT'S IN OUR INTERESTS FOR THE EU TO STAY HERE. IT'S ALSO IN THE INTERESTS OF THE CROAT SIDE. WE WANT MR. GARROD TO OBEY HIS DUTIES HERE, WE WANT TO ELECT A MAYOR OF MOSTAR. OUR ATTITUDE IS STILL THE SAME BUT WE WILL TRY TO FIND A COMPROMISE SOLUTION IN THE CITY OF MOSTAR (SERBO-CROAT) 1.52 6. SCU CROAT PRESIDENT OF THE CROATIAN DEMOCRATIC UNION (HDZ) IN MOSTAR MILE PULJIC SAYING THEY RECEIVED ONE TEXT FROM THE EU. WE ARE PREPARED TO SIGN THE AGREEMENT TONIGHT BUT THE MUSLIMS DIDN'T WANT TO. I DON'T KNOW WHY, AND I ASSUME THEY DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY THEY DIDN'T WANT TO ACCEPT IT (SERBO-CROAT) 2.23 7. GV EXTERIOR HOTEL ERO 2.29 8. MV EUROPEAN UNION (EU) REPRESENTATIVE SIR MARTIN GARROD SPEAKING (ENGLISH) 3.21 9. SCU JOURNALISTS IN HOTEL LOBBY 3.24 TRANSCRIPT SEQ.8. GARROD "WE DID NOT ACHIEVE AN AGREEMENT. THE TWO SIDES COULD NOT AGREE WITH EACH OTHER. I'M AFRAID IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE TO ACHIEVE RECONCILIATION. WE TALKED ROUND AND ROUND THE SUBJECT FOR SIX HOURS AND WE DIDN'T BUDGE VERY FAR FROM WHERE WE STARTED. I AM REPORTING TO THE EU PRESIDENCY AND I DON'T SEE THE LIKELIHOOD OF ANY FURTHER TALKS."
- Embargoed: 19th August 1996 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: MOSTAR, BOSNIA HERZEGOVINA
- Country: Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Topics: International Relations
- Reuters ID: LVAD1SJNGP4Q13NX3V43O1T55ZS9
- Story Text: Six hours of negotiations to unite the Bosnian city of Mostar have failed. The deadlock between Bosnian Croats and Moslems was left unresolved on Monday just hours before the European Union was due to start talks on ending its two year mission to rebuild and reunify the shattered city.
---------------------------------------------------------- The talks between Bosnian Croats and Moslems ended on Monday (August 5) without resolving a dispute over communal power-sharing that threatens Bosnia's fragile peace, European Union (EU) envoy Sir Martin Garrod said.
"No agreement, no reconciliation," Garrod told reporters waiting outside the Hotel Ero after intensive late-night negotiations over local elections in the divided town of Mostar.
"The two sides could not agree with each other. We talked around and around the subject for six hours and I don't think we really budged very far from where we started," he said.
But the Moslem mayor Safet Orucevic hinted that a compromise was still possible.
"The EU has come up with some new compromise solutions and tomorrow we will probably know the definite answer -- either from the EU alone, or from the two sides who will define their attitude during the day," Orucevic said.
Early on Monday, departing Croat officials blamed Moslems for the failure of the latest negotaitions.
"We are prepared to sign the agreement (..) but the Moslems didn't want to," Mile Puljic, President of the local Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), said.
Garrod was in sombre mood and said he did not expect any further talks.
"The two sides could not agree with each other," he said, "I'm afraid it was impossible to achieve reconciliation." The talks ended just hours before the European Union presidency was due to discuss Garrod's threat to end the EU's two-year mission to rebuild and reunify the shattered city.
But an EU spokesman the EU was expected to deliver written confirmation of the withdrawal by 11 a.m. (0900 GMT), and the last EU officials would turn out the lights within six to eight weeks.
Senior Moslem and Croat politicians joined talks for the second day running, in a bid to end the deadlock that diplomats fear could scupper the entire peace process.
At the heart of the dispute lies the hardline nationalist Croats' refusal to accept a Moslem victory in the poll to elect a new Mostar council.
The Croats boycotted the council over a voting irregularity that the EU's ombudsman ruled was too minor to affect the result.
Early on Monday, departing Croat officials blamed Moslems for the failure of the latest negotaitions. - Copyright Holder: POOL (CAN SELL)
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