U.S. Calls on FRY Regime to Respect the Will of the People
U.S. Mission to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe
Vienna
October 5, 2000
STATEMENT ON THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA
Delivered by Ambassador David T. Johnson to the Permanent Council
Thank you, Madame Chairperson. As our colleague from the OSCE
Representative from the Media office made clear, events in the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia remain quite fluid. The opposition continues to
focus on a general strike and civil disobedience to put pressure on
the regime to respect the will of the Serb people as expressed on
September 24. We support them fully.
Last night's FRY Constitutional Court "announcement" that it was
annulling a part of the electoral procedure, with press reports
specifying that the annulment applies to the round one Presidential
results, makes the situation even more murky. We may get a more
complete announcement and the decision itself later today. The
opposition is clearly skeptical, as it should be, about what the
decision might mean. It may be that the regime is simply trying to
create uncertainty and to buy time.
The United States continues to support fully the position of the
opposition that there is no basis for a second round of Presidential
elections -- since the opposition won a majority in the first round.
We believe that strong, effective, popular action by the people of
Serbia will be the critical element in forcing Milosevic to accept
reality.
It is clear that the coming hours and days will be crucial. We should
not be surprised by the desperate efforts of the regime to try to turn
events to its advantage, to continue to play for more time, and to
string the process out. But Milosevic cannot avoid the reality that
the Serbian people have chosen a new president.
He should listen to the will of the Serb people, refrain from
violence, and respect the true results of the elections. Thank you.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
