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SACEUR-BULGARIA

• Media appear to be reporting extensively on Gen. Ralston’s remarks at a news conference in Sofia this morning as he concluded a visit to Bulgaria. An AP report highlights that he said political concerns may override military ones when the Alliance moves to enlarge. "The reform in the Bulgarian army may not be completed but there may be overriding political reasons why the 19 NATO members would want Bulgaria to join," the dispatch quotes Gen. Ralston saying, noting that he used his host country as example after a day of talks with the country’s leaders. The dispatch adds that he would not elaborate what political reasoning may be behind such a move. It also remarks that Gen. Ralston stressed that Bulgaria had made "tremendous progress" in military reforms, which included cutting the country’s army to some 60,000 from 120,000. Gen. Ralston denied speculation that the allies want new candidates to release Russian-trained officers, said the dispatch, adding he said reductions in personnel meant that "many of those officers that were trained in Russia will have to leave," but only as part of general cuts meant to change the military’s top-heavy structure favoring officers. The dispatch further notes that Gen. Ralston said the allies would accept as "an interim decision" Bulgarian government plans to adapt its 20 Russian-made MiG-29 jet fighters to NATO standards instead of instantly replacing them with costly western planes. "At some point the Bulgarian air force will need a western fighter. The issue is timing," the dispatch quotes Gen. Ralston saying. A related Reuters dispatch focuses on a purported call by Gen. Ralston for Bulgaria to push ahead with army reforms. "NATO’s top soldier urged Bulgaria … to press ahead with difficult reforms of its top-heavy army to meet criteria for membership of the Alliance," says the dispatch, quoting Gen. Ralston saying: "There are many things on which to claim a success, but there are aspects that are not yet completed, for example to draw down the military forces…. We should have a pyramid with the generals at the top and privates at the bottom. We can’t have an inverted pyramid with one private and 10 generals. We have to downsize to get the pyramid right…. The (armed forces) have gone from 120,000 to some 60,000 now, but they have another 15,000 to go. They are under schedule and all of us realize how difficult it is." The dispatch observes that the issue has raised passions in Bulgaria, where job cuts in the army have previously been unthinkable. Local media also focus on Gen. Ralston’s remarks on the Bulgarian army reforms. "In Gen. Ralston’s words, the Bulgarian army needs to be downsized in order to have a correct pyramid of ranks," says the BTA news agency. It notes that Gen. Ralston said there is no requirement or pressure whatsoever from NATO on Bulgaria to lay off Russian trained officers. The report stresses that Gen. Ralston assessed highly the work of the army’s General Staff under the leadership of Gen. Mikhov, as well as the Plan 2004 for reforms in the army. It adds that to illustrate the positive changes in the Bulgarian army, Gen. Ralston quoted an excerpt from a letter by COMSFOR, Gen. Sylvester, according to whom the Bulgarian company is performing magnificently, and is the best guard force he has seen during his two and half years in Bosnia. In a similar vein, Sofia’s Khorizont Radio quoted Gen. Ralston saying he highly values the activity of the Bulgarian Army General Staff in implementing the military reform. The broadcast also quoted Gen. Mikhov, commander of the Bulgarian Army General Staff, saying that during his talks with Gen. Ralston, he presented to him the idea of creating a national center on air sovereignty. According to Gen. Mikhov, the report continued, Gen. Ralston approved the idea and said it was a step toward Bulgaria’s integration with NATO’s military standards.

• From the NATO air base at Geilenkirchen, Germany, CNN carried a 2.21 minute feature, in which NATO Secretary General Robertson, on board a NATO AWACS and wearing the jacket of the multinational flight crew, said the deployment of the aircraft to the United States to monitor the U.S. eastern seaboard was more than just symbolic. "These AWACS are the eyes and ears of homeland defense for the United States. They’re there because they are needed, because the American AWACS have got to go to the other side of the world," the program showed Lord Robertson saying. The feature, which also focused on NATO’s support for a possible extension of the war on terror to Iraq, observed that NATO’s commitment to the war on terror is wholehearted, but that does not include support for an extension of war to Iraq—at least not yet. Against this background, the program carried Lord Robertson saying that "so far the United States have publicly made it clear they do not have evidence linking the Iraqi regime to the attacks on Washignton and New York, but that could change. More information might become available." Lord Robertson also said he knew of no plans to attack Iraq at the moment, but that "if intelligence were showing that Saddam Hussein was giving support or hiding Al Qaeda people, then "clearly the North Atlantic Council would want to know about it to consider the implications." Asked whether evidence that Iraq was constructing weapons of mass destruction would be enough, Lord Robertson replied: "The Iraqi capacity in weapons of mass destruction is well known, and of course they are in breach of the UN Security Council resolutions by not allowing inspectors to be in there at this stage. So they represent a potential threat to the international community. But as far as NATO is concerned, as it stands at the moment, it has to be linked to the attacks on Washignton and New York." Commenting on Lord Robertson’s remarks, the broadcast concluded: "So the word from NATO is that diplomatic and material support, such as the AWACS aircraft, will continue to flow to the United States so long as the war is confined to reprisals (for the Sept. 11 attacks). But on the sensitive issue of Iraq there is still much debate and division in the NATO ranks." Frankfurter Rundschau reports that in Geilenkirchen, Lord Robertson said he thought the AWACS’ mission over the United States would continue after April 1. It was "more than likely that the deployment would continue," the newspaper quotes him saying and adding that the United States had not yet asked for an extension of the mission but he was expecting a request "in the next few weeks." Belgian daily Gazet van Antwerpen reports that during a visit to Geilenkirchen to welcome AWACS crews returning from the United States, Lord Robertson confirmed that the invocation of Article 5 would remain valid until the international campaign against terror is over.

AFGHANISTAN

Defense Secretary Hoon’s announcement that Britain is sending a 1,700-strong battle group led by Royal Marines to Afghanistan to help American troops root out remnants of Al Qaeda and the Taliban generates prominent interest in British media.

The Daily Telegraph observes that it will be the biggest deployment for combat operations since the Gulf war. The daily notes that Hoon warned parliamentarians to expect casualties and emphasized the troops’ fighting role, compared with the peacekeeping duties of the 1,800 British troops operating in the framework of ISAF. The newspaper suggests that the decision will be seen as an admission that flushing out the Taliban and Al Qaeda is proving tougher than expected.

The Independent emphasizes that the force is being sent at the request of U.S. military chiefs and will be used for combat, acting separately from the British paratroops on peacekeeping duties with ISAF.

BALKANS

• BBC News reported that Secretary of State Powell warned Monday that Yugoslavia could lose $40 million in vital financial aid if it does not start to cooperate with the ICTY. "If they are not deserving they won’t get it. If they are, they will, and they know what they have to do and we’ll keep the pressure on," the program quoted Powell saying after a meeting with ICTY Chief Prosecutor Carla del Ponte. The broadcast recalled that the dramatic arrest of former President Milosevic in April last year coincided with a deadline for international aid, which was subsequently granted. Now, it added, there is speculation that Yugoslav authorities will carry out other high-profile arrests to secure more funds.

• AP reports that saying he was a victim of a "monstrous" fabrication, Serbia’s Deputy Prime Minister Momcilo Perisic bowed to political pressure and resigned Tuesday because of accusation that he spied for the United States. The dispatch recalls that Yugoslav military officials arrested Perisic and an American diplomat in a Belgrade restaurant Thursday. The military said Perisic was giving documents to the U.S. diplomat that were "relevant for the defense of the country." Other Yugoslav officials have said the documents could have been used against Milosevic at his ICTY trial, adds the dispatch.

OTHER NEWS

• The website of Italian weekly L’Espresso reports that addressing the Defense Commission of the lower house of Parliament this morning, Italy’s Defense Minister Martino said conscript service would be abolished by the end of 2004, two years earlier than planned.

 FINAL ITEM