UN seeks to shore up ceasefire in Bosnia

THE United Nations Secretary-General, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, is to take immediate advice from the UN Security Council on action to shore up the deteriorating ceasefire in Bosnia. The Western powers and Russia yesterday agreed on the shape of a map carving up the state that is to be presented to the warring parties as the basis for a peace settlement.

The UN special representative, Yasushi Akashi, in Brussels with senior military commanders partly to answer Nato criticism that the UN is not taking a tough enough line in Bosnia, said the month-long ceasefire there was shaky 'but not yet dead'.

He added: 'The ceasefire is under great threat; the UN Secretary-General will report to the Security Council very soon, possibly on Thursday (today) for guidance on the matter.'

On Tuesday, Bosnian Serb and Muslim-led forces fought over a strategic supply route, and UN officials warned the ceasefire had virtually collapsed.

The 'contact group', comprising the US, Russia, France, Britain and Germany, meanwhile agreed on a map that divides Bosnia, giving the Croats and Muslims 51 per cent of the territory and the Serbs 49 per cent. The French Foreign Ministry spokesman, Richard Duque, said the group also agreed on incentives to be offered if the warring parties accepted the deal. But he warned of sanctions if they did not comply.

The group will now meet at ministerial level on Tuesday to formalise arrangements in advance of the Naples meeting of the G7 industrial nations.

There is, however, no indication the partition plan will be acceptable to the warring parties. Only the Croats so far seem amenable; the Bosnian government and Bosnian Serbs are, according to diplomats in Bosnia, completely opposed. If the map is thrown out, the consensus among the contact group is likely to be lost, and the withdrawal of UN troops has been mooted.

THE European Court of Justice yesterday refused to order Greece to lift its embargo against the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia imposed by Athens in retaliation for its 'territorial ambitions'. The European Commission said the action contravened free-trade rules and demanded an emergency interim ruling lifting the ban.

The court decided the embargo did not constitute the risk of 'grave and irreparable damage', the only grounds for an emergency injunction. It will consider the case as part of the normal working schedule - a process likely to take at least 18 months. 'We are very, very happy, and optimistic about the final outcome, for once thinks have come down on our side,' a spokesman at the Greek delegation to the EU said.

(Photograph omitted)