Yugoslav Army Stands Poised on the Borders
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Yugoslav army stands poised on the t orders Yugoslav federal army T-55 tanks at Krsko, on the border of Slovenia and Croatia, where clashes continued yesterday as federal troops tried to break out of positions encircled by Slovene units Photograph: David Rose YUGOSLAVIA'S armed forces fanned out across the country yester- day in preparation for what their chief Tank columns roll and trapped federal troops try to break out, of staff called a decisive strike against the secessionist republics of Slovenia amid coup claims and hints that West will recognise secession and Croatia. Late last night, however, some Slo- and Croatia, clashes continued near column approaching from Belgrade. vene fighters and federal troops were the border separating the two repub- By Tony Barber in Belgrade, Marcus Tanner in Ljubljana They are massing on our borders," reported to be disengaging, but Slo- lics as the Yugoslav army tried to and Sarah Helm in London s aid Janez Slapar, chief of the Slovene vene leaders suggested the army might break out of positions encircled by territorial Defence force. be regrouping for a "brutal assault". Slovene defence units. eral army was "running amok" and, in tween Serbs, Croats and Muslim Slavs, Across the border in Croatia, mem- Radio reports said some federal units Slovene officials, whose offer of a a telephone call to the Yugoslav lead- The third unit went in the middle, ers of that republic's National Guard poised earlier to thrust into Slovenia truce was rejected by the army oin er, Stipe Mesic, repeated Bonn's de- north-west toward Slovenia, i jeans and flak jackets and carrying were heading south into Croatia. Tuesday, said earlier they would let mand for an "immediate halt to all Fears instantly rose that the armed talashnikov rifles manned check- A Reuter correspondent saw 11 army helicopters fly in to extract military actions" by the army. forces, having apparently taken con- oints and searched cars. "The Yugo- armoured vehicles pull out of the stranded troops. But the republic's in- Participants in the emergency meet- trol of the government, were planning s av air force is bombing towns and vil- Gornja Radgona frontier post with formation minister, Jelko Kacin, de- ing in Prague of the 35-nation Confer- a full-scale assault to bring Slovenia 1 iges in Slovenia and can do the same Austria and drive off under a truce nounced the military's actions, saying: ence on Security and Co-operation in and Croatia to heel. ling here," said the Croatian com- agreement with Slovene forces that "What the army is doing in Slovenia is Europe appealed for peace and re- In Slovenia, alarm grew after Jelco lander in Sotin. "It is a scandal that had encircled them since Friday. A simply unacceptable." portedly reached a "broad consensus" Kacin, the Slovene Information Minis- le world is doing nothing." similar withdrawal was reported at World leaders responded with ever- on sending in observers. ter, said officials had intercepted a In Zagreb, where the army opened Koruska, and Italian border police stronger words of warning, a degree of The army rolled top-level army com- re on Tuesday on Croatian demon- rators throwing petrol bombs and said Yugoslav troops had withdrawn punitive action, and frantic consulta- in acti n n he 8 munication that or- f° ° J i Army's 'secret' plan ones at military vehicles, defence of- from a post at Pese, facing Trieste. tion. Britain halted exports of arms middle of Tuesday r j :„ o dered an attack. It n f cials said the republic would resist command member. General Adzic has The military denied that it had and high-technology goods to Yugo- night when a 20-mile aers ^norea came from General a ly aggression by the Yugoslav army. publicly rejected talk of a truce witth seized power.but all the signs were slavia by revoking all export licences. column of tanks, pCr , £3 Blagoje Adzic, the Civilian federal authority appeared Slovenes. However, General Andreja that real authority in Belgrade lay with The Foreign Secretary, Douglas Hurd, armoured personnel reter Jenkins -2D army chief of staff, ) have disintegrated. The Prime Min- Raseta, deputy commander of the an inner core of generals in the high said in a Commons statement: "The carriers, artillery and Mr Kacin said, and ter, Ante Markovic, disappeared fifth military district, which covers Slo- command. The Austrian foreign min- old system is in an advanced state of supply vehicles with thousands of told all soldiers to prepare for an at- om public sight on Tuesday, giving venia, said there had been no military ister, Alois Mock, said a meeting of decay and cannot survive. The army troops rumbled out of the Belgrade tack on Slovenia within hours. But rise to rumours that he had been ar- coup and the army would hold its fire the Yugoslav presidency today would cannot hold Yugoslavia together in suburb of Banjica on the highway to Western military sources said the ini- r :sted or murdered. Yesterday his of- in Slovenia unless attacked. show who was in control. "There is no this way — indeed they have acceler- Zagreb, the Croatian capital. It then tial objective appeared more limited, f :e said he was working normally. A • The first of 2,400 British holidaiy- doubt," he said on Austrian television, ated its disintegration." split into three detachments. Western Noting that the high command is dom- s lokesman for the federal presidency, makers were arriving home last night "that the political leadership, at least In Washington, the Secretary of sources said the first headed for east- inated by Serbian Communists, they hich nominally controls the armed and early this morning from Yugosla- for 24 hours, was shut out." But he State, James Baker, said the United ern Croatia, near the town of Osijek, said the deployment looked like an at- & irces, said it had tried without success via. Flights from Trieste, where the added that, following telephone con- States and the EC were studying a pos- where clashes between Serbs and tempt to secure Serbia's borders t< i meet to discuss the crisis. The impli- tourists had fled in chartered boalts, versations with Yugoslav leaders, "I sible arms and aid embargo against Croats have flared almost every day against intrusions from rival republics, c ition was that the army was operating were landing at Gatwick, Birminghaim have the impression ... that at least a Yugoslavia, which he described as "on since Slovenia and Croatia declared During the day, tanks from military w ith a free hand. The two key figures and Manchester. Another 2,500 touir- dialogue has been re-established." the brink of fully fledged civil war". independence on 25 June. The second bases in Croatia massed at several a >pear to be General Adzic and Gen- ists still in the country have been ad- The German Foreign Minister, steamed towards Serbia's border with points on the frontier with Slovenia, As the West signalled that it might e al Marko Negovanovic, another high vised to leave. recognise independence for Slovenia Hans-Dietrich Genscher, said the fed- Bosnia, where tensions are high be- waiting for reinforcements from the .