FOR THE RECORD: Statement of Central European presidents (06/06/99)

FOR THE RECORD: Statement of Central European presidents

Below is the text of the statement by presidents of the Central European countries - Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovenia and Ukraine - issued on May 15 in Lviv. (The text was released by Embassy of Ukraine in Canada.)

We the presidents of the Central European countries, strongly condemn the systematic terror in Kosovo, cruelties against children, rapes, robberies and expulsions which are used as the means for ethnic cleansing.

We express our sorrow for the victims and for the suffering of innocent civilians in the whole of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

We welcome all international contributions to bring this grave crisis to a quick end. We call on the government in Belgrade to undertake the commitments which the international community demands as a precondition for a peaceful solution and which have been called for, in particular by the ministers of foreign affairs of the G-8 countries on their statement of May 6, 1999.

We attach special importance to the U.N. Security Council in resolving the Kosovo crisis in cooperation with other relevant international organizations.

The countries bordering the area of conflict are exposed to severe burdens because of the recent developments. We recognize the contribution made by those countries to alleviate human suffering. Extraordinary work has been done by international relief agencies, especially the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

We must not limit ourselves to coping with the short-term aspects of the crisis. Lasting peace in South-Eastern Europe will only be possible if a future of democracy, civil society, prosperity, and security is offered to this region. A high-level conference on South-Eastern Europe should elaborate a Stability Pact, including a comprehensive strategy for the stabilization of the entire region through economic reconstruction, the promotion of democracy, and inclusion in European integration and the Euro-Atlantic structures.

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