February 18, 1996
Web posted at: 9:00 p.m. EST (0200 GMT)
From Correspondent Christiane Amanpour
ROME (CNN) -- Intense negotiations among Balkan leaders appear to have eased tensions which had undermined implementation of Bosnia's peace accord in recent weeks.
"In the last few days we confronted three or four major problems simultaneously, "U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Richard Holbrooke said Sunday after the two-day emergency conference ended. "Had we not resolved those problems here in Rome, we would have had a crisis next week. So Rome has averted a crisis."
Holbrooke reported that all sides had agreed to resume contacts which had broken down and renewed their commitment to the Dayton peace accord. Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic and Croatian President Franjo Tudjman participated in the summit.
The Muslims and Croats also agreed to settle how the divided city of Mostar should be administered and made progress on the question of Sarajevo's future.
The Balkan presidents compromised on Mostar, the cornerstone not only of the Muslim-Croat federation but the whole peace process. According to the compromise the city will be reunified with a joint government, joint police force and freedom of movement for all.
"We could have crumbled and if Mostar falls apart, the federation falls apart. If the federation falls apart, when NATO leaves, the whole thing could fall apart," Holbrooke said. (94K AIFF sound or 94K WAV sound)
Milosevic promised that the Bosnian Serbs would resume contacts with the NATO-led peace enforcers, which broke off after the Bosnian government arrested officers suspected of committing war crimes.
The United States pledged to work toward suspension of U.N. sanctions against the Serbs, a move Milosevic called "the most wonderful news."
All sides restated their commitment to cooperate with the international tribunal investigating war crimes. But Milosevic has yet to deliver on a pledge to remove Bosnian Serbs who've already been indicted for war crimes.
That issue is rapidly becoming a top priority for the international community.
"There is no way the country can go on if part of it is run by people indicted by an international war crimes tribunal," said Holbrooke, who is stepping down from his State Department post this week.
To stem the exodus of Serbs from Sarajevo and to restore their confidence in suburbs that will soon return to Bosnian Federation control, all sides agreed to supplement the Dayton deal allowing the Serbs in those suburbs to participate in local government and in the local police force.
Milosevic and Izetbegovic also agreed to meet once a month and set up a telephone hot-line to establish better lines of communication.
While praising the progress they made, the negotiators warned that what matters is not so much the agreements they reached, but honoring them on the ground.
They also called on the international community to shore up the fragile peace with funds to rebuild Bosnia.
"We have much work to do, and we have lost time through the last few weeks," said Bosnia Peace Coordinator Carl Bildt. "We can't afford to lose time; we must go forward." (111K AIFF sound or 111K WAV sound)
Reuters contributed to this report.
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