Croatia Delays Expelling UN Peacekeepers Amid Revamp Proposal

Croatian President Franjo Tudjman has announced that his country will permit UN peacekeeping troops to stay beyond March 31, when the UN mandate expires, on an interim basis. This decision comes as the US proposes to revamp the UN mission, scaling back the number of soldiers from 15,000 to around 5,000 and redeploying them to border areas controlled by ethnic Serbs. Tudjman's move is seen as a crucial development to prevent widespread fighting in Croatia and potentially trigger all-out war in the Balkans.

Key Takeaways:

• Croatia will delay expelling UN peacekeeping troops, allowing them to stay on an interim basis beyond March 31.
• The UN mandate will need to be revised to scale back the number of soldiers from 15,000 to around 5,000.
• The revised mandate will redeploy troops to border areas controlled by ethnic Serbs.
• US Vice President Al Gore has hailed the decision and will lead the effort in the UN Security Council to change the peacekeepers' mission.
• U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali has welcomed the development and plans to meet with Tudjman in New York next week to discuss the issue.
• The Croatian government is seeking to restore sovereignty over territory currently controlled by ethnic Serbs.
• The international community is being urged to address "acts of aggressive policies and armed conflicts" in Croatia.

Statistics:

• 15,000: The current number of UN peacekeeping troops in Croatia.
• 5,000: The proposed reduced number of UN peacekeeping troops.
• March 31: The original expiration date of the UN mandate.
• March 12: The date of the news conference where Tudjman made the announcement.
• 1: The country that will lead the effort in the UN Security Council to change the peacekeepers' mission, the United States.

Sources:

• Croatia's President Franjo Tudjman
• US Vice President Al Gore
• U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali
• Reuters, "Croatia Delays Expelling U.N. Troops Amid U.S. Revamp Proposal" (March 12)