LATVIAN ARMY DEPLETED.

President Guntis Ulmanis yesterday asked Latvia’s government to urgently prepare a law on mandatory military service. Under existing law, 87 percent of youth aged 19 to 25 are eligible for exemption. Lower ranks currently in uniform are down to some 4,000. Anticipating a failure of the spring draft, the army is now requiring conscripts to serve beyond the statutory 12 months. (BNS, March 1 & 6)

Belarus Goes for Nuclear Power.