PRESIDENTS ADDRESS SECURITY ISSUES ON U.S. VISIT.

At a National Press Club news conference in Washington, the presidents of the three Baltic states reaffirmed their determination to seek early admission to NATO despite uncertain signals received from the alliance and the U.S. On behalf of the three presidents and in a gesture of Baltic solidarity, Lithuania’s Algirdas Brazauskas expressed concern over U.S.-accepted amendments to the treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe which adversely affect the security of the other two Baltic states. Lithuania itself is directly affected by the massive concentration of Russian forces in Kaliningrad (Koenigsberg) region bordering on Lithuania, Brazauskas said. Expressing hope that a growing Western economic presence in that region may offset the potential security threat, he called for implementation of Russian president Boris Yeltsin’s plan to give that region the status of a special economic zone. (BNS, June 27) Brazauskas, Estonia’s Lennart Meri, and Latvia’s Guntis Ulmanis are completing today an unprecedented joint official visit to the U.S.

Ukraine Adopts New Constitution.