REGIONAL SECURITY DEVELOPMENTS.

The Baltic and Nordic Foreign Ministers agreed at a joint meeting in Kolding (Denmark) August 31 that the Baltic states should be given first consideration for admission to the West European Union at WEU’s upcoming ministerial conference; and that they should be accorded equal opportunities with the Central and East European states for possible admission to NATO. The latter point indirectly refutes German foreign minister Volker Ruehe’s recent controversial statement that the Baltic states would be considered after Central and East European countries. Meanwhile Estonia’s defense minister Andrus Oovel officially asked Ruehe for assistance in obtaining German technical equipment for the Estonian navy and its bases, ETA reported. On August 31, Oovel and Poland’s defense minister Zbigniew Wojciech Okonski concluded in Tallinn a framework agreement on military cooperation and also agreed on mutual support in seeking admission to NATO and in promoting a concrete action plan for NATO’s enlargement.

Ukraine Seeks Payments Agreement on Black Sea Fleet.