Word: croats
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...this hothouse environment. On Wednesday morning, even before delivering a pep talk to the three Presidents at the plenary session, Christopher visited the private quarters of each to chide them about actions their countries might take that could derail the talks. He warned Tudjman not to undercut Bosnia's Croat-Muslim federation and told him point-blank to knock off the brinkmanship over eastern Slavonia, the hotly contested sliver of Croatia still controlled by rebel Serbs. The Secretary instructed Izetbegovic to keep his distance from the media and told Milosevic that his failure to do anything about ongoing atrocities...
...negotiators are expected to spend at least half their time defining the nature and powers of a government that will preserve Bosnia as a single country--but will be composed of two distinct pieces, a Serbian "Republika Srpska" and the already existing Muslim-Croat federation. These entities are also to be given latitude to forge links with Serbia and Croatia proper...
Finally, if nothing else scuttles the talks, there is the status of Sarajevo--considered by Holbrooke to be "the Jerusalem [the most intractable problem] of the Bosnian situation." Muslims want an undivided city to serve as the capital of both Bosnia and the Muslim-Croat federation. Serbs want to divide it into ethnic sections, possibly separated by Berlin-style walls...
...what a diplomat calls his "muddle through" policy had been a disaster. The Administration thus became more forceful about finding an answer. Then there was a crucial meeting in London that resulted in a shift of authority on the ground from the U.N. to NATO. Finally in August, the Croats launched a scorching offensive on the Serbs in the Krajina region, and the Croat-Bosnian federation attacked the Serbs in northwestern Bosnia. The Bosnian Serbs lost more and more ground, and in late September they were ready to deal...
Nevertheless, there is cause for optimism. One reason for hope is that a balance of power has been reached. The Bosnian Serbs have lost a great deal of ground since the summer as the Croat-Muslim allies have attacked them; they used to control almost 70% of Bosnia but now hold about 50%. Last week, however, the Bosnian Serbs were suddenly counterattacking with some success. "The Serbian offensive this week was a major factor in making the cease-fire possible," Holbrooke said in an interview with TIME. As he spoke in his hotel room in Rome, he kept...