U.S. UNBLOCKING OF EX-YU. ASSETS TO BENEFIT SERBIA, MONTENEGRO

WASHINGTON, Dec 28 (Hina) - The United States decision Friday to unfreeze a hefty part of ex-Yugoslavia's assets will primarily benefit Serbia and Montenegro, although the other successors to the former federation may set their claims to those assets, diplomatic sources in the U.S. told Hina on Saturday. #L# The State Department said in a statement yesterday the U.S. had decided to unblock a significant share of ex-Yugoslav property frozen during last decade's wars in the region. The State Department referred to a decision of the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury to unblock the property the U.S. froze as part of sanctions against Slobodan Milosevic's Yugoslavia (Serbia & Montenegro) because of the wars in the region. The decision states the aim is to help Serbia and Montenegro recover from the Milosevic regime. The two republics will be able to use the assets within 60 days of the decision's going into force. The decision primarily refers to Serbian and Montenegrin sovereign property, and excludes the property of diplomatic and consular offices of the former Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia, the property belonging to persons affiliated with Milosevic, and the assets of the former federation's central bank. The U.S. decision simultaneously enables both individuals and governments of the successor states to protect their interests with regard to the assets. The State Department said in its statement it hoped to help with economic progress and boosting trade in the entire region of Southeast Europe. A diplomatic source told Hina Croatia had participated in talks on the unblocking of assets and supported the U.S. decision. Croatia, however, primarily expects the U.S. to help shed light on what happened to the hundreds of millions of dollars which belonged to the former federation's central bank, of which 90 percent is believed to be missing, the source added. (hina) ha