BOSNIAN CROAT ARMY COMMANDER CALLS ON OFFICERS TO BE DISOBEDIENT

MOSTAR, March 20 (Hina) - A Bosnian Croat army commander told reporters in Mostar on Tuesday the Croat component of Bosnia- Herzegovina's Croat-Muslim entity army would stay outside the entity army until the political status of Bosnian Croats was regulated. "We will respect only the will of the Croat electorate, which has been expressed through the will of the Croat National Assembly of Bosnia-Herzegovina," said Mijo Jelic, commander of the First Croatian Guard Corps of the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina Army. According to Jelic, the reason for not recognising the new federal ministry of defence and the Joint Command of the BH Federation Army is the unlawful appointment of Defence Minister Mijo Anic and Federation Army Deputy Commander Ivo Lozancic because these officials do not enjoy the support of the Croat people. Jelic urged all Croat soldiers, officers and non-commissioned officers who he said had not taken anyone's side yet not to support "so-called Croats who do not have the support of their people and are willing to sell national interests for a handful of scudi." Jelic claims the entire commanding structure in the First Croatian Guard Corps of the Federation Army will not recognise the current Croat representatives in the federal defence ministry and the Joint Command. He showed reporters a list with the names of 51 officers who he said had demonstrated solidarity with the Croat people and did not recognise the country's current authority. According to Jelic, between 80 and 90 percent of Croat officers have left the Federation Defence Ministry and the Joint Command. The Croat National Assembly will soon resolve the problem of officers' salaries, he added. The First Croatian Guard Corps has confirmed that BH Federation Army insignia have been replaced on their uniforms with the symbols of Bosnia-Herzegovina state flags. "We support a single BH army with three components - the Croat, Bosniak (Muslim) and Serb," Jelic said. Jelic is aware of the fact that Croat officers could be replaced, arrested and suspended for refusing to be loyal to the Defence Ministry and the Joint Command. "We know that we can be disarmed at any moment. We have asked SFOR to control arms in our warehouses so that incidents are avoided," Jelic said, adding there would be no extremism or escalation of the situation and the Croat military component would continue fulfilling its obligations toward the international community. (hina) rml