BRIEF NEWS BULLETIN IN ENGLISH NO. 4137

HR-BULLETINS-Politika BRIEF NEWS BULLETIN IN ENGLISH NO. 4137 BRIEF NEWS BULLETIN IN ENGLISH NO. 4137HINA Zagreb 6 October 2001MESIC ON DISPUTE BETWEEN DEFENCE MINISTER, MILITARY CHIEF-OF-STAFFZAGREB, Oct 6 (Hina) - President Stipe Mesic, the supreme commander of the armed forces, said on Saturday that he had to establish all the facts before deciding about a request for the replacement of the military chief-of-staff, Gen. Petar Stipetic. Mesic made the statement in an evening newscast in connection with a recent dispute between Stipetic and Defence Minister Jozo Rados. "I heard about these disagreements from the media, and when I arrived at my office I found a letter from Minister Rados (requesting that Stipetic be relieved of duty)," said Mesic. In a recent interview with Novi List daily, Rados described as "deep politicisation and a departure from basic democratic principles" a statement Stipetic made to the effect that "the defence minister wishes to introduce dictatorship", and an