U.N. PREVENTS CROATIAN CIVILIANS FROM ENTERING SEPARATION ZONE

OSIJEK, March 14 (Hina) - The Croatian army commander for the Osijek military zone, Major-General Djuro Decak, today sent a letter to the commander of the UN Protection Force in Sector East, Major-General Alexander Perelyakin, protesting at the "unacceptable behaviour of members of the UN Russian Battalion." Decak complained that Russian peacekeepers had been preventing Croatian civilians from entering a part of the separation zone and working in their fields in the Nustar area. Decak recalled that the Zagreb ceasefire agreement defined the separation zone as an area under UNPROFOR supervision. He added that the Croatian side expected that this would lead to the normalization of the situation and make it possible for civilians of both sides to till their land. Decak stressed that the situation had worsened after the Russian Battalion took over. Decak said that Osijek agricultural farm workers today came under fire as they tried to work in the fields in the Josipin Dvor area. He stressed that the workers had not entered the separation zone when they were fired at. Decak expressed regret that UNPROFOR was unable to guarantee safety for the Indian ambassador, currently on a visit to Osijek County, who had to cancel his planned visits to some of the towns inside the separation zone. (hina) mm vm 141732 MET mar 95