BOSNIAN SERBS BUILDING UP TROOPS IN BRCKO AREA

ZOVIK, May 4 (Hina) - Bosnian Croat and Moslem civilian and military authorities in the northern Brcko area welcome any solution that will put a stop to Serbian aggression, including the latest UN proposal to establish a safe zone, the local Croat Defence Council (HVO) command said in a statement Wednesday. However, the HVO command warned the international community saying: "Since the conflict in Bosnia-Herzegovina has been provoked by neither Croats nor Bosniac Moslems, any action which would not effectively stop Serbs could only obstruct the armed forces of two nations and enable spreading of aggression." The HVO commander in the Brcko area, Martin Francesevic, said it was not clear which areas would be included in the safe zone. "If the international community intends to create a situation as in Gorazde and other allegedly safe havens, it would be far better for us if the arms embargo were lifted so that we can defend ourselves," Francesevic said, adding that any solution that would confirm Serb conquests in Bosnia was unacceptable. Francesevic went on to remind that according to the latest population census 20.8 percent of Serbs and 70 percent of Moslems and Croats lived in the Brcko area, the fact usually forgotten at peace talks. The HVO commander expressed dissatisfaction with media coverages of the recent severest Serb offensive in the area, which started on 11 April this year. About 20 thousand artillery shells have struck the strategic village of Boderiste during the offensive. According to the latest reports from the ground, Serb forces continued amassing manpower and equipment in the area but no major attacks had been recorded, he said. The town of Brcko, situated by the Sava river, and the greatest part of the municipality have been under Serb control since the outbreak of war in Bosnia. The strategic corridor linking Serb-occupied territories in Bosnia and Croatia to Serbia proper is the narrowest at Brcko. Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic told Belgrade radio three days ago that the Serbs could not accept any change of the status of Brcko because of its strategic importance. 041738 MET may 94