NATO COMMANDER FOR EUROPE TALKS TO BH FEDERAL DEFENCE MINISTER

( Editorial: --> 2366 ) SARAJEVO, Aug 7 (Hina) - NATO commander for Europe General Wesley Clark on Friday held talks in Sarajevo with the Defence Minister of the Croat-Muslim Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina Ante Jelavic. Clark assessed the talks as very interesting and emphasised they focused on security, the return of refugees and displaced persons, Croatian members of the federal army, and the overall situation in Bosnia in this pre-electoral period. Jelavic told me he was fully committed to the return of refugees and displaced persons to their homes, said General Clark. He assured me he would de everything in his power not to include members of the army in pre-electoral activities and that soldiers would not be active in party policy, Clark added. According to Jelavic, the talks emphasised that refugees and displaced persons must return to Stolac, southern Bosnia, and Drvar, western Bosnia, as well as to Bugojno, Travnik and other parts of central Bosnia. "There was also talk about the September election, especially about the participation of federal army members, and in this respect I advocated the depoliticisation of the army and the police", said Jelavic, who is also the president of the Croatian Democratic Union of BH (HDZ BH). Not one professional soldier or policeman will appear on HDZ BH's lists of candidates, he stressed. "We agreed in concluding that the September election is a sort of watershed in the democratisation of BH and in the creation of stronger assumptions for the implementation of the civil part of the (Dayton) peace agreement", Jelavic said. (hina) ha 071548 MET aug 98