NEW MILITARY BALANCE IN BOSNIA COULD ENCOURAGE PEACE TALKS

GENEVA, Nov 7 (Hina) - Bosnian army offensives and Serb counteroffensives could create a new military balance in the Bosnian war which could encourage new peace talks, UN general secretary special envoy Yasushi Akashi said in Geneva today. Speaking ahead of a meeting of UN senior officials on the escalation of hostilities in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Akashi said the new military situation could make Bosnian Serbs reconsider the big- power Contact Group peace plan which they had persistently rejected. Akashi told Reuters Television he believed government forces would continue to press Serbs for more territory so the situation did not leave much room for optimism. Akashi said sooner or later a military balance would be achieved. Asked whether Serbs would relent on their rejection of the peace plan, Akashi replied that with a change in the situation, they could become more open to the Contact Group. (hina) mm sd vm 071819 MET nov 94