RFE/RL NEWSLINE
Vol. 1, No. 14, 18 April 1997

SLOVAK FOREIGN MINISTER IN BRUSSELS. Pavol Hamzik
has asked NATO not to overlook his country's bid for
membership in the alliance, TASR reported. Hamzik was
speaking yesterday in Brussels, where he met with NATO
Secretary-General Javier Solana and other officials. Hamzik
said the process of change in Slovakia was "absolutely
comparable to the one taking place in Poland, the Czech
Republic, and Hungary." He asked for "understanding and
support" from NATO over the issue of Slovak gold that
Bratislava says Prague is unlawfully holding.

HUNGARIAN FOREIGN MINISTER DENIES APPLYING FOR
NATO MEMBERSHIP. Laszlo Kovacs has denied reports that
Hungary has officially applied for admission to NATO (see
RFE/RL Newsline, 17 April 1997). He told Hungarian state TV
yesterday that in his 16 April talks at NATO headquarters in
Brussels, he confirmed Hungary's desire to join the alliance
and described the country's preparations for achieving that
goal, which, he said, were "received positively." He added that
the government considers it important to hold a referendum
on joining NATO, although it is not obliged to do so under the
constitution.

HUNGARIAN INTELLIGENCE OFFICE SCANDAL. Gabor Kiss,
a Socialist Party deputy, has denied informing on party
members, Nepszabadsag reported yesterday. Last month, two
members of the Intelligence Office were dismissed for having
collected information on Socialist deputies without informing
either the Minister for Secret Services Istvan Nikolitis or the
legislature's National Security Committee. Magyar Hirlap
reveals today that it received a warning from Nikolitis on 16
April that it would be violating state secrets if it published
Kiss's denial. Meanwhile, the board of the Health Insurance
Authority has voted to ask the cabinet to dismiss Agnes Cser
as director-general of the Health Insurance Fund, thereby
rejecting the recommendation of Welfare Minister Mihaly
Kokeny (see RFE/RL Newsline, 14 and 15 April 1997).

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