BOSNIA: Bosnia imposed an indefinite ban on all exports of arms and military equipment yesterday in an attempt to clean up after its Serb region was caught in violation of a UN arms embargo on Iraq.
The move followed the removal overnight of the Bosnian Serb defence minister and army chief, which brought to five the number of Bosnian Serb officials punished over the export of parts for Iraqi MiG-21 aircraft by the state-owned Orao factory.
The government imposed a total ban on military exports until it has established full control over the sector.
Earlier this month it assumed authority for the export of arms from the country's two autonomous regions.
That move followed US allegations in September that Bosnian Serb state-owned Orao supplied the Iraqi air force through the Yugoslav state trading company Jugoimport.
"The ban on import-export of arms and military equipment will remain in force until we begin issuing state-level licences," Minister for Foreign Trade and Economic Relations Mr Azra Hadziahmetovic told a news conference.
The Serb Republic and the Muslim-Croat federation share post-war Bosnia. The central government has limited powers.
In response to the US allegations, Yugoslavia last week fired Jugoimport's top director and a deputy defence minister.
The Serb Republic sacked the Orao factory director, the chief of the air force and head of its trading company. All denied wrongdoing.
The Serb Republic's Supreme Defence Council said late on Monday it had accepted the resignations, under international pressure, of Defence Minister Mr Slobodan Bilic and army chief-of-staff Gen Novica Simic "despite information that there is no direct responsibility".
International peace officials said yesterday they expected the investigation to continue and warned they might take measures if authorities failed to fully resolve the issue.
"We will be looking at the action's outcome and I would expect that the process would continue.
"If we deem the action not to be appropriate, I am prepared to take actions as required," said the commander of the NATO-led peace force, Gen William Ward of the United States. He did not elaborate further. - (Reuters)