OMRI DAILY DIGEST
No. 209, 29 October 1996

DUMA BLASTS NATO ENLARGEMENT. The State Duma adopted a resolution by a
307-0 vote warning that enlargement of NATO could trigger a "serious
crisis" resembling the dispute between NATO and the Warsaw Pact over
intermediate-range nuclear missiles in the 1980s, Russian and Western
agencies reported on 25 October. The resolution argued that
"competition" between prospective NATO members in Eastern Europe could
have unpredictable consequences, and claimed that Poland, the Czech
Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia would face "catastrophic" military
expenditures of some $100 billion by 2010 if they join the alliance. --
Scott Parrish

CONGRESS OF HUNGARIAN CIVIC PARTY IN SLOVAKIA. Laszlo Nagy was reelected
chairman of the Hungarian Civic Party (MOS) at its congress, held on 27
October, Slovak press reported. The MOS is a member of the coalition of
ethnic Hungarian parties in the Slovak parliament. Nagy told the
congress that the government of Vladimir Meciar has introduced a
parliamentary dictatorship in Slovakia, the daily SME reported. Nagy
said that the southern part of Slovakia, where most Hungarians live, is
a disaster compared to the other parts of the country. -- Anna Siskova

HUNGARY'S RADICAL RIGHT-WING HOLDS DEMONSTRATION IN BUDAPEST. Tens of
thousands of demonstrators called for radical moves and unity among
"national" forces at an anti-government rally outside parliament on 27
October, Hungarian media reported. The rally was organized by the far-
right extra-parliamentary Hungarian Justice and Life Party. The crowd
called for the resignation of top government politicians. Several
foreigners were invited as guest speakers, among them Jean-Marie Le Pen,
president of France's far-right National Front. Le Pen firmly rejected
the idea of European unity. -- Zsofia Szilagyi


[As of 12:00 CET]

Compiled by Pete Baumgartner
Compiled by Valentina Huber