I propose to take Questions Nos. 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 13, 14, 19, 37, 39, 43, 52, 53, 59, 65, 73, 77 and 81 together.
The acceptance of the Vance-Owen plan by Bosnian Serb leader Karadzic in Athens on 2 May offered the hope of a resolution to the dreadful conflict which has brought so much suffering to the people of Bosnia. Its rejection earlier this morning by the Bosnian Serb Assembly is a major setback. Nevertheless, the fact that the authorities in Belgrade are now actively supporting implementation of the plan is an important and encouraging development.
The vote by the Bosnian Serb Assembly is an arrogant and dangerous development. It is a further challenge to the international community and to the United Nations. The Security Council will meet later today to consider what action needs to be taken, including the pressure to be exerted on the Bosnian Serbs. I hope that it will be possible for the Security Council to build upon the more co-operative approach demonstrated by President Milosevic.
We must not be deflected by the decision of the Bosnian Serb Assembly. The Security Council must continue, actively and urgently, its consideration of the preparations for the implementation of the plan. This is an enormous challenge and would require the deployment of a very large peace-keeping force under UN auspices. Ireland has not to date been requested to supply personnel to this force. Any approach from the Secretary-General on this matter will be considered carefully by the Government.
I share the view of the UN Secretary-General that the peace package provides the only mechanism available for the re-establishment of peace, with justice and respect for human rights, in Bosnia-Hercegovina and that the rapid implementation of the plan offers the best prospects for improving the situation there. The Vance-Owen plan requires the Bosnian Serbs to withdraw from large areas of Bosnia which they acquired by brutal and indiscriminate force.
The Government has been actively pursuing a policy involving a combination of increased pressure on Serbia through sanctions, while underlining the determination of the international community to ensure that continued defiance, by the Bosnian Serbs and by Serbia and Montenegro, of the decisions of the UN Security Council would not be tolerated. This view was expressed very clearly by the Irish representative in the debate in the Security Council on 20 April.
It was the view which the Tánaiste expressed at the meeting of EC Foreign Ministers in Denmark on 24-25 April. At this meeting, Ministers considered a range of options for additional measures to bring about peace in former Yugoslavia. They agreed that the policy of isolating Serbia and Montenegro, through the strict application of the provisions of Security Council Resolution 820, offered the best hope of obtaining implementation of the Vance-Owen plan.
On the basis of an Irish proposal, Ministers also considered the possibility of establishing additional safe areas in Bosnia so that protection could be afforded to the Muslim population. I very much hope that, if implementation of the Vance-Owen plan proceeds, it will not prove necessary to establish further safe havens or areas. However, it remains an option that may need to be considered, particularly in the light of the Bosnian Serb Assembly's decision earlier today. Additional UN peacekeeping troops would be required in Bosnia to establish such areas.
I sincerely hope that the Bosnian Serbs can, even at this late stage, be brought to co-operate with the peace process and implement the Vance-Owen plan, thus obviating the need for further enforcement measures. Should this not be the case, should the killing continue, it would be necessary, as we said in the Security Council for the council to consider all the options open to it under Chapter VII of the Charter.
I wish to pay tribute to the UN peace-keeping forces and the humanitarian aid personnel on the ground in Bosnia. Hundreds of thousands of Bosnians would have perished last winter had it not been for their efforts. The European Community and its member states have been the main contributors to the international relief operation in the former Yugoslavia, since the start of the conflict in 1991. The Community and its member states have, to date, covered 58 per cent of the expenditure by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, which is the lead agency in the operation, and 73 per cent of the cost of the food distribution operation being carried out by the world food programme.
Since 1991, the European Community has committed a total of 350 million ECU in emergency assistance to victims of conflict. In view of the seriousness of the humanitarian situation in Bosnia, a further allocation of 150 million ECU was agreed on 29 April, 1993. The precise breakdown of this extra expenditure is still under consideration. However, it will include further substantial contributions to the UNHCR, to the world food programme and to other agencies involved in the delivery of emergency food and medical assistance to over 3.8 million refugees and other victims of the conflict.
We will continue to stay in very close liaison with our EC partners. Bosnia will be discussed by EC Foreign Ministers at their next meeting in Brussels on 10 May and at the European Council in June. Proposals are also under consideration for a full meeting of the International Conference on Yugoslavia.