Bosnia imposed an indefiniteban on all exports of arms and military equipment today inan attempt to clean up after its Serb region was caught inviolation of a U.N. arms embargo on Iraq.
The move followed the removal overnight of the Bosnian Serbdefence minister and army chief, which brought to five thenumber of Bosnian Serb officials punished over the export ofparts for Iraqi MiG-21 aircraft by the state-owned Orao factory.
The government imposed a total ban on military exports untilit has established full control over the sector. Earlier thismonth it assumed authority for the export of arms from thecountry's two autonomous regions.
That move followed U.S. allegations in September thatBosnian Serb state-owned Orao supplied the Iraqi air forcethrough the Yugoslav state trading company Jugoimport.
"The ban on import-export of arms and military equipmentwill remain in force until we begin issuing state-levellicences," Minister for Foreign Trade and Economic RelationsAzra Hadziahmetovic told a news conference.
The Serb Republic and the Muslim-Croat federation sharepost-war Bosnia. The central government has limited powers.
In response to the U.S. allegations, Yugoslavia last weekfired Jugoimport's top director and a deputy defence minister.The Serb Republic sacked the Orao factory director, the chief ofthe air force and head of its trading company. All deniedwrongdoing.
The Serb Republic's Supreme Defence Council said late last night it had accepted the resignations, under internationalpressure, of Defence Minister Slobodan Bilic and armychief-of-staff General Novica Simic "despite information thatthere is no direct responsibility".
International peace officials said on Tuesday they expectedthe investigation to continue and warned they might takemeasures if authorities failed to fully resolve the issue.