STATE OF EMERGENCY DECLARED

STATE OF EMERGENCY DECLARED
The Supreme Defense Council of Serbia and Montenegro tonight authorized the engaging of the Army of Serbia and Montenegro in the battle against terrorism

Report Radio Jugoslavia
Belgrade, March 12, 2003

The Supreme Defense Council of Serbia and Montenegro tonight authorized the engaging of the Army of Serbia and Montenegro in the battle against terrorism and the removing of the cause of the state of emergency in Serbia, in coordination with the Ministry of the Interior.

The announcement from today_s session of the Supreme Council in Belgrade also says that the chief of the General Staff of the Army of Serbia and Montenegro has authorized the raising of the army's combat readiness following today's assassination of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic.

The Supreme Defense Council has brought the following conclusions, which we are broadcasting in full:

1) The Supreme Defense Council is severely condemning the assassination of Zoran Djindjic and authorizing the Serbian government to undertake measures in the battle against terrorism and organized crime and a resolve in the uncovering of the perpetrators and organizers of this criminal act.

2) Full cooperation between the Ministry of the Interior of Serbia and Montenegro is required, and military security is counseled for rendering full assistance to the Serbian Ministry of the Interior.

3) The chief of the General Staff of the Army of Serbia and Montenegro is authorized to undertake measures in the raising of the army's combat readiness.

Along with these conclusions, the Supreme Defense Council also reached a decision on the engaging of the Army of Serbia and Montenegro in the battle against terrorism and the removing of the causes of a state of emergency, in coordination with the Serbian Ministry of the Interior.

The chair of the session was the president of the state union of Serbia and Montenegro, Svetozar Marovic, and present were the acting president of Serbia and Montenegro, Natasa Micic and Filip Vujanovic, who are members of the Supreme Defense Council by their functions, and the chief of the Generals' Staff of Serbia and Montenegro, Branko Krga, the vice-president of the Serbian government Nebojsa Covic, the previous federal minister of the police Zoran Zivkovic, the ministers of the police of Serbia and Montenegro Dusan Mihajlovic and Milan Filipovic, the head of the federal diplomatic service Goran Svilanovic and the president of the Assembly of Serbia and Montenegro, Dragoljub Micunovic, as well as the secretary of the Supreme Defense Council, counter-admiral Dusan Stajic. The session started with a minute's silence.