Minister sacked in arms-to-Iraq scandal

Minister sacked in arms-to-Iraq scandal

YUGOSLAVIA: Belgrade sacked a deputy defense minister on Tuesday
after NATO accused a Bosnian Serb firm of exporting military
hardware to Iraq via a Yugoslav company in violation of UN
sanctions.

The director of Yugoslavia's import-export agency was also
sacked, the official Tanjug news agency said.

U.S. and Bosnian officials said NATO peacekeepers amassed
proof of the exports after inspecting the Bosnian Serb Orao
company. The U.S. embassy accused it last month of selling Iraq
spare parts and services for Soviet-era MiG-21 warplanes.

Tanjug published a statement saying the Yugoslav cabinet
decided to sack Assistant Defense Minister Ivan Djokic and the
director of state trade company Jugoimport, Jovan Cekovic.
It ordered Jugoimport to close its office in Baghdad and set up a
commission to probe whether criminal offenses took place.
--Reuters