Muslims threaten Serbian link

MUSLIM-led Bosnian government forces pressed on yesterday with an offensive in east-central Bosnia that has begun to make inroads into Serbian positions over the last week. The offensive is directed at Serb-held areas near the town of Vlasenica and, if successful, would cut an important supply route from Serbia to the Bosnian- Serb political headquarters at Pale, outside Sarajevo.

United Nations sources said the battle lines were confused in this part of Bosnia but that they intended to accept Muslim army claims of advances made at Serbian expense. In apparent retaliation, Bosnian-Serb forces shelled the Muslim-held city of Tuzla, hitting the main hotel. On Tuesday they fired upon Tuzla airport, which is under UN control.

Sarajevo airport, also under UN control, was struck by a mortar bomb yesterday in violation of the heavy weapons exclusion zone that Nato has declared around the capital. It was unclear whether the mortar was fired from Serbian or Muslim positions.

On Tuesday Nato warplanes came close to striking at Bosnian Serb positions, but were called off after the Serbs promised to stop shelling Tuzla airport, the UN revealed yesterday.

The continued fighting seemed likely to undermine the latest efforts of the US, Russia and the European Union to put an end to the two-year-old Bosnian war. Neither the Serbs nor the newly allied Muslims and Croats have warmed to the proposal of the great powers to allocate 49 per cent of Bosnia's territory to the Serbs and 51 per cent to a Muslim-Croat federation.

The Bosnian-Serb leader, Radovan Karadzic, told the international mediators Lord Owen and Thorvald Stoltenberg on Tuesday night that his side was willing to accept a Western-Russian proposal for a general ceasefire lasting four months in Bosnia. 'We want the war to end,' he said.

However, the Muslim leadership fears that a four-month truce would allow the Serbs to consolidate their hold on 70 per cent of Bosnia. Muslim leaders argue that, if the West wants the Bosnian government to get a better deal, it should not press for a ceasefire that would freeze Serbian gains.

After a ceasefire took effect in Croatia in January 1992, following six months of Serb-Croat warfare, the Serbs were left in de facto control of 30 per cent of Croatia. Two years and four months later, the Serbs remain in that position and show little sign of being deflected from their goal of uniting with Serbia in an enlarged state. That is the objective of the Bosnian-Serb leadership and it explains why Mr Karadzic is enthusiastic about a general ceasefire in Bosnia.

SARAJEVO - Eleven French aid workers held by Bosnian Serbs on arms smuggling charges were released yesterday and flown by helicopter from Sarajevo to a French warship in the Adriatic, Reuter reports. But the Yugoslav news agency, Tanjug, reported that the criminal charges against them still stand.