NAM-YUGOSLAVIA: In Founding Member, NAM is Only a Memory

By Vesna Peric Zimonjic Reprint | | Print |

Vesna Peric Zimonjic

BELGRADE, Oct 17 1995 (IPS) - Is Cartagena the name of a rum? The name of a late-model car? A tropical island?

As leaders and officials from 113 nations gather in that city on the Colombian coast for the non-aligned movement’s (NAM) latest summit, many people here could not care less about the outcome.

Disinterest is palpable, discussion muted. Yugoslavia, a founder member of NAM and host of its first summit, is no longer at the movement’s centre.

Cartagena, Colombia, the NAM Summit: in former Yugoslavia these are subjects for foreign policy experts and journalists. As far as the public is concerned, NAM is an odd acronym from the days when General Josip Tito ruled Yugoslavia, and the nation was prominent in Third World political affairs.

Those with long memories will recall the Sixth summit of non- aligned countries in Havana in 1979. There Tito was recognised. A special resolution expressed deep appreciation for his contribution in formulating the principles and goals of non- alignment.

Tito’s tireless efforts in preserving and strengthening the unity and solidarity of non-aligned countries, and his personal contribution to the establishment of a more equitable, just and peaceful order in the world were hailed.

Looking even further backwards into time, there was the founding NAM summit here, in 1961. Twenty-five nations attended. The 9th NAM summit was also in Belgrade, in September 1989, with scores more countries.

Now, the preoccupation here is with preserving the Serb nation from the disorder of a disintegrating Yugoslavia. With wars in Croatia and Bosnia since 1991 and 1992 respectively, the destruction of the former homeland and economic shambles around them, Serbians have a blurred image of the outside world. Their range of concerns is limited to matters closer to home.

Problems to be tackled in Cartagena, like developing a strategy and programme for the new post-Cold War era, and advancing economic and social development, seem distant to many here.

“The nonaligned countries will try to find their new ‘place under the sun’ in Cartagena, after the disappearance of the bipolar division of the world and that can be seen from the rich agenda of the summit,” said Dejan Djordjevic, a noted foreign policy analyst.

There has been no official comment here on the fact that Serbia’s active membership within the United Nations has been frozen, as well as its membership within the Organisation of European Security and Cooperation (OSCE).

Official media of the country – central Belgrade TV and the state controlled news agency Tanjug – so far have not even mentioned the NAM summit, which opens Oct. 18 and ends Oct 20.

Most observers in Belgrade say officials are silent about NAM because of their fresh memory of the Jakarta (Indonesia) summit in 1992, when Islamic countries denounced Belgrade for its role in the war in Bosnia.

Foreign ministry sources here say Ali Alatas, foreign minister of Indonesia, which hosted the last summit, and Ilija Djukic, rump Yugoslavia’s foreign minister at the time, reached “a gentlemen’s agreement” to keep the country’s membership alive at the summit in 1992.

They say one of the conditions was that Belgrade keep a low profile within the movement and not interfere with the desire of ex-Yugoslav republics (Croatia, Slovenia or Bosnia) to join.

This part of the agreement was kept by rump Yugoslavia. However, foreign ministery sources said Yugoslavia was marginalised none the less as a result of pressure from Islamic nations.

No Yugoslav representative attended the NAM conference of information ministers held in Pyongyang in 1993, while in 1994, Egypt, Belgrade did not receive an invitation for the foreign ministers conference of NAM.

“Yet, the most important thing remains that no formal decision on suspension of Yugoslav membership or exclusion from the movement was formally brought until today,” one source said. “This could be the sign of doors being left open for the times after the settlement of the Balkan crisis.”

Official sources here say African countries helped forge a compromise which allowed an “empty chair” to be kept for Yugoslavia in Cartagena – a place for a delegation and a plate with the country’s name.

“The problem of active membership will be related to Yugoslavia’s membership in other international organisations – like the United Nations,” said one foreign ministry source.

One leading expert on NAM, Ranko Petkovic, editor-in-chief of the monthly International Politics, said the problem of Yugoslavia’s relations with the movement would be solved once the crisis in former Yugoslavia reached the final stage.

“There still exist common interests between the countries of the Third World and Yugoslavia,” said Petkovic. The nonaligned movement has not lost its raison d’etre, he believes, despite the disappearance of the bipolar world.

Djordjevic found it ironic that Yugoslavia was in the situation of having to fight for its return to the NAM, although it was the founder of the movement together with India and Egypt.

“This country will need a great diplomatic offensive if it really wants to get back where it once was, first of all with the Islamic countries that have tried to exclude Yugoslavia from the movement,” he said.

Before then, however, there are problems closer to home waiting to be resolved.