RFE/RL Daily Report
                                   No. 159, 23 August 1994


SUMMIT IN ALPBACH CONCLUDED. The two-day summit in Alpbach of the
presidents of Austria and its neighbors ended on 22 August. The
countries represented were: Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein,
Italy, Switzerland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Slovenia and
Hungary. During a televised discussion on the future of Central
Europe, Austrian President Thomas Klestil said "an EU limited to
Western Europe will have lost its legitimacy entirely." Austria,
as a new member of the EU, would help the group to open to other
states from Central and Eastern Europe, he pledged. The EU
Executive Commission's president-designate, Jacques Santer, who
met with the leaders on 21 August, said the EU has "a moral
obligation" to help the countries of Eastern Europe with their
transition. German President Roman Herzog also stressed the need
for Western assistance to bring these countries up to EU
standards. Santer told Austrian Radio that he expects some East
European nations to become members of the EU before the year 2000
if they fulfill the necessary conditions. A series of bilateral
talks held during the summit focused on minority and property
rights and on strengthening bilateral relations. Czech President
Vaclav Havel and his Slovak counterpart Michal Kovac discussed the
current political situation in their respective countries, as well
as the return of the Bojnice altar to Slovakia.  Sharon Fisher,
RFE/RL, Inc.


  [As of 1200 CET]
  Compiled by bess Brown and Anna  Sabbat-Swidlicka
Copyright 1994, RFE/RL, Inc. All rights reserved.