B4-1367, 1399 and 1400/95

Resolution on the fate of the French pilots Frédéric Chiffot and José Souvignet

The European Parliament,

A.concerned at the fate of the French airmen, Captain Frédéric Chiffot and Lieutenant José Souvignet, shot down by Serbian units over Bosnia-Herzegovina on 30 August 1995,

B.whereas Serbian troops claim to have captured the two pilots,

C.whereas the two pilots were subsequently seen and photographed alive and the Serbian President, Slobodan Milosevic, again stated at the beginning of October 1995 that they were alive and that he took personal responsibility for their safety,

D.whereas since then the Serbian authorities have released no more news and are maintaining a steady silence on the subject although rumours that they may have been executed are multiplying,

1.Calls for the immediate release of the two pilots, whose safety has been guaranteed by President Milosevic;

2.Expresses its sympathy and support for the families of Captain Chiffot and Lieutenant Souvignet;

3.Condemns the Serbian authorities' total silence on the fate of the two French officers captured by Serbian forces in August;

4.Calls on the Council and the Commission to conduct without delay an investigation, with all the resources at their disposal, into this matter;

5.Calls on the Council to bring the full range of diplomatic pressure to bear on the Serbian authorities so that the latter conduct a speedy inquiry into the fate of the two French pilots;

6.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.