Eastern countries refuse to close deal on Nazi slave laborer compensation

Poland, Russia, Czech Republic, Belarus and Ukraine refused to issue a final statement about the compensation deal for Nazi slave laborers. The official celebration of an agreement was to take place in Berlin during U.S. president Bill Clinton's visit to Germany which started today. The German Parliament did not finish drafting the legislation on the creation of a fund which is to manage DM 10 billion allocated for compensation. The problem of the timing of the payment also remains unsolved. Despite that the new law should be passed before summer. The first compensation payments are expected to be made by the end of the year. In Poland about 500,000 people qualify. (Zycie, page 5) A.D.