ROANOKE TIMES 

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, October 21, 1995                   TAG: 9510230115
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM                                LENGTH: Short

NATO CHIEF QUITS IN FACE OF CHARGES

NATO Secretary General Willy Claes resigned Friday to face corruption charges in his native Belgium, throwing the Western alliance into a leadership crisis as it prepares for a major military mission to Bosnia.

Claes' resignation means NATO is seeking its third top executive in just 13 months, all the while trying to find consensus among Russia and its 16 members on Bosnia and possible NATO expansion into Eastern Europe.

Claes, 56, failed to persuade Belgium's parliament on Thursday to preserve his immunity from prosecution. He will face charges of bribery, forgery and abuse of office in connection with a helicopter contract awarded during his tenure as Belgian economy minister in 1988.

- Associated Press 


 by CNB