EVENTS

NATO AGREES TO BLOCKADE YUGOSLAVIA

The NATO allies agreed "in principle" yesterday to help impose a naval blockade on Yugoslavia as a way to force it to stop the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The NATO announcement came two days after the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution paving the way for a naval blockade. NATO and the Western European Union already have 10 warships patrolling the Adriatic Sea, but under current rules, these ships can only monitor traffic. Now they may be allowed to intercept suspected smugglers. France against accord

France, caught between the risks of sparking a farmers' revolt or a European Community crisis, yesterday denounced an accord on agricultural trade likely to be concluded by the EC and the United States. A government statement issued after an emergency inner-cabinet meeting said the conditions for a global and balanced accord did not exist (Story, Page 8). Greece in EC military

Greece signs up this week for duty in the European Community's new military wing, which will forge closer ties with its partners but could also set the stage for a clash over operations in the war-torn Balkans. Foreign Minister Michael Papaconstantinou will sign a formal protocol of accession to the Western European Union tomorrow. US trade deficit high

The US trade deficit remained stuck near a two-year high in September as imports surged to a record level, offsetting a sharp rise in exports, which also hit an all-time high, the government said yesterday. The Commerce Department said that the overall deficit, the difference between imports and exports, was $8.31 billion in September, down only slightly from a deficit of $8.95 billion in August. Both figures are the highest since November 1990. Havel to run for president

Writer-turned-president Vaclav Havel marked the third anniversary of his "velvet revolution" against communism Tuesday by formally announcing that he will run for the presidency of the Czech republic after it splits from Slovakia on Jan. 1. He has the support of 57 percent of Czechs in one opinion poll. US hunts terrorists

The United States is mounting an international search and offering $2 million rewards for Iranian-backed terrorist suspects, officials report. The Justice Department has obtained sealed indictments against at least four alleged terrorists identified by US intelligence this year as responsible for killing American hostages in Lebanon and blowing up at least one airliner, US officials say. Nixon gets compensation

More than 18 years later, Richard Nixon is about to collect from the taxpayers for the documents and tapes that were seized in the Watergate investigations that drove him from the presidency. A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the government must pay the ex-president for the impounded - and still held - materials. Miami's `homeless zones'

Miami city officials say a judge's order establishing "safe zones" for the city's homeless will create more problems by harming city businesses. Mayor Xavier Suarez says he will appeal US District Judge C. Clyde Atkins's ruling that orders the city to designate two areas where homeless people can eat, sleep, and bathe without being disturbed by police. Shining Path attacks

Suspected Shining Path guerrillas exploded a car bomb in a middle-class district of Lima Tuesday night, killing at least one person and wounding five others as they launched a wave of attacks to protest Sunday's constituent assembly elections. Yeltsin visits S. Korea

Russian President Boris Yeltsin arrived in Seoul Wednesday for a historic three-day visit aimed at forging a new political and economic partnership with South Korea, a former adversary.