Latest Accord Is Case in Point as Fighting Flares in Croatia

Fighting flared Saturday in Croatia even as the republic and the Yugoslav army agreed to the evacuation of troops from a Zagreb base in exchange for safe passage of a relief convoy bound for Vukovar.

The proposed accord met with trouble soon after it was reached. Two-thirds of the army vehicles preparing to evacuate were halted inside the federal Borongaj barracks, and the relief convoy was stopped for a third time from reaching Vukovar’s trapped Croats.

However, a meeting Saturday between federal and Croatian commanders led to a plan for the convoy to make a fourth attempt to leave today. Officials said the wounded, as well as women and children, would be evacuated.

Heavy fighting erupted overnight and drove more than 5,000 refugees from the Karlovac area of Croatia, further dimming hopes for a European-mediated peace plan.

From Karlovac, 25 miles southwest of Zagreb, the Croatian capital, the refugees fled to the neighboring republic of Slovenia--which joined Croatia in declaring independence June 25, Zagreb radio said.

Officials in Karlovac, speaking by telephone, reported deaths but denied a Zagreb radio report of up to 64 killed. An independent count could not be obtained.

Also Saturday, former U.S. Secretary of State Cyrus R. Vance arrived on a fact-finding trip as special envoy to U.N. Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar.

Vance refused to comment on a possible settlement of the conflict. He said he would meet Foreign Minister Budimir Loncar, federal Prime Minister Ante Markovic, Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic and Defense Minister Gen. Veljko Kadijevic.

Ethnic Serbian militiamen and federal army forces launched attacks Friday night and early Saturday around Karlovac and in eastern Croatia. Some fighting continued there during the day.

Defense officials in Zagreb said Croatian fighters were forced Saturday to abandon the town of Lipik, 60 miles southeast of Zagreb, under pressure of an army tank and infantry attack.

They said the army also was training heavy artillery on the neighboring town of Pakrac and surrounding villages.

A 50-truck relief convoy that was turned back twice set out from Djakovo, about 20 miles west of Vinkovci, toward Vukovar, an hour after the first batch of soldiers and trucks left the Zagreb barracks. After the convoy arrived in Vinkovci, relief coordinator Miljenko Marjanovic said he had been told by the local national guard commander that it was impossible to proceed because Vukovar was under constant bombardment.

He also insisted that the convoy would not go on without the protection of European Community monitors, who had left for Zagreb for lack of safety.