Singular vectors of quantum group representations for straight Lie algebra roots

We give explicit formulae for singular vectors of Verma modules over U_q(G), where G is any complex simple Lie algebra. The vectors we present correspond exhaustively to a class of positive roots of G which we call straight roots. In some special cases, we give singular vectors corresponding to arbitrary positive roots. For our vectors we use a special basis of U_q(G ^-), where G ^- is the negative roots subalgebra of G, which was introducted in our earlier work in the case q=1. This basis seems more economical than the Poincaré-Birkhoff-Witt type of basis used by Malikov, Feigin, and Fuchs for the construction of singular vectors of Verma modules in the case q=1. Furthermore, this basis turns out to be part of a general basis recently introduced for other reasons by Lusztig for U_q(^-), where ^- is a Borel subalgebra of G.A. v. Humboldt-Stiftung fellow, permanent address and after 22 September 1991: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Nuclear Research and Nuclear Energy, 1784 Sofia, Bulgaria.