Mesic thanked Semneby for everything he had done as mission chief and for assisting Croatia in carrying out the tasks lying ahead of it, including democratisation, strengthening the rule of law and the return of refugees who wish to return to their prewar homes in Croatia.
Semneby said that Croatia had made "extraordinary progress" during his three-year term in office and added that he hoped that the OSCE Mission had helped Croatia, at least in small part, to achieve the status of candidate for European Union membership.
Semneby very positively evaluated the views of the Croatian president, praising his political leadership regarding all the difficult issued faced by the OSCE in Croatia. He highlighted the importance of continuing the processes that had been initiated, particularly the need for further work on reconciliation both within and outside Croatia.
Refugees in Serbia should be encouraged more strongly to return if they so wish, and this requires a signal from the Croatian side that they are welcome and not just that their return is tolerated, Semneby said.
Semneby added that incidents that have a negative impact on refugees outside Croatia should be prevented.
Semneby said he agreed with Mesic on the need for the continued implementation of the Constitutional Law on the Protection of National Minorities, the need to ensure greater participation of members of the national minorities in state administration bodies, and the need to create conditions for economic growth and for the economic revival of all parts of Croatia, especially those devastated by war.
Semneby will be leading the OSCE Mission in Croatia until April 30. According to unofficial sources, he will be replaced by Spanish diplomat Jorge Fuentes Monzonis-Villalonga as the fourth head of the OSCE Mission since its establishment in 1996.