The two president said that a lot had been done lately in the development of good-neighbourly relations between Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro, that contacts at all levels had been intensified and that the two countries shared the same objective - joining the European Union.
After his talks with Marovic, the Croatian head of state told reporters that there were legal frameworks and agreements which ensured the enhancement of bilateral cooperation and the settlement of open issues. In this context he mentioned the problem of missing people and refugees as well as the property-related issues.
All of this should be solved so as to close the book of war as soon as possible," Mesic said adding that the two countries should turn to the future. However, he added, what happened must not be forgotten and the individual responsibility of those accountable for war crimes should be established by local courts and the Hague-based UN war crimes tribunal.
"Citizens of both countries must realise that we cannot be slaves to the past, and that we must turn to the future," Mesic told reporters, adding that he had invited Marovic to visit Croatia.
Asked by reporters whether his forthcoming visit to Kosovo means that he would like to assume a role of the leader in the region, the Croatian president answered that he "has neither intention nor illusion about that", and that his visit to Pristina should be treated as an attempt to create a more peaceful, secure and better life for citizens. In this context his meetings with representatives of ethnic Croats in Subotica, Kosovo and Montenegro as well as meetings with ethnic Serb refugees from Croatia should also be looked at, Mesic said.
Asked by reporters whether in light of his statement that guilt for war crimes should be individualised one could expect of Croatia to withdraw a lawsuit it lodged against the SCG before the International Court of Justice, Mesic answered that he had "no mandate to answer such a question" and that it was up to the Croatian government.
Asked whether he and Marovic would support an initiative for declaring 11 July as a day of mourning in countries in the region in memory of the July 1995 Srebrenica massacre, Mesic said that that crime which was the gravest war crime after the Second World War, should not be relativised by some other crimes.
SCG President Marovic said that this decision did not depend on him, recalling that the Council of Ministers, i.e. the government of the state union of Serbia and Montenegro, strongly condemned that crime.
Marovic expressed confidence that the latest visit of President Mesic would contribute to the furtherance of stable and good-neighbourly relations in the region.
According to him, his talks with Mesic pointed out the two countries' commitment to European aims.
Stressing that the SCG will support Croatia's nomination for a nonpermanent member in the UN Security Council, he said that Belgrade was expecting of Croatia "to support our entry into (Nato's) Partnership for Peace and the US-Adriatic Charter," "Serbia and Montenegro wishes Croatia a success on the path towards the EU. The closer our neighbour are to Europe, the closer we are, too," Marovic added.
During his stay in Belgrade, the Croatian president also held talks with Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica and Serbian President Boris Tadic. Later this afternoon Mesic and Tadic are leaving for the northern city of Subotica where Mesic is scheduled to meet representatives of the Croat minority and Serb refugees from Croatia.
Mesic will continue his three-day visit to the SCG with the tour of Pristina, Podgorica and Tivat.