Speaking from the southern Adriatic island of Hvar, Mesic told state radio he had only stated the facts. He recalled that the Badinter Commission had established that the borders of former Yugoslavia's republics became the borders of the new states on land, while the sea borders had to be agreed on by the new states.
"The sea border depends on how the land border is defined. If there is something... the Slovene president is right about, it's that the border hasn't been fully identified, but it has been defined. Therefore, one can't say that we haven't defined the borders. The Badinter Commission certainly defined the land borders, but now every metre has to be identified," said Mesic.
He also commented on the increasing interest among foreigners to buy real estate along the Croatian coast. He said that before joining the European Union, Croatia should protect its natural resources, following Denmark's model.
Speaking of a recently completed Defence Ministry study on the professionalisation of the armed forces according to which the military will continue to have conscripts despite talk about a solely professional army, Mesic said this represented a continuation of the military professionalisation process that was being carried out gradually.
"All preparations have to be carried out so that we can have a fully professional army. Until this process is over, we'll have both conscripts and a professional army," said the president.