RACAN SAYS BRITAIN TO CANCEL TRANSIT VISAS FOR CROATIAN CITIZENS

BOURNEMOUTH, Sept 30 (Hina) - Britain will soon cancel transit visas for citizens of Croatia, and experts from the two countries will review the visa regime, Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan said on Tuesday. #L# Racan, currently on a working visit to Britain, met Home Secretary David Blunkett on the sidelines of a Labour Party conference in Bournemouth on Tuesday. "During the meeting with Blunkett, our side was told that Britain had decided to cancel transit visas, and that experts from both countries would review the present visa regime," the prime minister said after the talks, adding that this would lead to a relatively speedy cancellation of visas for Croatian nationals. Racan said the Croatian side insisted that the reasons for which Britain had introduced visas no longer existed. London introduced visas for Croatian citizens four years ago because of a large number of people with the Croatian passport seeking political asylum in Britain. According to British sources, after the introduction of visas, the number of people with the Croatian passport seeking political asylum dropped from 2,000 to 40 per year. Transit visas are expected to be cancelled within the next ten or so days. Racan and Blunkett also discussed the fight against organised crime and the problem of illegal migrations. (hina) vm sb