RACAN-DEL PONTE TALKS START

ZAGREB, Oct 6 (Hina) - Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan and the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), Carla Del Ponte, have started talks at the government building in Zagreb. The talks focus on the country's overall cooperation with the tribunal, with emphasis on measures taken to solve the case of runaway general Ante Gotovina. #L# The problem of locating and arresting General Gotovina, who has been on the run since the ICTY indicted him in June 2001, is the crucial problem in relations between Croatia and the tribunal. While the government states that Gotovina is hiding abroad, Del Ponte maintains that the prosecution has information on his hiding in Croatia. On October 9 Del Ponte will submit her annual report to the UN Security Council assessing Croatia's cooperation with the ICTY. In a non-paper submitted in early September, Del Ponte said the solution of the Gotovina case was a precondition for assessing Croatia's cooperation as good. Other segments of cooperation, such as the availability of documents, archives and witnesses, has been assessed as good. Del Ponte's report to the UN Security Council will have an important impact on the process of ratification of Croatia's Stabilisation and Association Agreement and the fulfilment of political criteria for its EU membership candidacy. Present at today's talks are also Deputy Prime Minister Goran Granic, Justice Minister Ingrid Anticevic Marinovic, Chief State Prosecutor Mladen Bajic and the head of the Office for Cooperation with the ICTY, Jaksa Muljacic. Racan and Del Ponte are expected to give statements at the end of the talks, at 12:15 hours. (hina) rml