Although Reding was very critical and sceptical in early March, when the European Commission published its first report on how Croatia was meeting the benchmarks from that chapter, now, after the Croatian government's huge efforts, she is convinced that Croatia is ready to close the chapter, so she recommended to Fuele that negotiations on it can be closed, a European Union diplomat told Hina on condition of anonymity.
According to diplomatic sources, Fuele will brief EU ambassadors on Thursday about the current state of Croatia's accession negotiations.
He will do so at a COREPER meeting to which he was invited as part of preparations for a regular meeting of EU foreign ministers on Monday, which will include a dinner discussion on Croatia.
At this meeting, Croatia could get the green light for closing the accession negotiations in June.
The aim of the discussion, first at ambassadorial, then at ministerial level, is to see how member countries feel about the completion of the accession negotiations with Croatia by the end of June.
It remains unclear if, in case Croatia gets the green light, it will get a target accession date as early as Monday.
The date is not the most important issue now. It is first necessary to see if member countries feel that Croatia is ready for closing negotiations on the "Judiciary and Fundamental Rights" and "Competition Policy" chapters, another diplomat told Hina, adding that in any case, the negotiations could not be closed without the accession date being known.
KOSOR SAYS CROATIA TO CONTINUE WORK EVEN AFTER CLOSURE OF EU ENTRY TALKS
DUBROVNIK, May 17 (Hina) - After it wraps up its EU entry talks, the Croatian government will continue working on Croatia's EU integration, Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor said on Monday, addressing the 13th joint meeting of the Croatia-EU parliamentary committee, held in the southern Adriatic city of Dubrovnik."After we finish the negotiations, we shall remain committed to our work, because then the Accession Treaty follows and then the referendum and it is important to be prepared for the work ahead of us," Kosor said, underlining that Croatia would be a good and reliable partner as the 28th member of the EU.
"We shall continue the process in which we have made difficult decisions and in which we have managed to do a good job," PM Kosor said, adding that Croatia had done a lot in fighting corruption and crime.
She stressed that state bodies were entirely independent in fighting crime and corruption, which is a very big step forward. "Chapter 23 was difficult and delicate and it required a number of reforms," Kosor said, adding that a lot had been done in prosecuting war crimes as well.
Kosor recalled that she took over the helm of the Croatian government in 2009, at a moment when only five policy areas had been closed and the fundamental problem needed to be resolved, namely to unblock Croatia's EU entry talks. She said this job had been successfully completed and Croatia today had 30 closed chapters. "We had to meet 120 benchmarks, and each benchmark meant reform and changes and that was not easy."
The joint Croatia-EU parliamentary committee today ended its two-day meeting by praising Croatia's progress in meeting and applying reforms necessary for EU membership and expressing conviction that the negotiations should be completed by the end of June.
CROATIA-EU COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS COMPLETION OF EU ENTRY TALKS BY END JUNE
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The 13th, two-day meeting of the Croatia-EU Joint Parliamentary Committee ended in Dubrovnik on Tuesday with the adoption of a document recommending that negotiations on Croatia's accession to the European Union should be completed by the end of June.The Joint Parliamentary Committee welcomes the outstanding progress made by Croatia in the implementation of necessary reforms for EU membership and emphasises that accession negotiations should be concluded by the end of June 2011, or before the summer recess at the latest, provided that all the remaining benchmarks are fulfilled, said the final document adopted at the meeting.
BEBIC SAYS EU ENTRY REFERENDUM SHOULDN'T BE ELECTION CAMPAIGN TOPIC
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - Parliament Speaker Luka Bebic said on Tuesday the referendum on Croatia's European Union accession should not be the subject of election campaigns, given that a consensus on important issues, including EU accession, had been reached in parliament and among Croatian politicians long ago.Those are not subjects which Croatian political parties would fight about, so there is no reason to leave that issue for election campaigns, Bebic said, recalling that political parties were agreed that Croatia should join the EU.
Bebic said election campaigns should focus on economic development and employment.
He disagreed with criticisms that the government was concerned about the EU more than about the economy, saying it was natural that after long negotiations, which were now nearing completion, the focus of the public, the government and the media should be on that.
Bebic would not comment on the decision of the Hague war tribunal's Office of the Prosecutor not to appeal a ruling against two Croatian generals, Ante Gotovina and Mladen Markac, saying the proceedings were under way.
Bebic said he was pleased that the tribunal acquitted general Ivan Cermak, but would not speculate if the other two would be acquitted too. He underlined the importance of separating politics from the judiciary, not only in Croatia, but elsewhere as well.
CROATIAN PARLIAMENT SPEAKER HOLDS TALKS WITH POLISH PARLIAMENTARIANS
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - Croatian Parliament Speaker Luka Bebic received a delegation of the Poland-Croatia Friendship Group in the Lower House of the Polish Parliament in Zagreb on Tuesday.The talks focused on the activities Croatia was taking to wrap up its EU entry talks as soon as possible, notably those as part of the policy area No. 23 the Judiciary and Fundamental Rights, and possibilities for cooperation between the two countries in infrastructure and energy projects and tourism, the Croatian Parliament's public relations office said in a statement.
We are satisfied with the intensified bilateral cooperation between Croatia and Poland and I believe that at this moment it is important to recognise joint economic interests so that we can achieve even better results in the near future, Bebic said.
The statement also said that the two countries' trade was reduced due to the global economic crisis, but that signs of recovery were recorded in the first three months of 2011 when the overall trade was up 24 percent compared with the same period last year.
We hope that once Croatia joins the European Union, the entrance of Polish capital in Croatia would be simplified, said Polish parliamentarian Tomasz Glogowski, who chairs the Poland-Croatia Friendship Group.
Poland recognises Croatia's achievements and is looking forward to the closure of Zagreb's EU entry talks, Glogowski said.
The visit of the Polish delegation was organised at the invitation of Croatian Parliament Speaker Bebic during his official visit to Poland in March, the statement said.
The Polish delegation also held talks with the Chair of the Croatian parliament's Committee on European Integration, Neven Mimica.
CROATIAN FINANCE MINISTER ATTENDS ECOFIN CONFERENCE
BRUSSELS, May 17 (Hina) - Croatian Finance Minister Martina Dalic in Brussels on Tuesday took part in a meeting of EU finance ministers and their colleagues from EU hopefuls, which focused on pre-accession economic programmes of candidate countries.Croatia submitted to the European Commission its pre-accession economic programme for the 2011-2013 period in January 2011 and so far it has been discussed by European Commission bodies and the Croatian Finance Ministry.
The conclusions adopted by the EU Presidency on ministerial dialogue between finance ministers of EU member and candidate states read that the key challenge for the Croatian economic policy was securing conditions for sustainable growth while at the same time preserving macroeconomic stability.
This required stronger international competitiveness through internal structural reforms, given that the macroeconomic policy was limited by a large external debt and the need for fiscal consolidation. The fiscal consolidation process requires significant reforms of expenditures with the aim to restructure present expenses towards a sustainable model aimed at growth, read the conclusions.
Minister Dalic said that this programme predicted that the present fiscal deficit in Croatia would be cut by half by 2013.
The minister also gave estimates about how much the public debt might go up after the government takes over a portion of guarantees given to the shipyards.
"Croatia's public debt is presently at 41.5 percent. Guarantees will be discussed and decided on during the process of restructuring and privatising the shipyards. A portion of these guarantees will most probably become part of the public debt during the privatisation process. At this moment it is impossible to precisely state how much of the HRK 11.3 billion guarantees would be taken into the public debt, as there are different kinds of guarantees. According to our projections, after the process is completed it is possible that the public debt will reach between 47 and 48 percent of Gross Domestic Product," Dalic said.
In the adopted conclusions, the EU Presidency urges the Croatian government and the Croatian National bank to continue efforts aimed at reducing the wide-spread use of foreign currencies.
GOTOVINA, MARKAC DEFENCE TEAMS FILE NOTICES OF APPEALS, PROSECUTION DOESN'T
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The defence teams representing the accused Croatian generals Ante Gotovina and Mladen Markac before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague formally announced by midnight on Monday their appeals against the trial chamber's verdict of April 15, the two generals' lawyers told Hina on Tuesday.According to unofficial information, the prosecution did not appeal. Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz's special advisor Frederick Swinnen was unavailable to confirm this.
On April 15, the trial chamber sentenced Gotovina and Markac to 24 and 18 years in prison respectively for their roles in a joint criminal enterprise the aim of which was to forcibly and permanently remove the Serb population from the occupied areas of Croatia during and after Operation Storm. A third general, Ivan Cermak, was acquitted.
Under the ICTY rules, an appeal against a trial chamber ruling may be filed within 75 days of filing a notice of appeal. The other party has 40 days to respond, after which both parties have a further 15 days to respond to the respondent's brief. An appeal chamber is then set up and it sets a date for a hearing.
PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE CONFIRMS HASN'T APPEALED RULING AGAINST CROATIAN GENERALS
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The Prosecutor's Office of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague confirmed to Hina on Tuesday that it did not appeal a trial chamber ruling against Croatian army generals Ante Gotovina, Ivan Cermak and Mladen Markac.The deadline to file an appeal was yesterday. The Prosecutor's Office did not file an appeal, the Office told Hina.
Gotovina was sentenced to 24 and Markac to 18 years in prison, while Cermak was acquitted.
The defence teams for Gotovina and Markac formally announced by midnight yesterday their appeals against the sentence, their attorneys told Hina.
TRIAL CHAMBER MADE ERRONEOUS INFERENCE ABOUT USE OF ARTILLERY, GOTOVINA DEFENCE SAYS
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The defence team representing Croatian general Ante Gotovina before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague has called for "a reversal of all erroneous findings", based on which the Trial Chamber sentenced Gotovina to 24 years' imprisonment, and "a finding of 'not guilty' on all counts, in its notice of appeal that was made public on the tribunal's website on Tuesday.The defence said that the entire judgement was based on the Trial Chamber's erroneous inference that all artillery projectiles falling beyond 200 meters of designated military targets were unlawful and represented an attack on a civilian target.
"Even if the Trial Chamber's arbitrary 200 meter rule is accepted, and its numerous factual and legal errors are disregarded, the Judgement amounts at best to a remarkable finding that out of more than 1,205 artillery projectiles, only 5% impacted beyond the Trial Chamber’s acceptable range. In other words, the Trial Chamber infers a JCE (joint criminal enterprise) to commit crimes against humanity and war crimes from an artillery attack in which 95% of projectiles were satisfactorily shown to have been directed at military objectives," the defence said.
The evidence does not show that five per cent of artillery projectiles, which are presumed to be unlawful, hit civilian targets, as was inferred by the Trial Chamber, thus shifting the burden of proof from the prosecutor to Gotovina to prove that those were not civilian targets.
The artillery attacks in question were directed at Knin, Gracac, Obrovac and Benkovac.
"Had the Trial Chamber elected to adopt the Prosecution's position of a 400 meter range of error, it would have found that only 13 out of at least 1,205 projectiles impacted beyond that margin, a 99% rate of accuracy. No reasonable trier of fact could have concluded based on a 1% error rate that there was an unlawful attack against a civilian population," the defence said.
"In relation to deportation, the Trial Chamber rejected reliable evidence of RSK (Republic of Serb Krajina) evacuation orders and propaganda-induced fear of a Croatian military victory as causes of the departure of Serb civilians. Rather, the Trial Chamber concluded that the 'primary and direct cause' of the departure of 20,000 Serb civilians was the 1% to 5% of artillery projectiles, most of which fell into empty fields," the defence said, adding that the judgement "imposes a standard so exacting that it renders lawful warfare impossible for military commanders."
The defence said that the Trial Chamber erred in fact and law when it concluded that the attack on the commander-in-chief of Serb forces, Milan Martic, was
evidence of the indiscriminate nature of the attack on civilians.
The Trial Chamber erred in fact and law that there existed a joint criminal enterprise by the Croatian state and military leadership to expel the Serb population and that Gotovina was a member of such enterprise. It erred in fact and law when finding that Gotovina made "a significant contribution" to the joint criminal enterprise by sharing the intent to participate in the persecution and by failing to prevent crimes and punish the perpetrators. It also erred in fact and law when finding that Gotovina had command and control over the military police and that he was aware of attacks on civilians, the defence said.
The notice of appeal, filed on Monday, showed that the Gotovina defence team was reinforced with Swiss attorney Guenael Mettraux.
In its judgement of April 15, the Trial Chamber sentenced generals Gotovina and Mladen Markac to 24 and 18 years in prison respectively for their roles in the joint criminal enterprise the aim of which was to forcibly and permanently remove the Serb population from the occupied areas of Croatia. A third general, Ivan Cermak, was acquitted and released.
MARKAC DEFENCE ASKS APPEALS CHAMBER TO QUASH TRIAL CHAMBER'S VERDICT
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The defence team for Croatian general Mladen Markac has filed a notice of appeal with the Hague-based International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), asking the Appeals Chamber to quash the Trial Chamber's judgement because it was based on erroneous conclusions.The Trial Chamber erred in fact and law with regard to the alleged existence of a joint criminal enterprise, the defence said in its notice, filed on Monday, listing 12 grounds for the appeal.
On April 15, the Trial Chamber sentenced generals Markac and Ante Gotovina to 18 and 24 years' imprisonment respectively for their roles in the joint criminal enterprise the aim of which was to forcibly and permanently remove the Serb population from the occupied areas of Croatia during and after a Croatian military offensive, known as Operation Storm, in the summer of 1995. A third general, Ivan Cermak, was acquitted.
The defence said there was no evidence, including the so-called Brijuni transcript, to show that there had existed a plan to ensure the departure of the Serb population by criminal means.
Leaving an escape route for the population does not constitute a crime against humanity or a violation of the laws and customs of war. Even if there had existed a plan for the departure of the Serbs during the course of hostilities, there is no evidence of a criminal plan, the defence lawyers said, adding that the Trial Chamber had misinterpreted what had been said at a meeting of the Croatian state and military leadership, held on the northern Adriatic island of Brijuni on July 31, 1995, when Operation Storm was planned.
Markac's defence, just as that of Gotovina, said that the Trial Chamber erred in fact and law when it found that the crimes of murder, cruel treatment, plunder and destruction were the foreseeable consequence of the joint criminal enterprise.
The defence said that the Trial Chamber erred in fact and law when it concluded that General Markac had taken part in the joint criminal enterprise and that he had been involved in attempts to cover up the crimes committed in Grubori and Ramljani. It said that the Trial Chamber was also wrong in its conclusions about the involvement of Croatian special police in the plunder of Gracac, about the indiscriminate shelling of that town, and about Markac's role in it.
The Trial Chamber erred in fact and law when concluding that the special police had been involved in the destruction of Donji Lapac and that they were responsible for the crimes ascribed to them by the Trial Chamber. It also erred in fact and law with regard to the deportation of the Serb population, the defence said, claiming that reliance on the doctrine of a broad criminal enterprise was in contravention of the ICTY Statute.
CERMAK'S ACQUITTAL FINAL, LAWYER SAYS
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The ruling which the International Criminal Tribunal (ICTY) handed down on 15 April, acquitting Croatian general Ivan Cermak of all responsibility for crimes committed during and in the wake of the 1995 Operation Storm, has become final, as the ICTY Office of the Prosecutor has not appealed, Cermak's former defence attorney Cedo Prodanovic told Hina on Tuesday."All of this was unnecessary because the prosecution had all the evidence about the true role of general Cermak as early as 1999," Prodanovic told Hina in a telephone interview.
Even then it was clear that Cermak had nothing to do with operational orders and that he did not have an operational army or any jurisdiction over the police, Prodanovic said.
The fact that Office of the Prosecutor decided not to appeal the ruling shows that the prosecution has realised what we have been claiming from the start and what has been clear from the start, Prodanovic said, recalling that Cermak presented his defence back in 1999 when an investigation into him was launched.
Cermak was not included in the initial indictment for Operation Storm issued in 2001, the indictment was expanded to include him three years later, Prodanovic said.
Cermak surrendered to the ICTY in March 2004 and was released on 15 April 2011 immediately after his acquittal. He spent seven years in the ICTY detention unit in The Hague's district of Scheveningen.
ICTY PROSECUTION ON REASONS FOR NOT APPEALING VERDICTS AGAINST CROATIAN GENERALS
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has not appealed against the Trial Chamber's judgement against Croatian generals Ante Gotovina and Mladen Markac because it deems the verdict appropriate, the chief prosecutor's special adviser, Frederic Swinnen, said in a statement sent to Hina on Tuesday.We are of the view that the judgement against Gotovina and Markac contains no errors of fact or law and that it appropriately shows the level of crime and their personal responsibility, Swinnen said.
On April 15, the Trial Chamber sentenced Gotovina and Markac to 24 and 18 years in prison respectively for their roles in a joint criminal enterprise the aim of which to forcibly and permanently remove the Serb population from the occupied areas of Croatia during and after a Croatian military offensive, known as Operation Storm, in the summer of 1995. A third general, Ivan Cermak, was acquitted.
As for Cermak's acquittal, Swinnen said that the prosecution did not file an appeal because it was unlikely that it would be successful.
JOSIPOVIC SAYS CITIZENS WILL SHOW IF GOVERNMENT IS WORKING HARD ENOUGH
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - Asked by the press on Tuesday if the government had the will and the know-how for changes in the economy, President Ivo Josipovic said the government was making an effort and saying that it had them, but added that citizens would show whether that was enough at the forthcoming election.Asked if he would meet Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor following his criticism on Monday, Josipovic said his statement was not meant as a special criticism but as a consideration on possible changes in the tax system and everything related to finances.
"I know there are various groups in institutes and the government dealing with that, but what I wanted was to encourage even faster changes, as we know that the state of the economy requires them."
Asked if the government had put everything on the back burner but the completion of accession negotiations with the European Union, Josipovic said the completion of the negotiations meant completing reforms and meeting criteria that were not only European.
"Croatia needs those reforms and I don't see that pushing for the completion of the negotiations only means meeting European criteria or ingratiating ourselves to a big imaginary European power, but working for Croatia's benefit."
Josipovic said the European reforms were not enough and that Croatia needed more than what was enough to formally join the EU. He voiced hope that Croatia would complete the negotiations now and have the strength, the courage and the intelligence to go beyond those reforms.
He would not comment on a new corruption case uncovered in Rijeka following an anonymous report filed with the police alleging the disappearance of DEM 800,000 intended for the purchase of weapons for the defence of Rijeka in the early 1990s, in which the finger is being pointed at Slavko Linic, an MP of the opposition Social Democratic Party.
Josipovic was responding to questions from the press after a conference dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the birth of Croatian scientist Rudjer Boskovic.
He said the fact that scientists were leaving Croatia was not something new. "Small peoples who don't belong to the wealthy can hardly offer the possibilities offered by more developed countries, but it is up to us to keep those that we can and to maintain the closest possible ties with them."
Josipovic said "Croatian intelligence and science" were appreciated in the world, which he saw during his lectures at universities around the world, at which many Croats teach.
HNS LEADER SAYS CROATIA SINKING DEEPER BY THE DAY
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - Croatia is sinking deeper by the day and the government's information about decline in unemployment and illiquidity, also carried by some media, is blatantly untrue, the president of the opposition People's Party (HNS), Radimir Cacic, told the press on Tuesday.He said seasonally adjusted data on unemployment showed that it was growing, rather than falling, and that he doubted that Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor's announcement of 150,000 new jobs by the end of the year would come true.
Cacic said illiquidity had not declined but doubled since Kosor became PM in mid-2009, adding that negative financial indicators continued to grow.
He said the budget deficit in the first three months of 2011 was HRK 5.5 billion and that of the HRK 6.3 billion the central bank injected into the banking system, HRK 5.1 billion ended up in a "new state debt", while only HRK 1.2 billion went into the economy. "That was an intervention to save the state and further destroy the economy."
Cacic said the government should immediately relieve the manufacturing industry of 15-20 per cent of taxes, and that the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development should increase lending to the real sector and tourism.
He said the lack of competition in the real sector and the constant price growth was untenable for the economy.
"In the backbone of the real sector - industry, tourism, the economy - there are 33,000 less employees, while in public administration, education and health care 3,700 new people have been employed."
Responding to a question from the press, Cacic said he had not received any information from Hungary about a car crash he had caused there, killing two people.
HDZ SAYS CACIC FORGETTING ABOUT HIS DEBTS
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party on Tuesday refuted claims by the president of the Croatian People's Party (HNS), Radimir Cacic, who said earlier today that the government's information about a decline in unemployment and illiquidity is blatantly untrue.The HDZ said that Cacic had apparently forgotten about the debts he had left behind as minister and Varazdin County prefect.
At a time when we are getting signals from Brussels that we have done a good job and that we will most probably wrap up our EU entry talks in June, many think that they have the right to belittle those efforts without presenting a single argument and by leaving out the numbers," HDZ vice president Ivan Suker told a news conference.
Commenting on Cacic's statements that illiquidity had not declined but doubled since Kosor became PM in mid-2009, Suker said Cacic had his facts confused.
Suker said that when she spoke about solving the illiquidity problem by 1 June 2010, PM Kosor was talking about public companies which, according to Suker, brought down their payment period to 60 days as of 30 June.
Suker also said it was not clear to him if Cacic called today's press conference for private or political reasons, saying that it would be better for Cacic if he saved his energy "for his future",
CACIC SAYS WILL WITHDRAW FROM POLITICS IF GIVEN UNCONDITIONAL PRISON SENTENCE
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - Croatian People's Party (HNS) leader Radimir Cacic said in an interview with the public television network HTV on Tuesday evening that he would withdraw from politics if he should be sentenced to an unconditional prison term for causing a fatal traffic accident in Hungary last year.When asked what he would do if a Hungarian court found him guilty, Cacic said: "In case I am given an unconditional sentence, I will withdraw."
Cacic said he was not formally charged.
Cacic caused a traffic accident on the M7 motorway in Hungary on January 8, 2010 in which two people were fatally injured.
LINIC SUSPECTS NATIONAL CHIEF OF POLICE AS AUTHOR OF ANONYMOUS ALLEGATION AGAINST HIM
RIJEKA, May 17 (Hina) - Social Democratic Party (SDP) member of Parliament Slavko Linic said in Rijeka on Tuesday that he suspected that national chief of police Oliver Grbic was the author of the allegation against him about the disappearance of 800,000 German marks intended for the purchase of weapons for Rijeka's defence at the start of the war in 1991."Since the letter, as we have learned from the media today, is addressed to Oliver Grbic and copies CCed to two party officials, Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) members of Parliament from Rijeka and Dubrovnik, it is obvious that the author could only be Oliver Grbic, but that's just my suspicion," Linic told a press conference in response to questions from reporters.
Linic said he had not yet been called by the police for an interview and that based on the existing law he could not be summoned in connection with this case. "There is no criminal prosecution, only so-called preliminary police inquiries, which goes to show that the Croatian police service is in the hands of irresponsible people," he added.
"An attempt by the police to make it look that the State Attorney's Office has launched a proceeding, and the State Attorney's Office says that it's a lie, shows how deeply the police are steeped in the abuse of power and how dangers Oliver Grbic and (Interior Minister) Tomislav Karamarko are," Linic said.
KOSOR COMMENTS ON JOSIPOVIC'S STATEMENT ABOUT BUDGET TRANSPARENCY
DUBROVNIK, May 17 (Hina) - Commenting on Monday's statement by President Ivo Josipovic about the transparency of the state budget, Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor said on Tuesday she would have preferred if he had said it to the government, because "we are making great efforts to reduce expenditure even more.""It would be good if the President's Office contributed to this, because funds for his Office have been increased by 37.4 per cent for this year," Kosor told reporters after laying the foundation stone for an apartment building for disabled war veterans in Mokosica, southern Croatia.
It's not true that the budget is not transparent, because this year we froze expenditure for the first time," she added.
Josipovic said on Monday, after a meeting of his Economic Advisory Council, that budget transparency and the clarity of budget spending was an important instrument of a fair tax policy. He said that according to some figures, budget openness in Croatia was 58%, compared to as much as 95% in the United States, adding that in the future the budget should have as few general descriptions and as many details as possible.
When asked to comment on statements by Social Democratic Party MP Slavko Linic about a criminal investigation into flows of money intended for the defence of Rijeka in 1991, Kosor described his statements as an attack on state institutions, saying that the fight against corruption should go in all directions and that no one was untouchable.
Commenting on unofficial reports from Brussels that Croatia had fulfilled all the benchmarks for the closure of negotiations in Chapter 23 (Judiciary and Fundamental Rights), Kosor said that in its latest report the government showed that it had done a huge job "for the benefit of Croatian citizens and for the purpose of further consolidating the rule of law in Croatia."
"We believe that our latest report will be sufficient for all decision makers to be able to say that Croatia has done a good job and that we have achieved yet another historic goal," Kosor said.
MILINOVIC COMMENTS ON VERBAL ATTACKS ON HDZ AND GOVERNMENT
SLAVONSKI BROD, May 17 (Hina) - During his visit to the eastern Croatian town of Slavonski Brod, the Deputy Prime Minister and vice president of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), Darko Milinovic, commented on frequent attacks against the HDZ and Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor, notably the attacks coming from the Rijeka branch of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).Milinovic said the SDP often made public statements when laws which the SDP personally supported, were adopted. "This is the case now with the law under which there is no statute of limitations on war profiteering. They raised their hands for the law and then when the law is about to go into effect they voice their dissatisfaction and attack the HDZ, its president and the government," Milinovic said.
He said it was in the interest of the Croatian public to investigate if Slavko Linic was a war profiteer or not. "Somebody in 1991 was prepared to give to Croatia what they held most sacred, and that's life, and some, according to allegations, were ready to take 800,000 German marks. Everyone is presumed innocent until proven otherwise and I believe in that, but let the institutions of this country see what this is all about," Milinovic said.
He recalled that at the start of his term, when he launched the anti-corruption campaign, Interior Minister Tomislav Karamarko had the support of almost all the parties, but the support got weaker once he knocked on the SDP's doors.
NGOs WANT FARMLAND BILL WITHDRAWN FROM FAST TRACK PROCEDURE
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - A coalition of seven nongovernmental organisations, together with a national network of 42 environmental associations "Green Forum", asked the Croatian parliament on Tuesday to withdraw from fast track procedure the government-sponsored bill on farmland, saying that the bill encourages land speculations, local corruption and irreversible reduction of farm land.The associations Green Action, Transparency International Croatia, GONG, Right to the City, Green Istria, Eco-Zadar and Srdj Is Ours, as well as those gathered in Green Forum, issued a joint press release warning that the adoption of the government sponsored bill could result in quality farmland being turned into building plots.
They also rejected the government's request that the law needed to be amended under fast-track procedure.
CONFERENCE ON RUDJER BOSKOVIC'S 300TH BIRTH ANNIVERSARY BEGINS
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - A conference dedicated to Rudjer Boskovic, the Croatian scientist, priest, philosopher, mathematician, physicist, astronomer, surveyor, diplomat and poet, organised on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of his birth, began at Zagreb's Vatroslav Lisinski concert hall on Tuesday, with many eminent politicians, scientists, cultural figures and Church dignitaries attending.The entire mankind is in debt to Boskovic's work, President Ivo Josipovic said, adding that Boskovic was the leading thinker of his time and one of the founders of modern science.
He said Boskovic's messages remained current, as he knew that science and education were the foundation of every society and he showed by example that love for the country was not measured in words but actions.
Josipovic wondered if we could recognise the Rudjer Boskovics of today, saying that one should consider if the funds being set aside for science and education were enough. He added that what was being done was not enough and that this was society's common responsibility.
Science and Education Minister Radovan Fuchs said the great genius had erected his own monument with more than 75 key works in mathematics, mechanics, optics, philosophy and literature.
Science is the main generator of development, and knowledge and technological solutions are the central resource on which social well-being rests, Fuchs said, adding that such progress was not be possible without extensive and urgent changes.
Legislative, organisational and financial reforms in science and research are crucial for Croatia's survival in Europe's civilisation, he said.
Parliament Speaker Luka Bebic said Boskovic was still promoting Croatia and spreading its reputation in the world, and pushed for creating better conditions for scientists, so that they did not have to leave Croatia, as was the case with Boskovic.
MINE REMOVAL PROJECT UNDER WAY IN KARLOVAC COUNTY
KARLOVAC, May 17 (Hina) - Members of the Advisory Committee of the Ljubljana-based International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF) visited mine removal operations in Josipdol municipality in Karlovac county on Tuesday.The delegation visited the mine-infested area, measuring 337,874 square metres, in the villages of Plivelici and Kokani, which was being cleared by the Rumital firm of Zagreb.
In the last 12 years, the ITF has raised USD 67 million and helped in the demining of 29.8 square kilometres of land in Croatia. A total of 6,176 mines and 2,224 pieces of unexploded ordnance have been removed, ITF director Dorijan Marsic said.
To date, 59 people have been killed and 203 wounded in Karlovac county in explosions of mines left over from the 1991-1995 war. About 200 million kuna has been invested in mine clearance operations in the county, of which 60 million has been raised by donations. About 20 square kilometres of land remains to be cleared, while 70 square kilometres of land is suspected as being mine infested.
Less than 800 square kilometres of land in Croatia remains to be cleared of mines, which will cost EUR 600 million; EUR 500 million has been invested in the mine removal projects so far. To date, 502 people have been killed in mine explosions.
MOL TELLS HANFA IT ACQUIRED 21,009 INA SHARES THROUGH BROKERS
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - The Hungarian oil and gas operator MOL said in a statement on Tuesday that 1.6% of the Croatian oil company INA shares are the subject of an option agreement concluded by MOL, that it acquired 21,009 INA shares through brokers on OTC or at the Zagreb Stock Exchange, which is a total of 0.21 percent of INA shares and that it now holds 4,746,629 pieces of INA shares in total, in custodian and sub-custodian accounts."MOL voluntarily disclosed that 1,6% of INA shares are subject of an option agreement concluded by MOL. These shares are not yet acquired by MOL, and even if the option rights were exercised, this would not trigger any disclosure obligation," MOL said in the statement.
"Despite the fact that HANFA has still not granted clear reasoning and factual grounds that justify its investigation(s), MOL answered the letter dated 9 May 2011 within the set deadline by yesterday, 16 May 2011."
HANFA (the Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency) on Monday prolonged the suspension of trading in the shares of the INA oil and gas group until the end of the trading week on May 20 at the latest, saying that it expected MOL to voice its position concerning the request sent on 9 May about information on how it had acquired INA shares.
MOL said in the statement today that according to HANFA's decision published on the Zagreb Stock Exchange on 9 May the investigation is required since the "Agency identified significant amount of trading by foreign investors."
HANFA mentioned trading by domestic investors only on 16 May, 2011 for the very first time. Over two-thirds of the trading with INA shares between December and April have been made by domestic institutional investors, which have never been the subject of any HANFA scrutiny, MOL said in the statement.
"MOL must underline that such reasoning is both discriminative and biased against foreign investors who provide continuous capital inflow into the Croatian economy. MOL truly hopes that HANFA's future investigations will follow the principles of equal treatment."
"Therefore MOL also sent a separate letter directly to HANFA, in which it has expressed its concerns. Furthermore MOL has also disclosed all relevant facts to its best knowledge, which HANFA did not ask for, but which might be relevant to HANFA," the statement said, adding that for the sake of transparency and underlining the will of full cooperation MOL also published the answers to HANFA which are not subject to business confidentiality.
Answering the question about the decision of the MOL management board on acquiring INA shares from which reasons for acquisition would be visible, MOL said that its Board of Directors passed two decisions on the subject matter dated 2 December, 2010 and 18 January, 2011.
The first decision approved the unqualified private offer as it was immediately published by MOL as a capital market announcement on 2 December, 2010, MOL said, stressing that the reasons of this decision were to provide a good exit opportunity to the small shareholders of INA, especially to employees of INA and a good capital market momentum to purchase the free float of INA.
"The second decision approved purchases of additional INA shares and signing agreements with the aim to purchase INA shares after the offer period," the statement said, adding that the reasons of this decision were to purchase additional INA shares as long as such transactions met MOL's investment criteria and to prevent speculative investors to build positions with the possible aim to challenge the unity of the shareholding partners in INA.
Asked about third persons from which shares have been acquired, stating date of acquisition, copies of agreements and other documentation from which the quantity, price and payment method of the respective shares for stated transactions would be visible, MOL said there were four trades, where a total of 21,009 shares were acquired by MOL through professional brokers on OTC or on the Zagreb Stock Exchange.
"All transactions were made in line with market prices and all the purchases were implemented through brokers. The identity of the counterparties of such transactions was not confirmed by the brokers in their respective confirmations to MOL," the statement said.
Excerpts of the confirmations of the purchases sent by the brokers to MOL was also given to HANFA showing the identity of the brokers, the quantity, the price and the payment method. In a separate table Purchase Date - Settlement Date - Purchase Price - Quantity - Broker - Type of transaction (OTC or Stock Exchange) were transmitted, MOL said.
"On custodian and sub-custodian accounts MOL holds 4,746,629 pieces of INA shares in total. The accounts were disclosed to HANFA," MOL said.
MOL has a 47.26 percent interest in the oil and gas company INA, or a total of 4,725,620 shares. With the shares stated above its interest in INA climbs to 47.47 percent.
ASSELBORN TELLS BELGRADE ARRESTS OF MLADIC, HADZIC NOT CRITICAL FOR EU CANDIDATE STATUS
BELGRADE, May 17 (Hina) - The Foreign Minister of Luxembourg, Jean Asselborn, said in Belgrade on Tuesday, after talks with Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, that Serbia could become a candidate for European Union membership even if the remaining fugitives - Ratko Mladic and Goran Hadzic - were not extradited to the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague.Addressing a joint press conference, Asselborn said, however, it was vital that Serbia show clear political will for their arrest.
Asselborn said Croatia was granted the candidate status in October 2005 even though Croatian general Ante Gotovina was at large at the time, but it was assessed that Zagreb had clear political will for Gotovina to be extradited to the Hague tribunal.
Jeremic stressed that Luxembourg had always supported the integration of the Western Balkans into the EU.
EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fuele told B92 on Friday, ahead of his visit to Serbia scheduled for this week, that he would tell the authorities in Belgrade it was necessary to step up efforts to meet the requirements for gaining candidate status, stressing that it was also necessary that the ICTY Chief Prosecutor, Serge Brammertz, give a positive report on Serbia's cooperation with the ICTY.
During his stay in Belgrade, Asselborn was also due to meet with Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic and Parliament Speaker Slavica Djukic Dejanovic.
U.S. CONCERNED OVER POLITICAL DEADLOCK IN BOSNIA
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed concern over the political deadlock in Bosnia and Herzegovina during her meeting with European Union High Representative for Foreign Policy Catherine Ashton on Tuesday."I raised concerns regarding the political deadlock in Bosnia and Herzegovina and any efforts that could undermine the Dayton Peace Accords and the stability of the country," Clinton told a joint press conference after the meeting at the State Department.
"We fully support the authority of the Office of the High Representative Inzko in Bosnia and Herzegovina and want to see the people there realize their hopes for necessary reforms, effective government, and a European future," she added.
Ashton said she had visited Bosnia and Herzegovina last week, where she had made it "perfectly plain to President Dodik that the Dayton Agreement is here to stay and that there is an expectation that he will play his full part as a politician in that country in helping to try and move forward for the country as a whole."
Ashton said that it was important that the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina be formed as quickly as possible, that it take its responsibilities and address real challenges such as rising unemployment.
POLITICAL CRISIS LOWERS BOSNIA'S CREDIT RATING
SARAJEVO, May 17 (Hina) - The current political crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina has lowered the country's credit rating from a stable to a negative rating, the Bosnian central bank reported on Tuesday.The international agency for the state credit rating "Moody's Investor Service" published the latest assessment in which Bosnia was given the B2 credit rating.
The parliamentary elections were carried out in Bosnia in October 2010, but the country has not yet formed a government.
IN OTHER NEWS:
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) -Knowing the rules of the game, being prepared and having your priorities defined are some of the conditions for the successful withdrawal of money from structural EU funds once Croatia joins the European Union, it was said at a regional conference on EU structural funds, organised by the Razbor consulting company and Banka magazine. The event was also attended by the head of the Operations Sections at the Delegation of the European Union to Croatia, Richard Masa. The conference heard that based on the experience so far, Croatia could expect up to EUR 1.6 billion each year from the structural funds.
OPATIJA, May 17 (Hina) -
A total of EUR 800 million will be made available to the Croatian farming sector and producers of agricultural products once the country joins the European Union, which is nearly 50 percent more than the amount allocated from the state budget to the agricultural sector, a state secretary at the Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development Ministry, Stjepan Mikolcic, said in Opatija on Tuesday at the opening of the 5th conference on food quality and safety. Speaking about the negotiations with the EU and the protection of the interests of Croatia's agriculture and food industry, Mikolcic said that so far the policy areas No. 11 (Agriculture and Rural Development) and No. 12 (Food Safety, Veterinary and Phytosanitary Policy) have been successfully closed and that Croatia expects to successfully close the policy area No. 13 (Fisheries). Croatia will most probably join the EU in early 2013, Mikolcic told the two-day conference which brought together some 200 representatives of relevant bodies and the business sector. The event will focus on the quality and safety of food, food risks, biological dangers in food, analysis laboratories and other topics.
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) -
As of Tuesday, Hina enables its subscribers to receive the most important news from Croatia and the world on their mobile phones. Users of this service may browse news in politics, the economy, culture, sports, and entertainment. The application also makes it possible to search Hina's data base for news released within the last 30 days and to send selected items by e-mail. The service is available for mobile phones using Android and BlackBerry operating systems and will soon be available to iPhone users as well. Hina believes the new service will be well-received, especially among those who need quick, correct and objective news.
ZAGREB, May 17 (Hina) -
The Zagreb Stock Exchange (ZSE) Crobex index went down 0.3 per cent on Tuesday to close at 2,205.21 points, while the specialised Crobex10 index dropped 0.29 per cent to 1,228.50 points. Regular turnover was HRK 14.9 million, with the HT telecommunications company generating a turnover of nearly HRK 8 million. HT shares turned over HRK 7.9 million at HRK 258.01 per share, down 0.96 percent from Monday. (EUR 1 = HRK 7.3835)
THIS BULLETIN INCLUDES ITEMS RELEASED BY 0830 HOURS WEDNESDAY.