CROATIAN PREMIER: SOUTHERNMOST PART OF LAND FULLY REINTEGRATED

PREVLAKA, Dec 15 (Hina) - Re-establishing its full sovereignty over Prevlaka, Croatia integrated its south, and Prevlaka, instead of being a contentious point, has become a zone for cooperation, Premier Ivica Racan said while touring the southern-most Croatian peninsula after the commander of the UN monitoring mission, Brigadier Rodolfo Mujica, officially handed over the control over Prevlaka to the Croatian government. #L# With this act, Prevlaka was reintegrated into the full Croatian sovereignty after 11 years. "It is very nice to see a Croatian flag waving here on Prevlaka. The Croatian south today was territorially integrated," Racan said after the ceremony of hoisting the Croatian flag on the building which used to be the UN offices. Racan described the agreement on temporary regime on Prevlaka, which Croatia and Yugoslavia signed last Tuesday, as a good and solid foundation for further negotiations on a final solution of the border-line on the sea. "The agreement is the confirmation of our contribution to the stability of the region and a clear message to the international community that we are mature and able to solve problems without mediators," the Croatian premier added. "The agreement will facilitate the life of inhabitants from both sides of the border, enable free movements and promote economic flows," he said. He added that in the coming months Prevlaka should be de-mined and ownership issues settled, and expressed hope that plots of land would be soon given back to their owners. The agreement on the temporary regime on Prevlaka was last Tuesday signed by Croatian Foreign Minister Tonino Picula and his Yugoslav counterpart Goran Svilanovic at the Konfin border crossing. (hina) ms