CROATIAN FOREIGN MINISTER GIVES INTERVIEW TO WASHINGTON TIMES

WASHINGTON D.C., May 30 (Hina) - "Thanks to its global position and global interests, the United States is almost a neighbouring nation to every county in the world", Croatian Foreign Minister Tonino Picula said in an interview for The Washington Times. This telephone interview with The Washington Times from Budapest was published on Wednesday, only a day after a decision of NATO Ministers' Council to reduce SFOR troops in the region. "The presence of the United States is vital" to the peace and security of the region, Picula said. According to him, a full-scale withdrawal of U.S. troops would threaten the internal stability of neighbouring Bosnia. The Croatian Foreign Minister praised the United States for supporting the new government's agenda of democratic and economic reform. "Yet, more needed to be done to promote U.S. foreign investment in Croatia," Picula stressed. "The new government has said it is committed to privatising about 1,850 state-owned companies by the end of the year. Implementing economic reform is vital to becoming a member of the European Union. We are trying our best to become a new member by the end of 2006", Picula told The Washington Times. Speaking of Croatia's relations with neighbouring countries, Picula said the country advocated the promotion of economic ties and the normalisation of relations. The Washington Times published this interview ahead of Picula's visit to the United States, scheduled for June. (hina) it