ZAGREB, Oct 4 (Hina) - Croatia's Foreign Ministry has responded to an article published in Monday's issue of a weekly 'Nacional' on ten conditions which Zagreb allegedly sets for the normalisation of its ties with the Federal Republic
of Yugoslavia (FRY). An official in the Croatian ministry, Miona Sevcik, told Hina on Thursday that the ministry had forwarded a statement reacting to the weekly's allegations. Quoting Foreign Minister Tonino Picula, 'Nacional' gave a list of issues whose settlement is needed as to improve relations between the two neighbouring countries. Some of these issues are the resolution of the dispute about the Croatian southernmost area, the peninsula of Prevlaka, Belgrade's failure to hand over persons responsible for the war atrocities in Vukovar to the UN war crimes tribunal (ICTY), the fate of 1,500 Croats who went missing during the aggression a
ZAGREB, Oct 4 (Hina) - Croatia's Foreign Ministry has responded to
an article published in Monday's issue of a weekly 'Nacional' on ten
conditions which Zagreb allegedly sets for the normalisation of its
ties with the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY).
An official in the Croatian ministry, Miona Sevcik, told Hina on
Thursday that the ministry had forwarded a statement reacting to
the weekly's allegations.
Quoting Foreign Minister Tonino Picula, 'Nacional' gave a list of
issues whose settlement is needed as to improve relations between
the two neighbouring countries.
Some of these issues are the resolution of the dispute about the
Croatian southernmost area, the peninsula of Prevlaka, Belgrade's
failure to hand over persons responsible for the war atrocities in
Vukovar to the UN war crimes tribunal (ICTY), the fate of 1,500
Croats who went missing during the aggression against Croatia,
property issues and the fact that General Momcilo Perisic, who was
in Croatia tried in absentia for war crimes, is now a member of the
Serbian government.
"In view of the fact that good neighbourly relations and regional
cooperation, together with Croatia's bids to enter the European
Union and NATO, are priorities of the Croatian foreign policy, the
alleged Croatian refusal of the normalisation of the relations with
the FRY would be absolutely contrary to those priorities which
Croatia has many times declared and confirmed since 3 January
(2000)", Sevcik said.
She added that Croatia and the FRY had some open issues, but those
problems had no character of ten conditions, which the weekly
claimed.
The Yugoslav foreign ministry has said it is going to establish
whether a statement of Croatian Foreign Minister on the relations
with Yugoslavia, which was quoted by a Croatian weekly 'Nacional'
"was accurately cited or it was a free interpretation (of his
words)."
According to the Yugoslav foreign ministry, which on Wednesday
issued a statement on this matter, the development of relations
with its neighbours is a priority of the Yugoslav foreign policy and
the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) treats the ties with
Croatia in that light.
(hina) ms