MADELEINE ALBRIGHT TO VISIT ZAGREB ON WEDNESDAY

ZAGREB, Feb 1 (Hina) - American Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will arrive in Zagreb on February 2, where she is to hold talks with representatives of the new Croatian authorities, presidential candidates and representatives of non-government organisations. She is scheduled to hold separate talks with Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan, the president of the Croatian National Sabor and Croatia's acting president, Zlatko Tomcic, and both presidential candidates Drazen Budisa and Stipe Mesic, the Croatian Government Media and Public Relations Office reported on Tuesday. Albright wanted to congratulate all those, including representatives of civil associations, who contributed to a significant consolidation of the democratic process in Croatia. Albright's spokesman James Rubin said that Washington wanted that such a development of the situation, after nine years of the authoritarian regime, accelerated Croatia's joining Euro- Atlantic integration. United States senior officials believe that the recently held parliamentary elections in Croatia were crucial not only for Croatia but for the entire region as well. We do not exclude a possibility that Croatia could become a member of NATO's Partnership for Peace Programme this year, said a State Department senior official. The United States Government expects that the Croatian Government implements obligations from the Dayton Agreement, including a clear relations with Bosnia-Herzegovina, cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the successful return of refugees. The US Government said it would support the Croatian Government in this process. (hina) it