BUDAPEST, Feb 22 (Hina) - Democratic elections in Croatia were a sort of referendum for openness toward Europe, and a positive atmosphere in the wake of the polls is generally being felt in the entire region, said the Stability Pact
for South-East Europe, Bodo Hombach, and the Pact's democratisation working table's chairman, Zsolt Nemeth, in Budapest. The Hungarian capital hosted the session of the Stability Pact's first working table that tackles democratisation and human rights. At the end of the session, the Pact's main co-ordinator Hombach described the Budapest meeting as very successful. By the end of February a concrete list of projects, presented by this and other two working tables of the Pact, will be compiled and subsequently submitted for assessment to a donors' conference in Brussels. At the request of the Croatian Government and Hungarian Premier Viktor Orban, Hombach
BUDAPEST, Feb 22 (Hina) - Democratic elections in Croatia were a
sort of referendum for openness toward Europe, and a positive
atmosphere in the wake of the polls is generally being felt in the
entire region, said the Stability Pact for South-East Europe, Bodo
Hombach, and the Pact's democratisation working table's chairman,
Zsolt Nemeth, in Budapest.
The Hungarian capital hosted the session of the Stability Pact's
first working table that tackles democratisation and human
rights.
At the end of the session, the Pact's main co-ordinator Hombach
described the Budapest meeting as very successful.
By the end of February a concrete list of projects, presented by
this and other two working tables of the Pact, will be compiled and
subsequently submitted for assessment to a donors' conference in
Brussels.
At the request of the Croatian Government and Hungarian Premier
Viktor Orban, Hombach will forward to the European Investment Bank
a project for the construction of a motorway from Zagreb to
Budapest. The German diplomat added that in view of relatively good
economies in these two countries compared to the situation in other
countries in the region, the governments in Zagreb and Budapest
would be asked to support financially that project as well.
Croatia's delegation at the Budapest session was led by Josko Paro,
an assistant to Foreign Minister.
A deputy to the Croatian National Coordinator of the Pact, Tomislav
Thur, told Hina that the gathered in Budapest had shown great
interest in a project for the return of refugees. Thur said Croatia
was expecting the concrete support of the Stability Pact for the
implementation of that programme, and an assistance of 55.6 million
US dollars.
Croatia also proposed a summit meeting of the Pact's member
countries' parliament speakers in Zagreb for the mid-May. The
Croatian Government submitted 12 projects to this table, and non-
governmental organisations also suggested a certain number of
them.
(hina) ms