STABILITY PACT PRINCIPLES ARE WELL ACCEPTED IN CROATIA -- HOMBACH

ZAGREB, April 11 (Hina) - Principles of the Stability Pact in the South East of Europe have been well accepted in Croatia, which means good cooperation in the future, special Stability Pact coordinator Bodo Hombach said in Zagreb on Tuesday. Participation in the pact means speed in the entrance path to the EU and NATO, Hombach said, adding that representatives of the Croatian Government and Parliament had expedited the process. He said during Tuesday's meeting with Croatian officials he had given a lot of promises regarding certain Pact projects. I promised we will help the return of Croat refugees to Bosnia- Herzegovina, about 7,500 of them. We will arrange this with the UNHCR and make up a project of it, Hombach said, adding he had spoken about this with representatives of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). This deserves to be a priority and can become a "quick-start project", Hombach said. Besides, he added, I promised to support a network regarding consultations about legal issues, strengthen the regional mining centre, parliamentary cooperation centre, finance the return of 16,500 people currently living in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and set aside more funds for the meetings of parliamentarians in Zagreb, which is important for the Stability Pact. Asked whether the Pact holds any funds for the stimulation of small and middle scale entrepreneurship, very important for the development of economy, Hombach said the funds were an integral part of the Pact and some projects were not made public. According to him, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has drawn up a great concept for small and middle scale entrepreneurship. He expressed conviction Croatia had a part in this programme. Hombach reiterated his main task in the next several months was to find private investors and bring them to the area. Announcing a struggle against slowness in the implementation of the Pact's projects, Hombach said it had been decided for strict monitoring to be introduced. All project carriers will have to determine a time frame for suggested projects, and monitors will supervise whether set deadlines are respected, he said. Hombach said he had not yet set the date for another donors' conference until he saw how the announced projects would be implemented, but he said it was expected to take place at the end of this year or the beginning of next year. (hina) lml