PRESIDENT MESIC VISITS OSIJEK

OSIJEK, May 3 (Hina) - Croatian President Stipe Mesic on Wednesday visited Osijek's University's "Josip Juraj Strossmayer" deans office, after which he held talks with the eastern Croatian town's mayor Zlatko Kramaric. At the deans office Mesic was greeted by rector Gordana Kralik, members of the university senate and deans. Kralik said an especially important event was the rectors' conference Alps-Adriatic which will take place in Osijek from may 11 to 13. Mesic stressed that the conference with its themes was one of the "paths of the academic community for opening up to the world and European associations," which "give a chance to the young and open up perspectives, because diplomas will have equal value in the entire unified Europe". Croatia was at the beginning of its entry into European associations "not to any fault of Europe but the policy which carried Croatia to isolation, intimidating citizens with a foreign enemy", Mesic said. Commenting on the situation in Slavonia, Mesic said "the future of Slavonia is as that of Croatia". He asserted "a completely wrong policy" had been led in Slavonia and now ensues opening up towards Europe and the world. The goal is, he said, to have "capital which inflows correctly directed". Mesic said it had been shown that, when it came to the Croatian Danubian area and Vukovar, "donors invested funds to certain purposes, but the money was not used for these purposes and it needs to be established where it disappeared." Mesic also spoke with Osijek residents gathered in front of the Children's Theatre. (hina) lml mm