CROATIA ADMITTED TO EUREKA

ZAGREB, June 23 (Hina) - Croatia was admitted as a full member to the European programme of technological and scientific cooperation - EUREKA, at a conference of European technology and science ministers, held in Hannover on Friday, Croatian Technology and Science Minister Hrvoje Kraljevic said. EUREKA, as a joint initiative of 17 European countries, was established in 1985. Its projects have since established links between scientific institutes, scientists, inventors and economies and are aimed at the final intellectual or material product. All EUREKA projects are market-oriented and competitive. "EUREKA is exceptionally important for small countries which have good ideas but which find it difficult to finance them," Kraljevic said. Croatia is at the moment interested most in projects for traffic improvement, he added. The annual membership fee for EUREKA, which is determined according to the Gross Domestic Product of a member-country, will for Croatia amount to EUR5,200. Croatian export products will soon feature the EUREKA logo. Also admitted to EUREKA today were Latvia and Israel. (hina) jn rml