EXPERT TEAM ADDRESSES IDENTIFYING STATE BORDER WITH MONTENEGRO

DUBROVNIK, Aug 17 (Hina) - An expert team of Croatia's state commission for the identification of the Croatian-Montenegrin border convened for a meeting in the southern Croatian port of Dubrovnik on Thursday. It was established Croatia's sovereignty and territorial integrity remained encroached upon because the army of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) was deployed on the Bjelotina and Kosara hills in the Konavle region, namely Croatian state territory, a statement issued after the meeting said. The president of Croatia's State Commission on Borders, Hrvoje Katicic, who attended today's meeting, said a Croatia-FRY joint commission trying to find a permanent solution to the Prevlaka issue had not convened for its fifth meeting due to FRY's failure to confirm the attendance of legitimate representatives of FRY's Republic of Montenegro. According to Katicic, the FRY delegation is unwilling to discuss the sea border and demilitarisation, which he says prevents the setting of a date for the delegations to meet in Zagreb. He cannot see that it is going to happen before elections in FRY. Prevlaka is Croatia's southern-most tip which borders with Montenegro and to which FRY has territorial aspirations. Croatia has pointed out on several occasions that a change to its internationally recognised borders is out of the question, voicing however willingness to settle all security issues through a permanent demilitarisation of the area. FRY, however, has continually been avoiding negotiations. A United Nations mission has been deployed on the peninsula since the former Yugoslav federation's army, JNA, withdrew in 1992. Every six months, the Security Council extends the mission's mandate, with recommendations that FRY and Croatia adopt an agreement on this part of the border. (hina) ha jn