USA HAILS APPEAL TO REFUGEES TO RETURN TO CROATIA

WASHINGTON, Aug 18 (Hina) - It is important for the United States that Croatian President Stipe Mesic had appealed on refugees to return to Croatia, because they are Croatian citizens, assistant state secretary Julia Taft told the Voice of America Friday. Taft is in charge of demography, immigration and refugee issues. She recalled US President Bill Clinton had during Mesic's visit to Washington announced an additional 4.5 million dollars to help Croatia with care for the returnees. These funds is assistance from the national budget. Their announcement shows that Washington and Zagreb are in very positive relations, Taft said. The United States recently decided to allocate to the UNHCR another US$43 million, of which US$5.5 million will be used by the UNHCR Office in Croatia. The funds will finance the reconstruction of homes, the purchase of goods and necessities for returnees and for obtaining documents necessary for their return. This is an important donation as it is added to the sum we already allocated to Croatia, and which in this fiscal year reached US$27 million, Taft said. The UNHCR will use the donation for organising the return of Croat refugees to Republika Srpska and the entire Bosnia-Herzegovina, she said. (hina) lml jn