CROATIA'S TREMENDOUS PROGRESS IN 3 POST-WAR YEARS - GULDIMANN

ZAGREB, June 1 (Hina) - In the last three years Croatia had to pay a "high credit" of the post-war reconstruction and normalisation, but in comparison to similar historical experiences in Europe in the wake of the Second World War, this country has made "tremendous progress", said the head of the OSCE (Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) mission in Croatia, Tim Guldimann. At Tuesday's news conference in Zagreb, Guldimann announced officially that he would soon depart from his post in the Croatian capital. This Swiss diplomat expressed great optimism about Croatia's future in the following four or five years. According to him, Croatia has good prospects and the potential for not only entering Europe but also for fulfilling a role of a factor of stability in the region. Comparing the current situation in the country with the situation one year ago, Guldimann told reporters that then there had been political forces who presented the confrontation with the international community as a real option, and positive one for them relating to elections and internal relations. What we feel today is a clear will to have good cooperation with the international community and I hope that it will prevail in the future, Guldimann added. Commenting on the election year in Croatia, the Swiss diplomat said that by the end of 1999 Croatia would come under close scrutiny of the international community, describing it as a great chance which Croatia might use to show the real progress in ensuring democratic standards for free and fair elections. In this context he pointed to the necessity to implement an agreement on the electoral law as well to the necessity to cover the run-up to the election by television in a fair manner. Guldimann described the agreement of the ruling HDZ party and the opposition on the electoral law as a new positive step adding that he would notify the OSCE Permanent Council members in Vienna about it on Wednesday. He said he would inform them also about the developments after the previous report which he regarded as very positive because of the strengthening of the cooperation with the Government, clarifying communication channels and above-mentioned agreement on the electoral law. Guldimann explained the critical tone of the latest report on the fulfilment of Croatia's commitments as well as the critical attitude of the OSCE mission by the fact that the development was assessed on grounds of high standards which the Croatian Government has set before its own future such as the full integration into European and Western institutions, i.e. the full membership in the European Union and NATO. Guldimann said his successor to this post would be a French diplomat, Bernard Ponchet. He introduced to reporters a new deputy head of the OSCE mission, Hans-Dietrich Steinbach, who has been so far the deputy head of the mission of the German Embassy in the Croatian capital. Guldimann also announced the visit of the OSCE chairman, Norwegian Foreign Minister Knut Vollebaek to Zagreb by the end of the week and added that the OSCE Commissioner for National Minorities, Hans van der Stoel would come in the Croatian capital on Friday. (hina) ms