SPLIT HOSTS A CONVENTION ON CROATIAN MARITIME BORDERS

( Editorial: --> 5876 ) SPLIT, 20 Jan (Hina)- On Tuesday the Split-based Institute for Arts and Sciences of the Croatian Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Faculty of Law of the Split University hosted a convention of Croatian legal experts titled "The Maritime Borders". Participants of the convention all agreed that now that Croatia had reintegrated the Danube River region, and thus reassumed authority over its entire territory, it should focus on differences with its trans-maritime neighbours, especially Slovenia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, but also with Italy. Academic Vladimir Ibler stressed that Croatia fully understood the geographic position of Slovenia, which is especially unfavourable where it borders with the Adriatic sea. However, it is quite obvious that Slovenia cannot access international waters without infringing on the territory of Croatia or Italy. "Unfortunately, Slovenia claims Croatia's territorial waters in the Piran Bay which, I dare say, constitutes a Slovene territorial aspiration," said Ibler. He added that nobody understood Slovenia's claims that its ships encountered problems when sailing into Slovene ports. Croatia empathises and should empathise with the problems of its neighbours, said Ibler. The most viable solution would be to draw a maritime border between Croatia and Slovenia in accordance with international law and establish a liberal cross-border regime in the interest of both countries, said Ibler. Speaking about Montenegro's aspirations for Prevlaka, the southernmost Croatian peninsula, Ibler said that Croatia and Montenegro, as well as Croatia and the FRY, could discuss only minor corrections of the border line and bilateral demilitarisation, but not the changing of an internationally recognised border. Croatian Ambassador to Italy, Dr. Davorin Rudolf, spoke about Croatia's border with Italy. He said that the border with Italy had been regulated by two agreements between the former Yugoslav federation and Italy. One was the Osimo agreement on maritime borders and the other an agreement on borders at the sea bed. Croatia is now planning to use its right as a maritime country to proclaim an economic belt along its littoral, said Rudolf. Croatia would soon discuss those issues with Italy, said Rudolf, who expects that the discussion would be rather complicated. (Hina) jn mr 201939 MET jan 98