PROTEST VOICED TO BRITISH AMBASSADOR OVER COOK'S REMARKS

( Editorial: --> 7465 ) ZAGREB, March 5 (Hina) - Josip Paro, Assistant to the Croatian Foreign Minister, on Thursday delivered a verbal protest to British Ambassador to Croatia Colin Munro over several comments made yesterday by British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook in Sarajevo. Cook had accused Croatia of being "the single greatest obstacle to resolving the refugee crisis", alluded to alleged territorial pretensions of Croatia towards Bosnia-Herzegovina and said President Franjo Tudjman's recent speech showed "ethnic intolerance". A Croatian Foreign Ministry statement released on Thursday said Paro emphasised that the criticisms did not reflect actual practices of the Croatian Government and that Croatia totally rejected them. He said that the Republic of Croatia remained totally committed to its international obligations and that it did not have territorial pretensions vis a vis Bosnia-Herzegovina or any other country. Paro stressed that the number of Serbs who had returned to their former homes in Croatia from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia or the Danube region clearly showed that the Republic of Croatia was not an obstacle in the resolution of refugee problems. He especially emphasised that the Government would continue with the policy of two-way return of refugees and displaced people, as well as the controlled return of Serb refugees from other countries. The Assistant to the Croatian Foreign Minister reminded the British Ambassador of parts of Tudjman's speech in which the Croatian President called on members of the ruling party to take a leading role in social reintegration and called on the Croatian Democratic Union to become guarantor of reconciliation with Croatian citizens of Serb descent. The British Ambassador was satisfied with the explanation, the Croatian Foreign Ministry statement ended. (Hina) jn mb /lm 052153 MET mar 98