GRANIC DISCUSSES PREVLAKA & MEETS CHINESE COUNTERPART

( Editorial: --> 2078 ) NEW YORK, Sept 21 (Hina) - Croatian Foreign Minister Mate Granic on Monday began his nine-day stay in the United States by holding talks with Chinese counterpart Tang Jiaxuan. Granic is attending the 53rd session of the UN General Assembly. We are continuing our successful cooperation with China in the completion of the UN police support group's mandate in eastern Croatia and in the resolution of UN's observer mandate on Prevlaka, Granic told reporters after the meeting. During his stay in the U.S. Granic will hold about 30 bilateral meetings, including with foreign ministers of several member- countries of the Security Council and the European union. Granic will address the UN General Assembly next Monday. Talks with UN officials will focus on the termination of UN's mission in eastern Croatia and the UN Mission of Observers in Prevlaka, Croatia's southern-most tip bordering with the Yugoslav Republic of Montenegro. Next week, the UN Secretary General will submit to the Security Council a report on the situation in the Danube river region of eastern Croatia and the work of the civil police support group whose mandate expires in mid-October. The Prevlaka issue will be discussed with Yugoslav Foreign Minister Zivadin Jovanovic. This will be the first meeting on a high political level after expert groups began negotiations on resolving the issue. Croatia wants the UN mission on Prevlaka to end in line with the deadline of January 15, 1999 and will do everything for that to happen, Granic said. Croatia bases its stand concerning the integrity of borders on international documents and conclusions, and believes the border on land cannot be altered, while a border on sea has to be determined, the Foreign Minister said. "We are ready for full guarantees concerning entry to the Boka Kotorska Bay", Granic said, adding in that sense Croatia had proposed an asymmetrical demilitarisation of Prevlaka. Granic's talks in New York will also focus on a donors' conference for the reconstruction and development of Croatia, and on Croatia's entry into the PHARE programme. (hina) ha 212328 MET sep 98