TUDJMAN TO LEAVE FOR RUSSIA WHERE HE IS TO SIGN FRIENDSHIP AGREEMENT

ZAGREB, Dec 16 (Hina) - Croatian President Franjo Tudjman will sign a friendship and cooperation declaration with Russia during his three-day state visit to the country. Tudjman is leaving for Russia on Thursday, at the invitation of the Russian President Boris Yeltsin. Between December 17 and 19, Tudjman will hold talks with his host Yeltsin, Russian Prime Minister Yevgeniy Primakov, as well as other senior officials, focusing on promoting bilateral relations. The talks will also discuss international issues, such as building the European security system and solving Europe's focal points of crisis. The two presidents will sign the Declaration on Friendship and Cooperation, which will be the crown of good Croatian-Russian relations in the past year. The Croatian President was to visit Russia between November 2-5, but the visit was postponed due to Yeltsin's illness. The Russian President's health has improved in the meantime, and he has started to regularly perform his presidential duties. A Croatian business delegation will also visit Russia, where it is to hold talks on strengthening economic cooperation of the two countries. An important topic of the Yeltsin-Tudjman talks will be the payment of debts to Croatia, which Russia inherited from the former Soviet Union. "Considering that the Russian obligations towards international financial institutions until the end of 1998 amounts to several billion dollars, it is difficult to expect that the payment will be made in cash", Croatian Ambassador to Russia Hido Biscevic noted. Croatia proposed that the debt should be paid through oil and gas. (hina) it jn/lml