HDZ PRESIDENCY ISSUES STATEMENT AFTER SESSION

ZAGREB, June 20 (Hina) - The presidency of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union Party (HDZ) on Friday held a session chaired by the party's and Croatia's President Franjo Tudjman, the HDZ secretary general's office said in a statement. Discussing the 15 June presidential election results, the HDZ presidency expressed great satisfaction with the plebiscitary support Croatian citizens once again gave to President Franjo Tudjman, the statement said. It added that the HDZ presidency thanked all citizens of Croatia who voted for President Tudjman as a sign of trust in a safe future of independent and democratic Croatia. The trust the huge majority of the Croatian people once again put in President Tudjman is an obligation to further strengthen Croatia's international position and to continue with its interior development as a country of well-being, social justice and the rule of law for all its citizens, the statement further said. The presidency of the HDZ refutes all malevolent, untrue and unfounded assessments that the recent presidential election was allegedly unfair, the statement said, adding that such assessments are all the more puzzling and unacceptable considering the fact that few are the instances where a presidential candidate in a democratic country achieves such superior victory. The presidency assessed that such interpretations come from those circles which in Croatia want an authority acting according to their own interest, and not according to Croatian national interests. The HDZ presidency also expressed satisfaction with a recent agreement between the HDZ and the Croatian Social Liberal Party (HSLS) on the level of the City of Zagreb, and once again called on central parties, especially the HSLS and the Croatian Peasant Party, to wider cooperation in the interest of Croatian citizens and Croatia, the statement by the presidency of the HDZ concluded. (hina) ha 201813 MET jun 97