CROATIA & SWITZERLAND EXCHANGE RATIFICATION DOCUMENTS OF SOCIAL INSURANCE AGREEMENT

INSURANCE AGREEMENT ( Editorial: --> 2366 ) ZAGREB, Nov 20 (Hina) - Croatia and Switzerland on Thursday exchanged ratification documents concerning a social insurance agreement saying that from January 1, 1998, Croats in Switzerland will get documents with Croatian and not Yugoslav inscriptions. The ratification documents were exchanged in Zagreb by Croatian Deputy Foreign Minister Ivo Sanader and Swiss Ambassador to Croatia Peter Trndle. "This is a political sign of very good bilateral cooperation between Croatia and Switzerland", Sanader told reporters, adding "it is also psychologically very important for Croats living in Switzerland to have Croatian inscriptions on their documents, not Yugoslav ones". According to Trndle, the agreement might not be that important on a government level, but was important for citizens. Both Sanader and Trndle were satisfied with the improvement in relations between Croatia and Switzerland. According to official data of the Swiss government, there are 45,000 Croats living and working there. Croatian data says the figure is between 70,000 and 80,000. Many Croatian citizens have not requested Swiss authorities to alter the status under which they are officially listed, so are still listed as Yugoslavs. (hina) ha jn 201814 MET nov 97