LOCAL BORDER TRAFFIC ESTABLISHED BETWEEN CROATIA AND YUGOSLAVIA

( Editorial: --> 8236 ) VUKOVAR, Dec 14 (Hina) - An agreement on local border traffic between Croatia and Yugoslavia took effect on Sunday. The agreement enables residents of the border areas of the two countries to cross into the border area of the neighbouring country using a special pass and spend up to three days there without a passport. Residents of the UN-administered Croatian Danube river region cannot cross into neighbouring Yugoslavia having only personal identity cards. This was decided by the UN transitional administration (UNTAES) in cooperation with the Croatian government in order to facilitate the adjustment of the local population to the Croatian customs system and the local border crossing regime. As of today, only people having a valid local border crossing pass or a passport with a visa can cross into Yugoslavia and vice versa. The Croatian Interior Ministry said it had issued more than 4,000 local border crossing passes. The passes will be valid for one year, after which they can be extended. Such documents can also be obtained by persons with temporary residence in the region, i.e. those who have settled there from other parts of Croatia. They will be allowed to use the border crossing passes until their return to their pre-war homes. Eighteen Croatian and 12 Yugoslav municipalities are included in the local border crossing system. The Transitional Police Force said that traffic was running smoothly at the border crossing in Ilok. On Saturday, the Yugoslav Embassy announced that its two consular offices in the Croatian Danube region would be open on weekends to issue long-term entry visas to students attending schools and faculties in Yugoslavia. For that purpose the Yugoslav consular office in Vukovar will be open on Saturdays and the one in Beli Manastir on Sundays. UNTAES has said that such visas will also be issued to residents of about 20 villages in the Croatian Danube region which are not covered by the local border traffic system. (hina) vm 141454 MET dec 97