25,000 WAR-DAMAGED HOUSES REPAIRED - RADIC

ZAGREB, April 18 (Hina) - More than 25,000 houses damaged during the war in Croatia have been repaired in the last 15 months, Croatian Reconstruction and Development Minister Jure Radic told a press conference in Zagreb on Thursday. Of 198,000 displaced people registered at the beginning of this year, about 38,000 have returned to their homes. Between 15,000 and 20,000 more are expected to return by the end of May, Radic said. In response to a question on the involvement of Croatian state institutions and companies in the reconstruction of Bosnia- Herzegovina, Radic said that the southwestern Bosnian town of Kupres had been rebuilt with Croatian resources. He said that about 3,000 refugees had returned to the town. Radic said that Croatia would finance the reconstruction of some Croat villages in the Bihac area and the contsruction of a Sava river bridge near Orasje, northern Bosnia. He added that three bridges in the southern city of Mostar were being built by Croatian companies. (hina) vm jn 181615 MET apr 96