CROATIA TO SIGN TREATY WITH EU INDEPENDENTLY OF OTHERS-GRANIC

STRASBOURG, Nov 7 (Hina) - Croatia's Foreign Minister Mate Granic left Strasbourg on Thursday afternoon, where he had attended the ceremony on the occasion of Croatia's admission to the Council of Europe and taken part at the Committee of Ministers meeting. Ahead of the departure Minister Granic pointed to the importance of several meetings with his counterparts. Commenting on the talks with Slovenia's Foreign Minister Davorin Kracun, Granic said they had explained several questions Slovenia posed following the signing of the agreement on protection of national minorities by Croatia and Italy. Granic stressed the importance of the meeting with his German counterpart Klaus Kinkel on Wednesday evening in the residency of the Council of Europe secretary-general Daniel Tarschys. There an informal closed-door meeting of the Committee of Ministers was held, at which Carl Bildt, international peace coordinator, was present. Kinkel and Bildt informed the meeting of the situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina as well as of a new security architecture of Europe, he said. Minister Granic added that at the informal meeting he had supported the international military and civilian presence in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and advocated the speedy establishment of all institutions of authority in Bosnia-Herzegovina in line with the elections' results. On that occasion he had also emphasized that Croatia belongs to central Europe and it was actively promoting relations with eastern European countries, but it did not want to accept any form of association in southeastern Europe. "Croatia will sign its agreement, by itself, with the European Union," he said. (hina) mm mš 072058 MET nov 96