"The Rome and Osimo accords will in no way be brought into question," the prime minister said in a comment on a protest rally staged by Italian World War Two refugees from Yugoslavia in Strasbourg on Wednesday.
Sanader put the rally in the context of forthcoming elections in Italy, stressing that the Croatian public should stay calm.
Based on the two agreements concluded between the former Yugoslav federation and Italy Croatia inherited a debt of USD35 million, but Italy has refused to provide an account into which Croatia could pay it back, Sanader recalled. "We will see how we will do it," he added.
The government proposed that Parliament approve the agreement with Italy on the consolidation of the Croatian debt.
After signing a general agreement on the rescheduling of the debt inherited from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia towards the Paris Club, by 1998 Croatia also signed bilateral agreements with 14 of the 15 Paris Club member states. The one with Italy was signed late last year.
Croatia's debt towards Italy as a Paris Club member state was determined at EUR41.9 million, of which EUR31.9 million was distributed among Croatian banks and users and the rest is to be serviced by the government.
Croatia's overall debt towards the Paris Club is about EUR735 million, of which EUR346 million or 47 per cent has been repaid.
The government also called on Parliament to approve an agreement with Bosnia-Herzegovina concerning the rights of former members of the Croatian Defence Council (HVO) and their families.
The agreement, signed in Zagreb on 23 December 2005, is to be implemented in three stages, and this year care would be provided for about 800 families of HVO members who were killed, imprisoned or went missing. KN41 million would be earmarked for this purpose from the national budget, Deputy Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor said.
In 2007 KN64 million would be earmarked for about 1,100 HVO disabled war veterans, while in 2008 and subsequent years KN116 million would set aside for 2,500 civilian members of the HVO who were disabled in the war.