Speaking after meeting Croatian President Stjepan Mesic, Drnovsek said the Croatian and Slovene finance ministers and central bank governors should see what prevented the compensation of the depositors from Ljubljanska banka's property in Croatia.
"We should then agree about what is left," he said alluding to the fact that the former bank's property was not enough to settle its total debt, which Croatian depositors' attorneys claim amounts to more than a billion euros, including default interest and legal costs.
Mesic agreed that both sides should initiate the settlement of the issue which was burdening Croatian-Slovene relations since 1991. "Citizens must not be deprived of their savings just because the former Yugoslavia broke up."
Drnovsek said the recent ruling of the European Court of Human Rights showed that this issue should be settled in Croatia.
The Strasbourg-based court rejected two Croatian depositors' lawsuits in which they claimed back their savings given that they were compensated through the sale of Ljubljanska Banka's real estate in Osijek. The Court referred the family of a third depositor to file their claims with Croatian courts, just as the other two depositors had done.
The two presidents also discussed outstanding border issues, announcing once again that if the two governments failed to agree on the matter, they would move their own initiative.
"We have given the governments enough time, but unfortunately we have not received an answer yet. If there is no answer, we will move our own initiative," said Mesic.
Drnovsek voiced hope the two governments would show more initiative in the future and be more serious in resolving border issues.