ROME, March 18 (Hina) - Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi met the Italian minority representative in the Croatian parliament, Furio Radin, in Rome on Wednesday.
ROME, March 18 (Hina) - Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi met the
Italian minority representative in the Croatian parliament, Furio
Radin, in Rome on Wednesday.#L#
Ciampi said that the problems of the Italian community in Croatia and
its protection should be viewed in the European context and with
Croatia's full participation in the European Union, thus expressing
support for Croatia's integration into the EU. The Italian president
spoke about his friendship with Croatia and President Stjepan Mesic,
as well as his solidarity with the Italian communities in Croatia and
Slovenia.
The Italian community in Croatia is under no threat, it does encounter
some problems, but they are already being solved thanks to an
agreement with Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, Radin said.
Radin discussed the position of the Italian communities in Croatia and
Slovenia with the minister in charge of relations with the parliament,
Carlo Giovanardi, the state under-secretary at the ministry of public
education, Valentina Aprea, and Ciampi's advisor on foreign affairs,
Antonio Puri Purini.
Radin told his hosts that the Italian minority in Croatia was
interested in Croatia and Italy signing an agreement on friendship and
cooperation to guarantee the protection of cultural interests of the
Croatian Italian minority.
He said that this year's budgetary funds for the Italian minority
publishing company "Edit" from Rijeka were increased by one-third and
that funds had been secured for the salaries of Italian language
teachers in Croatian high schools in Istria.
Radin also informed his hosts of plans to establish an Istrian
university, which would cooperate with Italian universities.
(Hina) rml