ITALIAN UNION ORGANISING CONFERENCES ON EU'S ROLE

( Editorial: --> 2526 ) RIJEKA, March 26 (Hina) - The Italian Union in Rijeka (the Italian national minority association in Croatia), the People's University in Trieste and the Centre for Social and Economic Research in Trieste "Dialoghi Europei", will hold conferences on the role and importance of the European Union in five cities in Croatia and Slovenia during March, April and May this year, representatives of the three institutions announced at a joint press conference in Rijeka on Thursday. The president of "Dialoghi Europei" and former Italian representative in the European Parliament, Giorgio Rossetti, said that the PHARE program these days was again turning towards Croatia, which represented the first step in strengthening the cooperation of Croatia and Europe. Before its admission, Croatia alone had to show clear interest in its entry into the EU, said Rosetti. The basic aim of the conferences will be to inform not only members of the Italian national minority in Croatia and Slovenia about the role of the EU but the public in general. Senior representatives of the EU and European Parliament will be participating in the conferences. (hina) mm mrb/rm 261843 MET mar 98