CROATIA & SLOVENIA BEGIN TALKS ON BORDERS AND KRSKO POWER PLANT

( Editorial: --> 5854 ) MOKRICE, Aug 25 (Hina) - A Croatian and Slovene delegation headed by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Economy on Tuesday met in Mokrice to discuss all open issues in mutual relations, especially borders and the Krsko nuclear plant. The delegation includes Croatia's Foreign Minister Mate Granic and Economy Minister Nenad Porges and Slovene counterparts Boris Frlec and Metod Dragonja. Talks began with a joint meeting of all four ministers. Separate meetings will follow. The talks in Mokrice, a town in Slovenia near the Croatian border, are the result of a Croatian proposal after Slovenia strained relations with Croatia by passing one-sided decisions on the issue of the border along the Dragonja river and the activity of Krsko, a power plant on Slovene territory jointly owned by the two countries. The delegation will also discuss all other open issues related to establishing a border on land and sea, to the debt Slovenia's Ljubljanska Bank has to Croatian depositors, and to Slovene property in Croatia. Both sides earlier said they would attend the talks willing to reach a compromise towards resolving the open issues which have been hampering the relations between the two countries since proclaiming independence. (hina) ha 251630 MET aug 98