CROATIA ACCEPTS COOPERATION IN SECI ONLY ON CONCRETE PROJECTS

ZAGREB, Jan 14 (Hina) - Croatia accepts cooperation within the Southeastern European Cooperative Initiative (SECI) only on concrete projects but rejects this US initiative as a possible political association, the Croatian President's Chief of Staff Hrvoje Sarinic said after talks between President Franjo Tudjman and US envoy Richard Schifter in Zagreb on Tuesday. As a country on the border between the Balkans and Southeastern Europe on one side and Central Europe on the other, Croatia will participate in concrete projects relating to road traffic, power transmission lines and gas pipelines, Sarinic told reporters. But the President stressed in a very energetic and clear way that any unions or associations of which Croatia would be part were out of the question, Sarinic said. Schifter said that he and Tudjman reached an understanding as to the outlines of the cooperation, adding that they agreed to work it out with the Croatian government. Sarinic stressed that Schifter explained during the talks that the United States, as well as the countries of the initiative, did not intend to propose any political unions to Croatia. Responding to journalists' questions, Schifter confirmed that the aim of the United States was not to build any supranational political association and that the SECI initiative was not based on political goals. The idea is to limit oneself to economic and environmental matters so that all parties can benefit from it, Schifter said. As forms of cooperation, Schifter cited the construction of bridges and oil pipelines which would cross the borders of countries. He added that such projects required cooperation of two or more countries which in turn would benefit from them. Schifter said that the US was a catalyst of the initiative but that it expected other countries to provide support. He said that Italy was interested in that role, adding that the programme was supported by the European Union. By signing a Statement of Purpose in Geneva on 6 December 1996, nine countries formed the SECI at the instigation of the United States. The aim of the initiative is to promote cooperation in the region and facilitate the entry of Southeastern European countries into European integration processes. The SECI is conceived as a forum where participating countries would discuss common economic and environmental problems which require a concerted action on the regional level. The signatories to the initiative are Albania, Bosnia- Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Macedonia, Moldavia, Romania and Turkey. Although they attended the Geneva meeting, Croatia and Slovenia did not sign the statement and thus did not become members of the group. (hina) vm jn 141719 MET jan 97