CROATIAN PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS AT OPENING OF MOSTAR ALUMINIUM PLANT

MOSTAR, March 15 (Hina) - In his address at the ceremony of re- opening of the anodes factory of the Mostar Aluminium Plant, Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, said on Saturday that this day had the special significance from both the political and the economic point of view. "This day really marks the beginning of the normal peace-time life and production, which is necessary for the progress in life, for this area and particularly for ties between Herzegovina and Dalmatia, between the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia," Croatian President said. "In the Homeland War, Mostar and Herzegovina bore the brunt of the aggression launched by Serbian-Montenegrin Communist Army and Serbia. Had they been conquered, conquering forces would have ruled over a great part of entire southern Croatia. You have shown that you know to defend your survival in these areas and that you are aware of the importance of the region for the entire Croatian people not only of Bosnia-Herzegovina but also for the Croatian people in whole and for its future. Later, you have also known to defend yourselves from the extremism which, from the other side as well, wanted to jeopardise the area," Tudjman said. "Let us now put aside those war circumstances that are behind us," he said and added that "if we had not survived and defeated aggressors in the war, we would not have had a Croatia recognised in the world of free and sovereign peoples and we would not have maintained Croathood in Bosnia-Herzegovina and there would have been no Washington agreement on the creation of the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina and no links between the Federation and Croatia." He recalled that the Aluminium Plant used to be "one of the biggest and most important business and economic subjects in the entire Bosnia-Herzegovina" and stressed that the firm would have such a role today. He paid credit to Aluminium Plant employees for managing to maintain the plant during the war, in which the Sibenik-based Light Metals Factory did not succeed. "Thank you; you, Herzegovinians, set an example, in many things, to others in Croatia, and in this case you have shown that you can be and are the first in the economic field. So, thank you all, from Mijo Brajkovic to other engineers and workers who have participated in the maintaining and starting of the plant. I wish you a plenty of success. I wish that by full cooperation not only with Sibenik but also with the entire Croatia and your business partners you may open other plants and that you may also be among world's leading aluminium producers in order to prove that we, Croatians, can be among the first in this field as well," President Tudjman said at the ceremony. At the end of his address President Tudjman wished to the management and workers of the Aluminium much success in the work to for the benefit of every man, every citizen in Mostar and Herzegovina, in the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina and much success in fruitful and more profound cooperation between the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia. The Aluminium Plant's anodes factory was opened on Saturday after a ribbon-cutting ceremony. In this way, the production in the Aluminium Plant will restart after five years. After a worker, Vinko Dreznjak, cut the ribbon, Croatian President Tudjman and his entourage along with their hosts toured the factory. (hina) mš 151455 MET mar 97