U.S. WITHDRAWS REQUEST FOR CROATIA'S SUSPENSION FROM COUNCIL OF EUROPE

EUROPE $ STRASBOURG, Oct 9 (Hina) - The United States no longer asks for the suspension of Croatia at the Council of Europe following the surrender of ten Bosnian Croats to the International Crimes Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia in The Hague, John Shattuck, assistant for human rights of U.S. secretary of state, told reporters in Strasbourg Thursday. Shattuck is at the head of a U.S. monitoring delegation attending the second Council of Europe summit. By surrendering the ten BH Croats to The Hague tribunal, Croatia has made a significant step in complying with obligations under the Dayton peace accord, Shattuck said, adding this deserved very positive reactions. The U.S. and its partners in Europe will continue to follow the situation regarding human rights in Croatia and to stimulate its development to the effect of achieving high European standards, Shattuck told reporters. He added that the U.S. will in cooperation with partners in Europe and the Croatian government continue to work on the development of democracy and the strengthening of human rights, especially as regards refugee return and media freedom issues which, Shattuck said, are visibly limited in Croatia. The U.S. has promised one million USD for the work of a commission for human rights in Bosnia-Herzegovina acting as part of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Shattuck concluded. (hina) ha 092026 MET oct 97