"WHAT WILL BELGRADE TALKS BRING" - VJESNIK

ZAGREB, Jan 8 (Hina) - The Zagreb-based daily "Vjesnik" on Monday ran an article ahead of Croatian Foreign Minister Mate Granic's visit to Belgrade next week. The article, headlined "What Will Belgrade Talks Bring" said in part: "Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mate Granic, who is to travel to Belgrade on Wednesday, will be the highest Croatian official to visit the capital of the so-called Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in four years. Announcements from Belgrade indicated that the Serbian side is attaching great importance to the visit. (...) On the other hand, the reservation of the Croatian side is noticeable." Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic had noted that the Belgrade talks would focus on normalization of relations between Serbia and Croatia and that one of the main topics would be the fate of more than a thousand missing and detained Croats, the article said. "The matter which will not be dicussed, and this has already been announced by the Croatian side, is the Prevlaka peninsula. Just like Eastern Slavonia, this is historically and ethnically and under international law part of the territory of the Croatian state and raising this issue is out of the question for Croatia. "It is certain that at this moment Minister Granic's arrival means a lot to Belgrade. It is one of the ways to show the world a new face of the Milosevic regime, which has become inclined to political deals and not war. However, taught by bitter experience in the past, Croatia will approach the talks openly but cautiously. It will make no concessions to Belgrade but will do all it can that a step towards a lasting peace is made. How long and effective the step will be depends on the Serbian side." (hina) vm mm 081527 MET jan 96