FOREIGN MINISTERS OF TURKEY, CROATIA AND BOSNIA MEET IN ANKARA

ANKARA, July 2 (Hina) - The foreign ministers of Turkey, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, Hikmet Cetin, Mate Granic and Irfan Ljubijankic, met for talks in Ankara on Saturday. The three ministers said their governments supported positive developments aimed at establishing a Moslem-Croat federation in Bosnia-Herzegovina. They found the Washington agreement on establishing the federation to be a solid foundation for a long- term solution to the crisis in Bosnia-Herzegovina which would ensure the preservation of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country as well as its multicultural, multiconfessional and multiethnic structure. The three sides confirmed their willingness to continue cooperation on both bilateral and trilateral levels. They agreed that a just and lasting solution to the Bosnian crisis could be found if the international community did not recognize the results of aggression and territorial conquests, and that the Federation agreement also provided a positive frame for the participation of the Bosnian Serbs. In this context, the ministers called on Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) to cooperate with its neighbours, expressing confidence that the mutual recognition of all states which emerged after the break-up of the former Yugoslavia would lead to the normalization of the situation. They said that the deployment of UN observers and peace-keepers on the borders of Croatia and Bosnia- Herzegovina with Yugoslavia would be the first step. Considering the situation in the Serb-occupied territories in Croatia, the ministers pointed out the importance of their urgent reintegration into Croatia's constitutional, political and administrative system as a crucial precondition for the overall settlement of the crisis in the region. The three countries decided to set up a joint group that would look into the possibilities of cooperation in the field of energy, transport, communications, public works, investment, banking, trade and industry. At a press conference following the trilateral meeting, Granic and Ljubijankic welcomed the deployment of Turkish peace-keepers as part of the UN effort and thanked Turkey for its balanced and efficient contribution to peace efforts in Bosnia-Herzegovina. In the afternoon, the Croatian and Bosnian delegations were received by Turkish President Suleyman Demirel, who supported Croatian and Bosnian efforts to build up the federation and find a realistic solution within the peace process and in cooperation with the international "contact group". Demirel said he was confident that his forthcoming visit to Croatia and Bosnia, and talks with Croatian President Franjo Tudjman and the leaderships of Bosnia- Herzegovina and the Federation would be a clear message in the context of the current situation in the region. 021900 MET jul 94