CROATIAN PRESIDENT AND PRIME MINISTER MEET WITH EDITORS IN CHIEF ( II)

II) ZAGREB, Nov 17 (Hina) - Croatian President Franjo Tudjman and Prime Minister Nikica Valentic held talks with the editors-in-chief of the Croatian mass media in the President's Office in Zagreb late Tuesday afternoon. Asked to comment on a recent statement by Italian Foreign Minister Beniamino Andreatta in Triest that sanctions should also be imposed on Croatia and that EC foreign ministers could offer a proposal for the exchange of territories, including some occupied territories in Croatia as well, President Tudjman replied: "Although we know the Italian policy towards Croatian territory, still such a statement is surprising. ... It was interesting to hear that Italy had slight discontent that my peace initiative did not include Italy. However, this statement shows that such our view was justified." "Statements by some Italian generals, that they have advised Serbs how to take control of Zadar, cannot be regarded as mere coincidence. Neither can be the fact that an Italian senator has appeared at the assembly of Serb insurgents; that some exiled mayors of Zadar and other cities have given statements at the same assembly; that an Italian military vicar has given statements condemning even the church in Croatia as a whole. This altogether shows the persistence of irredentist tendencies in Italy showing disinclination towards Croatia and inclination towards Serbia. ... We are facing stable tendencies in certain Italian circles, regardless of the fact that it certainly is not the official policy of the Italian Government, and we have to take them into account," said the President, adding that Croatia would not tolerate any form of exchange of territories and that it was confident that it would enjoy international support on the issue. "And a statement that sanctions should also be imposed on Croatia ... is a form of pressure on the democratic Croatia. However, it seems to me that there is no real basis for it and that it comes from those who would in fact want to alleviate Serbia's position by shifting the blame on Croatia for what it bears no guilt. ... I think that such tendencies will remain individual and that they will met no support in the European Union, as well as in the international community in general," said President Tudjman. Asked to explain the Greek peace initiative, President Tudjman said: "Greece is a member of the European Community, the European Union and NATO, but Greece has its own problems in relations with Turkey. The position of Greece in Europe depends on peace and stability in South-Eastern Europe and the Balkans. Therefore, no matter to what extent Greece may be Serbia's traditional friend, it is still interested in the normalization of relations in the area of the former Yugoslavia. Its intentions to mediate in the normalization of relations are to the interest of Greece, the European Community and NATO." President Tudjman was asked whether his statement for the Belgian newspaper "La Croix" could be interpreted as an announcement of a Croatian intervention in Bosnia. The statement read: "If the survival of Croats in Bosnia is in danger, as we have recently seen in Vares when 20 thousand Croats have been forced out, or if 70 thousand Croats face danger after attacks on Vitez, Zepce, Kiseljak and Mostar, then the Republic of Croatia will resolutely take other steps to protect the Croats in those areas, unless it fail to do so with the assistance of the international community." "It is possible that some people could interpret that part of my interview in that way. I don't know the context it was taken out of, but basically I stand by it," said the Croatian President. He went on to say that the Croatian people in Bosnia-Herzegovina was first endangered by Serbian aggression, and now, even to a greater extent, by Moslem aggression. About 1,300 Croat soldiers in the Croatian Defence Council (HVO) were killed in defence of Serbian aggression, whereas two to three times as many died in defence of Moslem aggression, President Tudjman said. He noted that so far 200,000 or even more Bosnian Croats had been forces out of their homes, 120,000 of them during Serbian aggression. "The latest statement by Mr Izetbegovic that the Serb-occupied territories (Drvar and Banja Luka) could be retrieved by political means, and other areas by military, in fact portends further war against the Croats. It stands to reason that Croatia as a parent country of the Croatian people has its obligations to defend its people in Bosnia-Herzegovina. But for geopolitical and strategic reasons Croatia must take into account what will happen with Bosnia-Herzegovina as a whole," said President Tudjman, adding that it was important for Croatia not to border with either a Greater Serbia or an Islamic state against Croatia. "For those reasons we have been doing everything from the very beginning to achieve cooperation with the Moslems against Serbian aggression. ... Unfortunately, we have not encountered sufficient understanding on the Moslem side," said President Tudjman, adding that the current policy of extremist Moslem circles called into question his agreement on cooperation with President Izetbegovic. "If the events developed in a direction that the entire Croatian people in Bosnia-Herzegovina was in danger, that the entire territory inhabited by the Croats in Bosnia-Herzegovina was in danger, which would put in danger entire southern Croatia, then Croatia would have to face the consequences and defend not only its historic but also strategic interests. As it is known, Serbian expansionists have harboured imperialistic claims on southern Croatia since World War I, when they wanted to partition Dalmatia between Italy and Serbia. They also laid such claims in this war when they wanted to conquer Dubrovnik." 171759 MET nov 93