VZCZCXRO2507
PP RUEHIK
DE RUEHVB #0721 3441221
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 101221Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY ZAGREB
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9719
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS ZAGREB 000721 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL HR AF ECON
SUBJECT: Zagreb Daily Report - December 10, 2009 
 
¶1. (U) Minister announces planned new agreement with Bosnia on 
fugitive convicts: Croatian Justice Minister Ivan Simonovic on 
December 9 said publicly that he expects Croatia and 
Bosnia-Herzegovina to sign, by the end of this month, an agreement 
on the execution of final verdicts delivered in the other country. 
This would address the problem of dual nationals who have escaped 
serving their sentences by fleeing to the other country, from which 
they cannot be extradited because both countries' Constitutions 
currently forbid extradition of their own nationals.  The new 
agreement would retain a provision giving each country the right to 
decide whether it would enforce the prison term in cases involving 
criminal acts of a military, political or financial character. 
¶2. (U) Mesic and Vujanovic Praise Croatian-Montenegrin relations: On 
December 9 President Mesic met with his visiting Montenegrin 
counterpart Filip Vujanovic.  Mesic described bilateral relations as 
excellent and stated that it was thanks in part to the courage 
Podgorica showed when it admitted to having been involved in 
unfortunate events during the war.  Vujanovic described relations 
between the two countries as meaningful, intensive and friendly, and 
cited the hiring of a Croatian consortium led by the Split-based 
firm Konstruktor for the construction of a major motorway in 
Montenegro as an outstanding example of bilateral economic 
cooperation.  Mesic congratulated Montenegro for its progress 
towards NATO membership, and added that Croatia was ready to help 
Montenegro in every way on its path to the EU. 
 
¶3. (U) FM expresses strong support for U.S. Strategy in Afghanistan 
during trip to Washington: The Croatian press reported that on 
December 9, in his remarks to the Atlantic Council in Washington, FM 
Jandrokovic said Croatia strongly supports the new U.S. strategy for 
Afghanistan and believed that the international community's mission 
there would succeed.  The media also noted that FM met with U/S of 
Defense Flournoy, NSC Senior Director Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall and 
members of Congress including Senator Mark Begich, Senator George 
Voinovich, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Chairman of the House Committee 
on Foreign Affairs, Howard Berman, and members of the Croatian 
Congressional Caucus.  The MFA spokesman said that Minister 
Jandrokovic thanked the Congress for US support to Croatia on NATO 
and EU membership, raised the possibility of greater economic ties, 
noted Croatia's support for the Butmir process in 
Bosnia-Herzegovina, and asked for Congressional support to include 
Croatia in the Visa Waiver Program. 
 
FOLEY