H.E. Mr. Celso L. N. Amorim
President of the United Nations Security Council
N e w Y o r k
Excellency:
In view of the forthcoming consideration by the UN Security Council on the UN Mission of Observers in Prevlaka (UNMOP), I must express the position of the Republic of Croatia vis-?-vis the resolution of the security issue of Prevlaka once again. The intent of this letter is not to enter into a protracted debate on the veracity of the arguments recently presented in a letter by Mr. Momir Bulatović, President of the Federal Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (S/1998/1225), which can readily be rebuffed by cursory reference to relevant documents, including those of the Security Council. Rather, it is to demonstrate that the FRY has not given up its territorial pretensions towards Croatia and that it is not willing to meaningfully engage in bilateral negotiations. This type of misuse of the UNMOP mandate requires energetic reaction on behalf of the Security Council.
In sharp contrast to the provisions of Security Council resolutions 1147 (1998) and 1183 (1998), the FRY continued with its practice of obstructing and prolonging negotiations (see annex, letter from Mate Granić, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Croatia, to Živadin Jovanović, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the FRY). Even following the establishment of a Joint Commission concerning Prevlaka it took six months and three rounds of negotiations for the FRY to state its real position. Now that it has, on the eve of Security Council deliberations concerning the UNMOP mandate, it is evident that its position reflects a disrespect for the territorial integrity and international borders of the Republic of Croatia and Security Council resolution 1183 (1998), which explicitly reconfirms them. Clearly, the FRY is not ready to enter into serious negotiations on a mutually acceptable security arrangement for Prevlaka without impetus.
The 24 December 1998 letter by Mr. Momir Bulatović and the Memorandum
attached dispels any doubt about the position of the FRY not to recognize
the international borders of the Republic of Croatia. Hence, the
FRY’s claim of their de facto control over Prevlaka amounts to nothing
more than a request for a change of the existing international border,
a ploy which Croatia is not prepared to consider.
The Security Council is well aware that the borders of former republics of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia were clearly established and known to all. The Arbitration Commission of the EC/UN Conference on the former Yugoslavia and the decisions of UN Security Council reconfirmed these borders as the international borders of newly independent states.
Reflecting this understanding, the Vance Plan (S/23280, annex III) called on the demilitarization of the UN Protected Areas in Croatia, as well as on “all JNA forces deployed elsewhere in Croatia to be relocated outside that republic” (emphasis added). Subsequently, the Croatian President Franjo Tuđman and Yugoslav President Dobrica Čosić signed in Geneva, on 30 September 1992, a Joint Declaration (S/24476), agreeing that “the Yugoslav Army will leave Prevlaka by 20 October 1992, in accordance with the Vance Plan”. They further agreed that “(T)he overall security of Dubrovnik and Boka Kotorska will be resolved through subsequent negotiations”. The UN Security Council welcomed the Joint Declaration in its resolutions 779 (1992) and 1038 (1996), which established and authorized deployment of the UN observes on Prevlaka, and ever since has deliberated on this issue under the agenda item “The Situation in Croatia”. Pursuant to the commitment contained in the Joint Declaration, the Republic of Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) included the security issue of Prevlaka in their Agreement on Normalization of Relations (A/51/351, S/1996/744).
Following six Security Council resolutions dealing exclusively with Prevlaka and six extensions of the UNMOP mandate, the record suggests that the continuation of the UNMOP mandate without decisive impetus from the Security Council shall be pointless. The Republic of Croatia, therefore, appeals to the Security Council to provide much needed incentive.
Alternatively, the Security Council may witness further needless use of the resources of the UN, in light of the fact that the situation in Prevlaka neither represents a threat to international peace and security nor a source of concern, let alone “psychosis of fear among the local population”. The alleged fear of the population of Boka Kotorska Bay of the Republic of Croatia referred to in the letter of Mr. Momir Bulatović contradicts the publicly expressed desire of the Montenegrin leadership that the border crossing points in the area of Prevlaka be opened permanently. Furthermore, the withdrawal of Montenegrin Government appointed representatives from the Yugoslav negotiating team is a direct result of the refusal of the federal authorities of the FRY to accept the opening of border crossing points with the Republic of Croatia in the area of Prevlaka. While Croatia’s unilateral opening of the border crossing points Debeli Brijeg and Konfin in the area of Prevlaka for the All Saints and Christmas holiday season was welcomed by the population and leadership of Montenegro, the federal authorities of the FRY formally protested this act, and in that manner clearly indicated where the problem lies. Croatia firmly believes that the opening of the border crossing points Debeli Brijeg and Konfin is beneficial not only for the local population on both sides of the border, but also positively reflects on confidence building and regional stability.
Consequently, the Republic of Croatia hopes that the Security Council shall recognize the imperative to prevent the UNMOP from being used by the FRY authorities as a mechanism for postponing full reintegration of the last part of Croatian territory following its occupation. The Security Council should clearly and unequivocally state that Prevlaka is an integral part of the Republic of Croatia, and that it shall not tolerate territorial pretensions and the disrespect of international borders. By modifying the mandate of the UNMOP -- by reducing the number of observers and indicating an impending end to the mandate, and thereby releasing UN resources to areas of more pressing concern -- the Security Council should press the FRY to engage in constructive negotiations.
I should like to ask your assistance in circulating the present letter as a document of the Security Council.
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Ivan Šimonović
Ambassador Permanent Representative |
Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister for Foreign Affairs of the
Republic of Croatia
Dear Minister,
I should like to express my regret that negotiations toward finding a permanent solution to the Prevlaka issue have not intensified, as was agreed during our meetings in Zagreb and New York.
At the meeting of the Commission of our two States held in Belgrade on 9 October 1998, it was agreed and publicly announced that a third meeting was to be held in Zagreb in November 1998, even though the Croatian delegation on that occasion proposed the continuation of negotiations in two weeks.
I personally proposed the dates 30 October or 7-8 November 1998 to the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to the Republic of Croatia as the dates for the third meeting.
It is with regret that I must affirm that in spite of all these proposals we still have not received a positive reply regarding the arrival of the delegation of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, or a reply to the proposal of upgrading the level of political representation of the delegations, whose aim is to ensure the expeditious attainment of a permanent solution.
Nevertheless, it is with satisfaction that I can affirm that not one serious problem has been reported in the southern border area between our two states during the past period. Similarly, the opening of border crossing points at that part of our common border on the occasion of religious holidays was very positively received, above all by the residents from both sides of the border.
Taking into consideration that the mandate of the United Nations Mission of Observers on Prevlaka expires on 15 January 1998, I request once again that you urgently propose the time and date (up to 25 December 1998) of the arrival of the delegation of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia for the third meeting of the Commission of our two States to be held in Zagreb.
Furthermore, I kindly request that in the spirit of the Agreement on the Normalization of Relations between the Republic of Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, you seriously consider ways to accelerate the negotiations with the aim of reaching a permanent solution to the Prevlaka issue as soon as possible.
Please accept, dear Minister, the assurances of my highest consideration.
Dr. Mate Granić
H.E. Živadin Jovanović
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
B e l g r a d e