Zagreb Daily Report - January 29, 2010

UNCLAS ZAGREB 000065 SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL HR SUBJECT: Zagreb Daily Report - January 29, 2010 ¶1. (U) Croatian Coverage of London Conference on Afghanistan: The MFA and press reported that FM Jandrokovic attended the international conference on Afghanistan in London on January 28. The FM confirmed Croatia's commitment to ISAF and highlighted the efforts underway to help Afghans assume responsibility for the security situation in the country. The MFA stated that the Croatian and Afghan governments are working together to strengthen the Afghan army and police in order to help ensure the country's development and prosperity. The MFA stressed that Croatia has taken part in the accomplishment of those goals from the beginning and will continue to contribute in the future. The press also reported that on the margins of the conference, Jandrokovic met Dutch FM Verhagen to discuss Croatia's EU accession. The Croatian press coverage of the conference so far has been fairly limited, focusing mostly on the MFA's press statement. ¶2. (U) Government Announces Date for Shipyard Tender: The government announced February 15 will be the date for the second attempt to sell five of Croatia's largest state-owned shipyards, a key criteria for Croatia's competition chapter negotiations with the EU. The first tender offer last August failed to attract any acceptable bids. State owned shipyards employ roughly 11,500 workers. WALKER