Baroness Margaret Thatcher, convinced that statehood and national states are the strongest foundation of international stability, was a staunch advocate of Croatia's right to self-determination and a trusted friend of Croatia, which regrets that she will not see it join the European Union, Croatian Foreign Minister Vesna Pusic said on Monday in a note of condolence to her British colleague William Hague on Thatcher's death.
In her long political career Thatcher was deeply dedicated to encouraging big changes in the world, which led to the fall of the Iron Curtain, and made an enormous contribution to the promotion of democracy and respect for human rights, which are so important for peace, order and progress, even in contemporary Europe, Pusic said.
As the British prime minister longest in office and the first woman to run the government of a Western power, she proved herself a big patriot in Britain's modern political history, Pusic said, extending condolences on hers and the behalf of the Croatian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.
Thatcher died of stroke in London today. The Iron Lady visited Croatia in 1998 when the then President Franjo Tudjman awarded her one of Croatia's highest state decorations. She was also given an honorary doctorate of the University of Zagreb and was made an honorary citizen of the Croatian capital.
