PM Kosor, her predecessors -- Franjo Greguric, Hrvoje Sarinic, Nikica Valentic and Zlatko Matesa -- who had served as prime ministers from mid-July 1991 until the end of January 2000, and Mate Granic, Croatia's foreign minister during the war years who was also a deputy prime minister in those governments, met to discuss President Ivo Josipovic's speech in the Bosnian state parliament on Wednesday when he expressed regret for Croatia's role in attempts to divide Bosnia-Herzegovina in the 1990s.

Nikica Valentic told the press after the meeting that it was historically incorrect to speak about Croatia's aggression and participation in attempts to carve up Bosnia-Herzegovina.

"Statements about aggression and dividing of Bosnia-Herzegovina are a historical untruth and we can guarantee it by our work. This is confirmed by many documents," Valentic said, adding that this position was shared by a majority of Croats.

Franjo Greguric also dismissed statements about Croatia's role in attempts to divide Bosnia.

"This is an absolute lie and huge damage is being done to the Croatian people," Greguric said.

Mate Granic warned that the fact that it was Slobodan Milosevic and his policy aimed at creating a Greater Serbia that launched aggression against Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina and later against Kosovo seemed to be sinking into oblivion.

Granic recalled that Milosevic, Radovan Karadzic and other Serb politicians were tried by the Hague-based UN war crimes tribunal for that policy.

It cannot be said that Croatia launched aggression against Bosnia-Herzegovina when it is well known that during those turbulent years of war from 1991 to 1993 Croatia took in and provided accommodation for a huge number of refugees, not only Croats but also Bosniaks and Serbs, Granic said.

Valentic said that he considered himself indirectly criticised in Josipovic's speech in Sarajevo.

"I haven't seen the entire speech, but segments which I have seen and read offer historically unverified and untrue information," Valentic said.

All of us are sorry for every victim from that time, but there are no documents, indications or legal proof to confirm that Croatia had tried to divide Bosnia and Herzegovina, Valentic said.

"Croatia defended Bosnia, helped Bosnia to defend itself, I personally participated in providing assistance to Bihac," he added.

Hrvoje Sarinic said that he had read the entire speech and said that "what was written is hardly digestible."

Both Zlatko Matesa and Sarinic agreed with Josipovic's condemnation of every crime.

Matesa said that "after the United States, Croatian institutions have given the biggest contribution to preserving a single Bosnia and Herzegovina."

"Individual crimes were committed by all sides and we support President Josipovic in that. We support his visit to sites of atrocities, we hold it to be a decisive statesmanly move, but we make no compromise about who started the war, who launched the aggression and what Croatia's official policy was like," Granic said.

Matesa said he had read Josipovic's speech in its entirety and agreed with him in the segment expressing condolence and sympathy for war victims.