Croatia did not give in and the debt must be paid. This is a condition for the solving of the Ljubljanska Banka case, Jandrokovic told reporters when asked if Croatia had let down Croatian clients by agreeing to have the negotiations on the Ljubljanska Banka issue resume before the bank in Basel.

"It was agreed to have the negotiations resume in Basel and the main condition and the main result of the talks must be the restitution of the debt to the depositors of the now defunct Ljubljanska Banka," Jandrokovic said after talks with Andorran Foreign Minister Xavier Espot Miro.

The Croatian government announced on Thursday it will officially state its readiness to continue negotiations on the issue of foreign currency savings of Croatian depositors in Ljubljanska Banka before the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel, in line with Annex C of the Agreement on Succession to the former Yugoslavia, the Croatian government decided on Thursday.

This is in line with the agreement with Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor at the July 31 meeting at Bohinj, Kosor said yesterday, adding that they had agreed at the time that negotiations between the two countries would not restrict the rights of individuals.

Kosor said that this position was also agreed with Croatian National Bank governor Zeljko Rohatinski and that the HNB accepted the government's decision.