December 21, 2004

The Honorable Ralph Frank

U. S. Ambassador to the Republic of Croatia

2 Thomas Jefferson Street

10010 Zagreb, Croatia

Dear Ambassador Frank,

We were disheartened to read in the Croatian press the statements you made during your recent press conference related to Croatia’s continued efforts to become integrated into Euro-Atlantic institutions.

While we certainly do not question the need to bring suspected war criminals to trial, your emphasis on the need to arrest General Gotovina ignores the strides Croatia has made not only with respect to cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), but the increasingly significant role Croatia has played in achieving regional stability and cooperation.

I am sure that I do not need to remind you that Croatia has done more than any state in the region to cooperate with the ICTY. Indeed, General Gotovina remains the only fugitive from Croatia. All indictees from Croatia have previously surrendered to the Tribunal, including several indicted after General Gotovina disappeared, while Croatia has used its influence to cause indicted Croats from Bosnia and Herzegovina to also surrender to the Tribunal.

More importantly, in the past few years Croatia has become the leading democratic state in the region. Indeed, one can even say that inter-ethnic relations in Croatia are better than in any of the successor states of former Yugoslavia, including Slovenia, an EU and NATO member whose forced de-recognition of its relatively significant ethnic minority population has remained widely ignored.

Croatia has also been at the forefront of the reconciliation process in the area. As a signatory to the Adriatic Charter with Albania and Macedonia, Croatia has shown that it is committed to regional cooperation as it and these other countries seek entry into NATO.

Moreover, Croatia has continued its efforts to establish friendly relations with Serbia- Montenegro, as evidenced by the recent trips to Belgrade by both Croatian President Mesic and Croatian Prime Minister Sanader, who just last month signed a Joint Statement of Understanding with Serbia-Montenegro President Marovic. It is important to emphasize that these trips took place even though one of the major political players in Serbia today is the Serbian Radical Party of indicted war criminal Vojislav Seselj, a Party which has not renounced its claims to territory in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

We understand from your statements to the press that you suggested that the surrender of General Gotovina is a precondition to achieving stability in the region. That this is inaccurate is clearly proven by Croatia's progress in already achieving a stable democracy, one of the best in the region. Moreover, it bears repeating in this regard, that despite the emphasis, which has been placed on the apprehension of General Gotovina, he has not been charged with genocide as, have Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadzic.

General Gotovina's alleged crimes, even assuming they are provable, pale in comparison to those committed by Mladic and Karadzic. General Gotovina commanded an operation, which took place over a matter of days, an operation carried out with the open support of the United States. Mladic and Karadzic, on the other hand, engaged in massive murder and genocide over a 4 years period. Gotovina is, relatively speaking, a small fry and to give him greater significance as the United States has done overlooks what actually took place in the region during the 1991-1995 period.

In view of the foregoing, we find it difficult to believe that you suggested during your press conference that all of what Croatia has done to date is not as important as finding General Gotovina. How can it be that the strengthening of democratic institutions, reconciliation with neighboring states, and the cooperation between the Croatian government and the major ethnic Serbian political party are really not as important?

You place an extremely unfair burden on a country which has a population only half that of New York City. Croatia simply does not have the resources to conduct a worldwide hunt for one person. The fact that American and other NATO forces, which have had full reign over Bosnia and Herzegovina for 9 years, have a failed record when it comes to seizing Mladic and Karadzic, shows that such demands are neither constructive nor realistic.

Croatians value the close relationship which has developed between the United States and their country. This is also especially true for Croatian Americans whose love for the United States makes them particularly aware of the importance America played as an example for Croatia’s determination to become a free and independent republic.

Our community in the United States takes pride in the fact that Croatia allowed American and other NATO forces free use of their skies during the Kosovo campaign, that Croatia allows American naval and air forces use of their ports and air fields, that Croatian forces are participating in the reconstruction and security efforts in Afghanistan, and that Croatian intelligence agencies have assisted the United States in tracking the activities of Islamic extremists in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

We feel, however, that your recent statements to the press, as well as the apparent role played by the United States in attempting to influence the judgment of the members of the EU against setting a start date for accession talks, reflects a lack of balance and appreciation for the big picture. Friends and relatives in Croatia have called many of our members to express their concern that such actions have led to a sharp drop in support for the United States in that country. This is remarkable given that the current Croatian government is widely seen as being pro-American.

We suggest that the United States work to dramatically and quickly change its focus when it comes to Croatia, to one in which it appreciates the outstanding successes Croatia has achieved and the contributions she has made during the past few years.

Sincerely,

Edward A. Andrus

President, NFCA

cc: The Honorable Colin L. Powell, Secretary of State

The Honorable Richard L. Armitage, Deputy Secretary of State

The Honorable Marc Grossman, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs