Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Jandrokovic confirmed on Monday that Croatian authorities had received a letter from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel regarding their request that BIS mediate in a Croatian-Slovenian dispute regarding foreign currency deposits of Croatian clients in the now defunct Slovenian bank Ljubljanska Banka, saying that the government would first analyse the letter and then decide on steps to be taken next.
"(Finance) Minister (Ivan) Suker has received the letter, we will see what exactly the message from Basel is and then decide on steps to be taken next," Jandrokovic told reporters after a government session.
The media have reported that BIS has rejected Croatia's request to act as a mediator in its dispute with Slovenia.
Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor and her Slovenian counterpart Borut Pahor agreed at their first meeting in Bled, Slovenia, in late July that the issue of Ljubljanska Banka and its debt to its Croatian depositors would be settled in line with international treaties and respecting the rights of individuals, estimating that the issue could be solved in the next three months.
The Croatian government on October 14 adopted a decision entrusting Finance Minister Suker with notifying BIS of Croatia's readiness to continue negotiations on Ljubljanska Banka's debt.
