The first US ambassador to Croatia, Peter Galbraith, visited Vukovar on Tuesday on the occasion of the 31st anniversary of Croatia's international recognition and the 25th anniversary of the completion of the peaceful reintegration of the Danube River Region.

Galbraith and Vukovar-Srijem County head Damir Dekanic lit a candle at the Homeland War Victims Memorial Cemetery and Galbraith also visited the National Memorial Hospital, the county said in a press release.

He was quoted as saying he that he was personally proud as well as of what the United States did at that time.

Still, the real success should be attributed to the people who stayed to live here, local government and the Croatian state. Despite that, there is still a lot of room to advance coexistence, he added.

The peaceful reintegration was a big success for Croatia and those who stayed to live in the region as well as those who returned, said Dekanic.

He told Galbraith the county’s population was 250,000 before the Homeland War and now a little over 140,000. Today’s priority is to solve demographic issues and keep the people here, he added.

This was Galbraith’s second visit to Vukovar in 25 years.