Strobe Talbott was one of the policy makers who raised the issue of regulation of position of Serbs in Croatia, the most important issue in Croatia–United States relations at the time, while US Ambassador Peter Galbraith organized three meetings with the population of the region in the towns of Vukovar, Beli Manastir and Ilok where he informed local Serbs that they will, regardless of fact that their leaders did not inform them on it, indeed became part of Croatia based on Erdut Agreement. He also told them that they have the right to stay, and live whenever they want in Croatia, be it Zagreb, Osijek, Donji Lapac, Knin or Glina and that ethnic Croats have the right to return to Eastern Slavonia. Madeleine Albright visited Vukovar in early 1996 to express her support to the process of reintegration where she was attacked with eggs and stones at local market. Initial headquarters was located at United Nations Protection Force headquarters in Zagreb but idea of mission personnel was to put headquarters in eastern Croatia. Croatian Government offered Osijek for that purpose but mission refused it since it wanted to locate it on the territory of Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia. Therefore, the headquarters were located in Vukovar, with a liaison office in Beli Manastir, which provided UNTAES civil affairs officers with the opportunity to attend sessions of local Serb Executive Councils and assemblies which facilitated exchange of relevant information. One of the challenges mission faced was tense and peaceful retake of Đeletovci oil fields from the control of Scorpions paramilitary. Representatives of mission urged ambassadors from Zagreb to visit region and additionally introduced practice of visiting of the local Serbian orthodox churches and two Catholic churches that still were in operation.
