Brussels, 24/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European Council gave its approval on Friday 24 June to the conclusion of Croatia's negotiations on accession to the EU. Following the signing of the accession treaty, expected before the end of the year, Croatia could become the 28th member of the EU on 1 July 2013.
Meeting in Brussels on Friday for their final summit under Hungarian presidency, EU leaders approved the conclusion, before the end of June, of talks on Croatia's joining the EU, allowing the accession treaty to be signed before the end of this year. The last four outstanding chapters for negotiation - judiciary/fundamental freedoms, competition policy, budget and various - will officially be concluded at an accession conference on Brussels on 30 June.
“This is a historic step for Croatia and the Balkans”, said European Council President Herman Van Rompuy at a press conference closing the summit, alongside Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor. “We are in the final phase and we expect the accession treaty to be signed before the end of the year. Croatia will be the 28th member of the EU. This would not have been possible without the personal commitment of Ms Kosor. … This demonstrates that, with political will and national consensus, it is possible to step out of the shadows of the past”, Van Rompuy went on. “We on the verge of a historic moment for Croatia and the Western Balkans as a whole, and also for the European Union. I am confident that Croatia will continue its preparations for membership until then with the same vigour as it has done over the past months. The European perspective of the Western Balkans is very real. It is also a significant contribution to peace, reconciliation and stability in the Western Balkans”, said Commission President José Manuel Barroso. “It is a great honour to be able to say that Croatia has reached the end of a long journey. This is a historic moment for all the citizens of our country, on the eve of the independence of Croatia. I also believed we would get there before the end of the month of June. We will continue with our efforts”, Kosor said.
In its conclusions, the European Council welcomes the “new momentum” that the forthcoming conclusion of accession talks brings to “the European perspective of the Western Balkans”. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was “very happy” with the end of the accession talks. In an interim report in March of this year, the European Commission had said that Croatia was still far from meeting all the criteria for closing the chapter on “judiciary and fundamental freedoms”, “but the gaps have been filled in by Croatia”, she said. “The Commission has said the criteria have been met … There is no reason, therefore, to delay the conclusion of negotiations”, she added. There could be no question of this being a hasty or precipitate conclusion of talks, she argued. Al the criteria have been met, the situation is not the same as when Romania and Bulgaria were joining the EU, she pointed out. (E.H./transl.rt)