"We have discussed all the aspects of our negotiations with the EU and we remain optimistic about a possibility for the negotiations to be completed by the end of this year, as scheduled in the European Commission's last report," Sanader told reporters after his talks with Rehn in the Croatian permanent mission to the United Nations in New York.
Commissioner Rehn said that at the talks he praised Croatia for its acceptance of his compromise solution to the blockade and the border row.
Rehn added that his meeting with Sanader focused on models for further progress towards the lifting of the blockade of Croatia's EU membership talks, which he holds could end by the end of this year.
There is still some work to do but the technical negotiations between Croatia and the EU can be wrapped up by the end of 2009, provided that the talks are soon unblocked and some other obstacles removed, the European Commissioner said.
He stressed that it was up to Croatia and Slovenia to harmonise their views on the resolution and that the European Commission would continue helping them to seek a solution, just as it had done in the past six months.
We are now so close (to the resolution) and we must not give up, said Rehn, who was on a working visit to New York and Washington.
Asked about the European Commission's Plan B in case that Slovenia persists in the blockade, Rehn avoided any direct answer, reiterating that he hoped the resolution was in the offing.