Croatia, whose accession talks have progressed the most, and which in socioeconomic terms is even more developed than some of the current EU member-states, would represent the least financial burden for the EU considering the country's size, population and level of economic development, and (its admission) would not cause any statistical changes with regard to regions which have the right to regional assistance, even in the current financial framework, reads the resolution, adopted by a vast majority of votes.
The proposal for the resolution came from the Committee on Regional Development, which in late March adopted a report by German deputy Markus Pieper, a member of the European People's Party - European Democrats Group (EPP-ED).
The report has a positive meaning for Croatia, whose admission would not affect the present assistance to European regions, while the admission of Turkey or Ukraine would have a huge effect, Pieper told Croatian reporters.
The resolution includes some very important statistical data.
With Croatia's admission, the territory of regions entitled to structural funds of the current 27-member EU would increase by 1.3%, their population would increase by 0.9% and the average GDP per capita would drop by 0.6%.
Statistical regions whose GDP per capita is below the European average of 75% are entitled to aid from three EU structural funds. Under the proposal for Croatia's division into three statistical regions, none of those regions is above 75% of the average GDP and all three would be entitled to aid from the structural funds.
For the sake of comparison, Turkey's admission would increase the EU territory by 18.3%, the population would grow by 14.7% and the GDP per capita would decrease by 10.5%.
With the admission of Bulgaria and Romania on January 1, the territory of the regions entitled to regional aid in the 25-member EU rose by nine percent, the population grew by six percent, and the GDP per capita dropped by five percent.
With the admission of the Western Balkan countries (Croatia is not treated as part of that region in the resolution), the territory would increase by 4.8 percent, the population would grow by four percent, and the GDP would fall by 3.5%.
Apart from the three structural funds, which are intended for assistance to statistical regions, since 1993 the EU has had a cohesion fund intended for countries whose GDP per capita, measured by purchasing power parity, does not exceed 90 percent of the European average.
Of the old EU members, Spain, Portugal and Greece are entitled to assistance from that fund, while Ireland lost its right after its GDP went over 90% of the European average.
All the 12 new EU members, which joined the bloc in 2004 and 2007, have the right to assistance from the cohesion fund.