The government of Prime Minister Janez Jansa made the statement in response to the initiative by Slovene National Party (SNS) leader Zmago Jelincic that "owing to Croatia's aggressive policy towards Slovenia" and its "claims to Slovene territory" Ljubljana should request a statement of warning from the European Commission and "raise the problem of Croatia at all levels of the European Union and in all its forums."
Jelincic launched the initiative last month after Slovene Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel described the publication by the Croatian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management of a map with the border line running down the middle of Savudrija Bay as an act of provocation and an attempt to prejudge the demarcation of the sea border.
Jelincic recommended that the Slovene government make it clear to Brussels that it had to protect the interests of a full member state against a membership candidate and take a similar stance to the one it took on Russia at a recent EU-Russia summit, when it sided with Poland, Estonia and Lithuania.
The Slovene government said that the EU had responded in a similar way when, during their visit to Zagreb last year, Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and Enlargement Commissioner urged Croatia not to apply the ZERP to EU members.
"In that way Croatia would violate the June 2004 agreement between Italy, Slovenia and Croatia and other European documents. Respect for agreements is one of the fundamental values of the European Union," the Slovene government said.
Despite warnings from senior EU officials, Croatia has decided to apply the ZERP to EU member states no later than January 1 next year, the Slovene government said, adding that Slovene diplomats have been drawing the attention of EU officials to the problem of Croatian credibility and its unilateral acts by which it attempts to change the situation that existed on June 25, 1991 when the two countries declared independence from Yugoslavia.
"Slovenia will not allow Croatia to continue this kind of practice during negotiations with the European Union," the Slovene government said in the statement carried by Slovene news agency STA.