In a debate on the results of the tribunal's work, she said Croatia achieved full cooperation thanks to pressure from the EU, which made the negotiations conditional on full cooperation.
I remember well that Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, who helped us a lot, told me he would extradite general (Ante Gotovina), but that he considered him to be innocent, said Del Ponte.
We have a prime minister who feels the accused is innocent but is ready to extradite him to The Hague. Why is he ready? Because of political pressure, because of negotiations with the EU. That was of great assistance to us, she added.
Del Ponte described a visit to Zagreb on 30 September 2005, when she was shown evidence that Gotovina had been located.
I remember well that morning at the airport. Prime Minister Sanader got in touch with me by phone, telling me they had located Gotovina. When we arrived in Zagreb, I was shown evidence that this was indeed so," she said, underlining that she had not believed it just like that, at face value.
She said that in Zagreb she was played a tape of a phone conversation between Gotovina and his wife, who Del Ponte said had been using about 20 different mobile numbers to communicate with her husband.
On the tape we could hear general Gotovoina talking about me, he knew I was travelling to Zagreb that Friday and he was talking about it with his wife, Del Ponte said.
She also explained a statement she gave the press after talking with Sanader and President Stjepan Mesic, when she said she was disappointed that Gotovina was not in The Hague.
The next Monday in Luxembourg, on 3 October 2005, when the EU decided to open negotiations with Croatia, she said that Croatia fully cooperated with the tribunal.
Journalists made the wrong conclusion after my statement in Zagreb. I really was disappointed that Gotovina was not in The Hague and after my assessment in Luxembourg, they concluded that I was under pressure, which was wrong too, the chief prosecutor said.