The national committee will have 19 members and it will be headed by a representative of the opposition, according to the unique Croatian model, Sanader told reporters. Neither Sanader nor Social Democrat leader Ivica Racan would say who would be at the helm of the committee.
The committee will consist of six representatives of the government and as many from the opposition, heads of parliamentary committees on foreign policy, European integration, and inter-parliamentary cooperation, and representatives of trade unions, the academic community, employers and the Office of the President.
The adoption of the said documents will strengthen Croatia's negotiating position, Sanader and Racan said.
While the declaration on Croatia's accession to the EU will determine the basic principles of negotiations, standards and a concrete negotiating strategy will be defined by another document to be adopted subsequently by the parliament, Sabor Speaker Vladimir Seks said.
Sanader and Racan reiterated that Croatia's admission to the EU was a project of national importance and expressed confidence that the engagement of all segments of authority in the project would guarantee its success.
They dismissed speculation that cooperation on the EU project would lead to the establishment of a large coalition between the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and the SDP.
There is no large coalition, there is cooperation on the EU project, Sanader said and Racan concurred.
Asked who would lead Croatia into the EU - Sanader or Racan, Sanader said that they would both lead Croatia into the EU, as would Croatian citizens who would decide on the matter at a referendum.
Sanader today informed the leaders of parliamentary parties about the meetings which he held yesterday in Brussels, as well as about the fact that some large negotiating chapters would be divided in two parts, so instead of 31 there would be 36 chapters.
Despite that, Sanader believes that the number of members of the negotiating team will not increase.
Sanader said that the consensus of the Croatian government and the opposition on the country's admission to the EU had been received very well in Brussels.