Ursula Plassnik of Austria said her country had supported and continued to support Croatia on its road to the EU, the start of accession talks on March 17, and full cooperation with the Hague war crimes tribunal.
Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic of Croatia said Croatia hoped the negotiations would start on March 17 as scheduled and was preparing for that. She added Croatia was aware there was little time left, but hoped it would manage to prove it was cooperating fully with the tribunal, and that the Union would appreciate the effort and open the talks.
Asked if Austria would advocate the start of the talks even if indicted General Ante Gotovina was not handed over to the Hague tribunal by March 17, Plassnik said Austria started from the assumption that Croatia would prove full cooperation with the tribunal by March 16, when the EU foreign ministers were due to convene.
Grabar-Kitarovic said Croatia wanted the Union's 25 members to reach a consensus on its cooperation with the tribunal. She added this was why she presented the efforts competent services in Croatia were making, also in cooperation with neighbouring countries, to have the issue closed and show Europe and chief prosecutor Carla del Ponte that Croatia was investing maximum effort to meet criteria and fully cooperate with the tribunal.
Plassnik said that although Croatia and Austria did not share a border, Austria viewed Croatia as a neighbour.
The two ministers agreed bilateral relations were constantly improving and would continue to deepen.
The Croatian minister was also received by Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel.