Giving a talk at the Zagreb Faculty of the Economics, Mesic told students and ambassadors of EU member countries that Croatia must not enter Europe encumbered by misconceptions which were the results of underestimating or overestimating its own values.
Those who claim that one needs to choose between national elitist groups and European interests are wrong because without the adoption of European standards such elitist groups can protect their interests and privileges, Mesic said.
He stressed that those who claim that Croatia must choose between "heroes" and Europe were particularly wrong because they offered the picture of the past, hatred, isolation and wars, instead of debates on the economy and knowledge.
Answering later a reporter's question whether by "heroes" he meant the runaway general Ante Gotovina, whose non-extradition to the UN war crimes tribunal at The Hague was the reason for the postponement of Croatia's EU entry talks, Mesic said he was referring to those who wanted to tie Croatia's destiny to certain people.
On its path to the EU Croatia must protect minorities because Croatia will be a minority in the EU which simply does not have a majority people, said Mesic and added Croatia also must think about the welfare of its neighbours which is a condition for cooperation.
Croatia must fight for reforms and not for dates, Mesic said and reiterated that one should not be encumbered by the delay of the start of negotiations with the EU.
Asked whether the government should be subjected to a vote of confidence over its failure to start entry negotiations, the president said the postponement of negotiations was not a reason for taking a vote of confidence in the government, and added this decision was to be made by parliament.
The two-day event called EU Days is a project launched by the Croatian Student Association and supported by the Foreign and European Integration Ministry.