In her last report to the EU this June, Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte said that three to four months should pass before she could assess the results of an action plan which the Croatian government had launched so as to locate the runaway general Ante Gotovina. Thus, Del Ponte's next report is expected in mid-September.
Hartmann added that Del Ponte would take part in a conference called 'Civilian Peace Building and Human Rights in South-East Europe', which will take place in Bern on 1 September. On that occasion she is also expected to hold a news conference, at which she will answer questions pertaining to her reports to Brussels on Croatia's cooperation with the Hague-based tribunal.
Lovre Pejkovic, head of the Croatian government's department for refugees and returnees, and Vesna Terselic, head of the Zagreb-based 'Documenta' centre for war crimes documentation, will also attend the Bern conference, which is organised by the Swiss Foreign Ministry.
Foreign ministers from the EU member countries will convene in Newport, Great Britain, for an informal meeting on 2 and 3 September to discuss, among other things, the continuation of the decision-making process regarding the date for the start of accession talks with Croatia.