The time has come to open accession talks with Croatia. We are confident that the fulfilment of the Croatian Government's Action Plan, relating to the decision of the Council of Ministers of 17 March 2005, now paves the way for the start of the talks with Croatia this September, the prime ministers said in a letter dated 26 August.
Wilfried Martens, the head of the European People's Party, the umbrella organisation of Christian Democratic and Conservative parties, has sent the letter to British Prime Minister Tony Blair, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency, on behalf of the eight prime ministers.
The prime ministers in question are Silvio Berlusconi of Italy, Mikulas Dzurinda of Slovakia, Lawrence Gonzi of Malta, Janez Jansa of Slovenia, Jean-Claude Juncker of Luxembourg, Aigars Kalvitis of Latvia, Kostas Karamanlis of Greece and Wolfgang Schuessel of Austria.
We firmly believe that talks with Croatia must be opened. The talks will provide the best support to the present reforms and will strengthen democracy, stability and prosperity in Croatia and the entire Western Balkans in conformity with the Thessaloniki agenda, the letter says.
Hina obtained a copy of the letter on Thursday in Newport, Wales, where EU foreign ministers gathered for a two-day informal meeting to discuss the enlargement process.