BRUSSELS BRUSSELS, Feb 5 (Hina) - Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader met his counterparts from European Union member countries and those joining EU this year in Brussels on Thursday.
BRUSSELS, Feb 5 (Hina) - Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader met his
counterparts from European Union member countries and those joining EU
this year in Brussels on Thursday.#L#
Sanader is attending a European People's Party congress in his
capacity as leader of the Croatian Democratic Union party.
He held talks with Luxembourg's Jean-Claude Juncker, Italy's Silvio
Berlusconi, Spain's Jose Maria Aznar, the Netherlands' Jan-Peter
Balkenende, Portugal's Jose Manuel Durao Barros, and Slovakia's
Mikulas Dzurinda.
Sanader told reporters he had informed his colleagues that the
Croatian government would give them every argument and reason to
support Croatia on its road to the EU "since it's clear that we can't
win unconditional support".
"In that sense we can be moderately optimistic as to the fulfilment of
our plan -- obtaining a positive European Commission avis this spring
and the decision on the status of (EU entry) candidate in June."
Sanader said Italy's Berlusconi had pledged full support and that he
had talked to PM Tony Blair about the ratification of Croatia's
Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU in the
British parliament.
Speaking about the talks with Dutch PM Balkenende, whom he met for the
first time, Sanader said "we are one step closer to mutual
understanding" and that he expected the Dutch government to notify the
European Commission soon that the Dutch parliament had ratified the
SAA.
Great Britain, the Netherlands and Italy are the only countries which
have not yet approved the SAA.
Sanader said Berlusconi had reiterated ratification in the Italian
parliament was a matter of weeks.
Luxembourg's Juncker told Croatian reporters after the talks with
Sanader that his country, due to chair the EU in the first half of
2005, would do everything to step up Croatia's EU rapprochement.
Slovakian PM Dzurinda suggested to Sanader that Croatia should take
note of his country's experience. Although it began negotiations two
years after its neighbours, Slovakia managed to catch up with them and
is joining the Union on May 1.
The two-day European People's Party congress began yesterday, pooling
more than 700 envoys, including prime and deputy prime ministers,
European commissioners, and leaders of Christian democratic,
conservative and people's parties. Representing the HDZ, alongside
Sanader, are Croatia's Foreign Minister Miomir Zuzul and Culture
Minister Bozo Biskupic.
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