ZAGREB, Dec 18 (Hina) - Croatian European Integration Minister Neven Mimica said on Thursday that the government had met 80 percent of its commitments from the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the European Union by the end
of this year.
ZAGREB, Dec 18 (Hina) - Croatian European Integration Minister Neven
Mimica said on Thursday that the government had met 80 percent of its
commitments from the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the
European Union by the end of this year.#L#
"The six-year deadline for gaining the status of an associate member
will be too long for us. If we continue at this pace, we will meet the
requirements for the first phase -- associate membership -- by the end
of next year," Mimica said at the last session of the Ivica Racan
Cabinet.
The government has drawn up answers to an additional 240 questions
forwarded by the European Commission and will send them to Brussels on
January 5, 2004.
That is five percent of 4,500 questions from the European Commission's
questionnaire, which means that we did a good job, Mimica said.
He said that not a single additional question referred to political
conditions but to 30 chapters and the economic policy.
Mimica said the process of European integration did not only include
foreign policy but also deep internal processes in which all resources
had to be employed.
The new government will not have the 100-day honeymoon period in that
process because the European Commission will already define its
opinion about Croatia's application for EU membership by mid February
2004.
The Croatian government submitted the application for EU membership in
February this year.
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