RIJEKA, Jan 17 (Hina) - Croatia does not want to strain relations with Italy in any way but is ready to defend national interests, deputy parliamentary speaker Zdravko Tomac said on Thursday, adding relations would not become strained
despite provocations from certain structures. Tomac, who also chairs parliament's foreign affairs committee, attended a session of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County authorities in Rijeka, which marked the tenth anniversary of Croatia's international recognition. Talking to reporters later, Tomac said the realistic deadline for joining the European Union was 2007-8, with previous admission to NATO. This will guarantee the security of foreign investments, which Tomac says are crucial for rapid economic development. An interim agreement between the EU and Croatia will go into force by March 1, regulating many issues from the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the Union un
RIJEKA, Jan 17 (Hina) - Croatia does not want to strain relations
with Italy in any way but is ready to defend national interests,
deputy parliamentary speaker Zdravko Tomac said on Thursday,
adding relations would not become strained despite provocations
from certain structures.
Tomac, who also chairs parliament's foreign affairs committee,
attended a session of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County authorities
in Rijeka, which marked the tenth anniversary of Croatia's
international recognition.
Talking to reporters later, Tomac said the realistic deadline for
joining the European Union was 2007-8, with previous admission to
NATO. This will guarantee the security of foreign investments,
which Tomac says are crucial for rapid economic development.
An interim agreement between the EU and Croatia will go into force
by March 1, regulating many issues from the Stabilisation and
Association Agreement with the Union until the latter becomes
effective. At the same time, Croatia will lobby the EU members to
ratify the Agreement, Tomac said, adding many countries would do so
by year's end, while some would not due to parliamentary
elections.
Tomac reminded the signing of free trade agreements had opened the
way for domestic businessmen to a market of 600 million people,
which he said dismissed all notions of linking Croatia to the
Balkans.
Speaking about relations with Bosnia, Tomac said Croatia must take
a clear stand and not make another mistake. The former authorities
meddled in and orchestrated events in the southern Bosnian town of
Mostar, and Mostar affected everything in Zagreb, he said. The
Bosnian Croat people must settle its issues together with the other
two Bosnian nations, without involvement and tutoring from
Yugoslavia and Croatia, said Tomac.
He believes the development of friendly relations between
Yugoslavia and Croatia will depend a lot on Yugoslavia's
relationship toward Bosnia. The region will not be stable as long as
there are open or concealed ambitions to preserve the Bosnian Serb
entity as an ethnically pure state borne out of Slobodan
Milosevic's policy of genocide or annexe it to the "united Serb
states," said Tomac.
(hina) ha sb