ZAGREB, Dec 14 (Hina) - After being told at the EU summit in Copenhagen that the European Union's doors are open, Croatia must fulfil the membership conditions not because of the EU but "because of ourselves," President Stjepan Mesic
said on Saturday.
ZAGREB, Dec 14 (Hina) - After being told at the EU summit in
Copenhagen that the European Union's doors are open, Croatia must
fulfil the membership conditions not because of the EU but "because
of ourselves," President Stjepan Mesic said on Saturday. #L#
Mesic gave a speech on whether Croatia is slowing down on the path to
the EU at the Europe House in Zagreb at a regular annual assembly of
the European Movement Croatia.
"The messages from yesterday's summit in Copenhagen are more than
clear - the European Union expects us, there is and cannot be any
doubt about it. When this will happen shall in good part be
determined by us because in Copenhagen they told us: 'We expect
Croatia to meet its European obligations'," said Mesic.
He stressed that "Europe doesn't evaluate us based on what we want
and promise but based solely on what we do".
Mesic said, however, that Croatia must not do anything for the
world's sake alone. "We have to build democracy because of
ourselves. We have to establish the rule-of-law and rid the justice
system of politics because of ourselves. We have to insist on
cooperation with the Hague tribunal because it is the only way we
can individualise guilt and bury the thesis of collective
responsibility, again - because of ourselves," he said.
The President asserted that because of the war it had been forced to
wage, Croatia had been given a set of specific conditions besides
the general ones required for EU membership.
"In meeting the general conditions we have proved to be quite
successful... but at the same time we have difficulties with the
specific conditions. When the demand that we extradite the former
Armed Forces Chief-Of-Staff (Gen. Janko Bobetko) came from The
Hague, we entered an open dispute with the (tribunal) which many in
the world... not entirely without reason, interpreted as a refusal
to cooperate with the tribunal," said Mesic, adding this had slowed
down Croatia's drawing closer to the EU.
"We have to count on the possibility that some new indictment will
arrive. It definitely wouldn't be good if we repeated the same
scenario on that occasion," he said.
The President welcomed yesterday's adoption of a national
programme of association with the EU but cautioned the moment of
applying for membership should be chosen carefully. "I hope (the
moment) will be chosen in line with the long-term interests of our
country and its citizens and that by choosing that moment we shall
be able to demonstrate mature political thinking and the
credibility of our commitments," he said.
Mesic called for cooperation with all who can be of use to Croatia on
its path to the EU, "both with current members and with the
countries which have yet to apply for membership".
"I urge... that we profile ourselves as the country that will be the
generator of genuine democracy in this part of the world,"
President Mesic said.
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