ZAGREB, March 28 (Hina) - Croatia is no longer alone, but on the right track towards the European Union (EU) - this is the message Portugal's Foreign Minister Jaime Gama gave during Tuesday's talks with Croatian President Stipe
Mesic.
ZAGREB, March 28 (Hina) - Croatia is no longer alone, but on the
right track towards the European Union (EU) - this is the message
Portugal's Foreign Minister Jaime Gama gave during Tuesday's talks
with Croatian President Stipe Mesic.#L#
The Gama-Mesic talks marked the end of an EU troika's day-long visit
to Croatia.
The troika included Gama, the EU high representative for foreign
affairs and security issues, Javier Solana, and the French Foreign
Ministry's director general at the department for Europe, Hugues
Pernet. Portugal is currently presiding the EU, while France will
take over in the second half of the year.
The EU's message is clear, Croatia is no longer alone, but on the
right track towards Europe and the EU, while the EU is on the right
track towards Croatia, Gama told reporters in a brief statement
after talking to President Mesic.
The Portuguese minister asserted the EU was very interested in co-
operating with Croatia. Another step forward will be made tomorrow
at a regional donors' conference in Brussels, he added.
Gama reminded a joint consultative task force would meet in April.
Its report will prompt a date on the start of EU-Croatia
negotiations on an agreement on stabilisation and association.
President Mesic told reporters Croatia had recognised European
trends and its interest therein, and this, he added, resulted in
support from the EU troika.
"We have to be the generator of development in this part of Europe,
in both the material and democratic sense, and for this we are given
Europe's support," Mesic said.
He briefed the EU troika on everything Croatia was doing internally
at the moment, as well as on what it could do "to improve relations
with our neighbours, those near and those far."
Solana left President Mesic's meeting with the troika shortly
before it ended, to catch a plane. He told reporters he was
satisfied with the changes which recently took place in Croatia,
and announced assistance.
We will help Croatia as much as we can, because we are happy to see a
democratic Croatia which is heading towards Europe, Solana said.
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