ZAGREB, July 13 (Hina) - On July 20, Croatia and the European Union will resume an informal political dialogue which should represent an introduction into the talks on an agreement on stability and association, scheduled for autumn.
The EU discontinued the dialogue in August 1995, when Croatia launched an operation aimed at liberating its territory under Serb occupation.
ZAGREB, July 13 (Hina) - On July 20, Croatia and the European Union
will resume an informal political dialogue which should represent
an introduction into the talks on an agreement on stability and
association, scheduled for autumn.
The EU discontinued the dialogue in August 1995, when Croatia
launched an operation aimed at liberating its territory under Serb
occupation. #L#
Croatia's Foreign Minister Mate Granic and European Integration
Minister Ljerka Mintas-Hodak will meet on July 20 in Brussels with
Tarje Halonen, the Foreign Minister of Finland, the country
chairing the EU, as well as with representatives of Portugal, the
country to chair the EU next, European Commission officials,
probably Hans van den Broek, and members of the EU Council of
Ministers.
"This will be the first unofficial working meeting between the EU
and Croatia which will focus on relations between Croatia and the EU
in light of the beginning of talks on an agreement on stability and
association", Granic said on Monday.
The EU is making the beginning of talks conditional on a consensus
between the Opposition and the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) on a
new election law, on the democratisation of Croatian Television and
a speedier return of Croatian Serb refugees.
The Brussels meeting was suggested by the EU, Finland and the EC.
The talks are expected to tackle the establishment of an EC task
force for negotiations on cooperation between Croatia and the EU,
the election law, media, refugee return and the situation in the
region.
The task force is a new mechanism for talks on cooperation between
the EU and individual countries, which was presented at a meeting in
Cologne in June, when the EU presented a Stability Pact for South-
East Europe.
According to the EC official in charge of EU-Croatia relations,
Gerhard Sabathil, the first meeting of the task force is planned for
early autumn in Zagreb if an agreement is reached previously on the
level of ministers.
On the same day Croatian officials meet EU representatives, an
informal political dialogue between EU and Bosnia-Herzegovina
officials will take place. The BH delegation will be led by Foreign
Minister Jadranko Prlic.
(hina) jn rml