The accession process "could go faster in some segments but at this moment everything is perhaps a little too encumbered with political aspects. Not everything has been lowered onto the technical level and this is what presently holds us back a little," Sanader said after talks with EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn.
"With all due respect to Turkey, I think the moment will have to come real soon when Croatia will have to separate from Turkey, which will negotiate many years, and this is not the case with Croatia," said Sanader.
"Of course, everyone understands, including Commissioner Rehn, our position that we cannot be hostages to anyone, including our friends in Turkey, and it is up to the government and the negotiating team to work so that Croatia separates from Turkey as soon as possible in the screening process and in the negotiations," said Sanader.
"Certainly, if we had started the negotiations in March last year, as was envisaged, we wouldn't have been tied to anybody else and Croatia would be conducting the negotiations alone."
A reporter asked about the European Commission's slowness in drawing up a report on the screening of the adjustment of Croatia's legislation to EU standards. Sanader said this was mentioned in the talks with Rehn and that he told the commissioner Croatia would soon deliver a memo stating its position on how things were proceeding.
"The talks were open and it is our understanding that the EC team in charge of Croatia does not have enough members, which is why he asked him to expand the team."
According to Sanader, Rehn confirmed that everything was going as planned as far as Croatia was concerned.
Sanader said he handed Rehn a memo on Croatia's view of the issue of a defunct Slovene bank's debt to Croatian depositors.
"Our position is that the depositors have to be compensated from funds of Ljubljanska Banka or Nova Ljubljanska Banka, not as part of succession" to the former Yugoslavia, said Sanader.
He was visiting Meise near Brussels to attend a summit of European People's Party leaders from 12 states.
Sanader said he held bilateral meetings with the prime ministers of Slovenia, Italy, Greece, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, but singled out his meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
"I assess today's stay in Brussels as extremely valuable. I will end it tomorrow with the president of the European Liberals because we wish to inform all the groups in the European Parliament of Croatia's positions and state our view on all the current issues facing the EU," Sanader said.