"Through the adoption of the negotiating framework, the EU has done what is necessary to start the negotiations. The EU is ready once Croatia is ready," Rehn said in his speech on the subject of progress in the Western Balkans, which was made public on the European Commission's website on Thursday.
Rehn said he was disappointed that Croatia had been unable to ensure full cooperation with the Hague-based tribunal by mid-March, and added that the task of the Croatian state structures was to deliver their international commitments.
The European Council decided in December last year that accession negotiations with Croatia could be opened on March 17 provided that the country was fully cooperating with the ICTY.
Rehn also talked about the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, Kosovo, and Albania, emphasising that, despite difficulties, all the Western Balkan countries had made significant progress on the road to the EU.
Rehn noted that EU citizens were suffering from "enlargement fatigue" and that they were sceptical of further enlargement of the 25-member bloc.