Croatia's position is very clear. You have the status of a candidate and you have a negotiating framework. You have also been given a clear promised that you will start membership negotiations as soon as there is full cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), the British diplomat said at a panel discussion on the EU and its British presidency in the next six months. The discussion was held in the Europe House in Zagreb.
The problem of the constitutional agreement should not affect Croatia. The European Council has confirmed the decisions it has so far made on Croatia, he added.
London takes over the presidency over the European bloc on Friday, 1 July. There are three very important issues on the agenda of the British presidency: the issue of the European Constitution after the French and the Dutch 'No', the adoption of the bloc's budget for the 2007-2013 period and the further enlargement of the Union.
Addressing the European Parliament in Brussels on 23 June, British Prime Minister Tony Blair advocated the continuation of EU expansion, adding that the EU would honour its commitments towards Turkey and Croatia.