ZAGREB, Feb 23 (Hina) - The European Commission could announce "a conditional positive avis" on Croatia's candidacy for membership of the European Union and propose to the Council of Ministers to start negotiating with Zagreb after
the country meets the remaining political criteria, Jutarnji list daily wrote on Monday citing senior diplomatic sources in Brussels.
ZAGREB, Feb 23 (Hina) - The European Commission could announce "a
conditional positive avis" on Croatia's candidacy for membership of
the European Union and propose to the Council of Ministers to start
negotiating with Zagreb after the country meets the remaining
political criteria, Jutarnji list daily wrote on Monday citing senior
diplomatic sources in Brussels.#L#
"The European Commission has already drafted the entire avis for
Croatia on some 100 pages. An assessment of Croatia's fulfilment of
some political criteria is to only thing that is still being
expected(...)," the daily wrote.
According to diplomatic sources in Brussels, a conditional positive
avis on Croatia's candidacy could be announced as a possible solution
which could satisfy all EU member countries and which would be
realistic and sincere towards Croatia and would not bring into
question the objectivity and competence of the European Commission,"
the Jutarnji list correspondent from Brussels wrote.
Such an outcome would be possible only if Croatia fails to solve the
case of General Ante Gotovina or if it fails to assure the ICTY and
some EU member countries that it did all that it could to find and
arrest the fugitive general, the daily said.
The correspondent from Brussels said the European Commission was
satisfied with all the answers Croatia had provided and stressed that
an European Commission representatives said in the European Parliament
Croatia's answers were excellent.
According to the daily, the European Commission's avis would be
conditional in part which refers to the most important recommendation
which the the Commission will give to the Council of Ministers --
namely should negotiations with Croatia be launched.
According to diplomats in Brussels, a conditional avis in Croatia's
case could mean that the European Commission would adopt a positive
opinion and recommend to the Council of Ministers to start
negotiations with Croatia as soon as it meets the remaining criteria,
the daily said.
Meeting the remaining political criterion -- full cooperation with the
ICTY -- would unfreeze the process of the ratification of Croatia's
Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU in Great Britain
and the Netherlands. This would remove the political obstacle in the
process of giving Croatia the candidate status.
The signs of a possible compromise solution about the avis are coming
ahead of a series of important meetings Croatian officials will hold
with EU representatives this week in Brussels, including the
EU-Croatia political dialogue and the meeting which Croatian President
Stjepan Mesic will hold with European Commission President Romano
Prodi and Mesic's speech in the European Parliament.
(Hina) it