BOSNIAN MEDIA REPORT ON EC'S POSITIVE AVIS FOR CROATIA

SARAJEVO, April 21 (Hina) - "Zagreb Draws Closer To EU" and "European Commission Recommends To EU To Enter Negotiations with Croatia" read headlines of Sarajevo's dailies on Wednesday which informed the readers of the European Commission's positive avis on Croatia's EU membership application.#L# Bosnia's daily with the biggest circulation Dnevni Avaz said the European Commission had recommended the start of negotiations with Croatia on its EU entry, adding that one of the crucial elements for the very positive avis was a positive assessment of Croatia's cooperation with the UN war crimes tribunal by the tribunal's chief prosecutor, Dnevni Avaz also said Croatia was expected in the coming period to invest additional efforts in improving the rights of minorities, the return of refugees, judiciary reform, regional cooperation and the struggle against corruption. Jutarnje Novine daily said Croatia was close to the realisation of its strategic objective -- full membership in the EU as early as in the next enlargement round. The daily cited Croatian European Integration Minister Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic as saying that it was unrealistic to expect the negotiations to start before the end of the year. She said that should negotiations start in 2005 Croatia would have a chance to maintain the set pace, the daily said. Mostar's daily Dnevni List said this was only a signal for the start of the Croatia-EU negotiations on the country's full membership, adding, however, Croatia had accomplished significant results in comparison to Bosnia which had no reason to hope for the same in the near future. Stressing that Bosnian politicians had been bragging on many occasions that Bosnia would join the EU together with Croatia, the daily said none of the promises came true, adding that even Albania had better chances of joining the EU than Bosnia. (Hina) it