EU warns Croatia over start of entry talks

The European Commission yesterday warned Croatia that the country needs to prove it is fully cooperating with the international criminal tribunal for the former Yugoslavia if it wants to start accession negotiations with the EU next March as planned.

The warning came from Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn during a press conference in Brussels to present the proposal for a negotiating framework for membership talks with Croatia.

Referring to the proposal, Mr Rehn said: "The Commission has delivered its part of the job in timely fashion. Now it is up to the Croatian authorities to prove that they fully cooperate with the tribunal in The Hague.

"If the Commission were to give its recommendation on the basis of today's information, I could not recommend opening negotiations with Croatia. I trust the Croatian government will take this message seriously. There is no shortcut to Europe, just the regular road, which means the respect of the rule of law."

The Commission's document presented yesterday lays down the guiding principles, the substance and the procedures for the accession negotiations and serves as basis for the member states to conduct the negotiations with Croatia.

Last December, the European Council decided that accession talks with Croatia should start on March 17 of this year, provided there is full cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

The Commission's proposal will allow the member states to define the framework for the negotiations with Croatia necessary for the conduct of these negotiations, in due time ahead of the target date.

Malta will also be involved in the accession negotiations with candidate Croatia as the talks are conducted during intergovernmental conferences where decisions are taken by unanimity - all the 25 member states have to agree.