Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi this morning signed Croatia's accession treaty to the EU paving the way for the start of the formal ratification process by the 27 member states before the country becomes the 28th state of the Union on July 1, 2013.

In a colourful ceremony held this morning in Brussels, in the margins of the ongoing EU summit, the 27 EU leaders signed the treaty in the presence of Croatia's Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor.

Croatia must now focus on its final preparations for membership and strengthen its efforts to be in a position to fully implement the acquis by the date of accession.

As of today, Croatia will also participate as an active observer in the work of the Council and its preparatory bodies while Croatian observer MEPs will also be invited to join the work of the European Parliament.

Just a few days ago, MEPs overwhelmingly voted-in a resolution approving Croatia's accession.

The three Maltese MEPs present for the vote, PN's Simon Busuttil and David Casa and Labour's Edward Scicluna voted in favour.

Croatia, which has ended its accession negotiations earlier this year, is now expected to hold a referendum to get its citizens consent to join the EU.

Croatia, which has a population of 4.5 million, applied for membership in 2003 and. It will be the second part of the former republic of Yugoslavia to join the EU following Slovenia which joined together with Malta in 2004.

Croatian will also become the 24th official language of the EU. Maltese is also an official language.