President of Croatia and Austria hold talks (HINA)
President of Croatia and Austria hold talks (HINA)
Austria believes that Croatia can wrap up accession negotiations with the European Union this year and join the Union in 2012, Austrian President Heinz Fischer said after talks with his Croatian counterpart Ivo Josipovic in Vienna on Monday.
"There are good chances for negotiations to be completed this year," Fischer said, adding that this would pave the way for Croatia's admission to the EU in 2012.
"Austria's position is clear, we support that approach. It is good for both Croatia and the region, and for the EU," the Austrian head of state said.
Croatian President Josipovic said his country was grateful to Austria for the assistance it had been offering since Croatia gained independence and for its current support to Croatia's EU membership bid.
"I am glad to see that President Fischer considers realistic our plan to complete the negotiations in 2010 and to join the EU in 2012 after the ratification process. We know that we must carry out many reforms, notably in the judiciary and the public administration, and we are ready for those changes. The Croatian government is conducting and preparing further reforms in order to enable Croatia to enter the EU and also to guarantee to our citizens all the benefits of democracy and the rule of law," President Josipovic said.
In response to questions from the press whether during his visit to Slovenia last week there was mention of the unblocking of the policy chapter -- Foreign, Security and Defence Policy -- one of the three negotiating chapters that remain unopened, so that this chapter could be opened at an accession conference between Croatia and the EU in April, Josipovic said that the signing of the arbitration agreement on the Croatian-Slovenian border dispute had removed all obstacles.
"I am sure that our friends in Slovenia will unblock that chapter because there is no reason for the blockade any more," the Croatian president said.
The two presidents agreed that Austrian-Croatian relations were friendly and stable and that the two countries were connected by long historical ties and excellent cooperation.
Fischer and President Josipovic, who arrived in Vienna this morning for a day-long official visit, also discussed bilateral economic cooperation and the situation in the region.
Austria was named as an exceptionally important economic partner and the biggest investor in Croatia, which President Josipovic underlined as being of key importance in times of crisis.
As regards the situation in the region, President Josipovic and President Fischer expressed their wish for Serbia to embark on the road towards European integration.
Fischer thanked Croatia for supporting Austria's application for a seat on the UN Committee for Human Rights.
Fischer's invitation to President Josipovic to visit Austria has been interpreted in political circles as Austria's support to Croatia's European Union membership bid.
The good relations between the two countries are confirmed by the fact that President Josipovic's official visit ensued less than three months after his predecessor Stjepan Mesic was a guest of the Austrian president at Vienna's New Year's concert.
After his inauguration on 18 February, Josipovic first travelled to Brussels for talks with EU and European Commission officials. Slovenia was his second foreign destination, which he visited last Friday. President Josipovic was scheduled to visit Hungary on Tuesday.
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