The European Union delegation was led by Danish Foreign Minister Nicolai Wammen and Commissioner for Enlargement and European Affairs of the European Commission Stefan Füle
The European Union delegation was led by Danish Foreign Minister Nicolai Wammen and Commissioner for Enlargement and European Affairs of the European Commission Stefan Füle.
At the meeting, the current relations between the Republic of Croatia and the European Union in all areas of application of the Stabilisation and Accession Agreement were discussed.
The SA Council applauded Croatia for its progress since the signing of the Treaty on the Accession of the Republic of Croatia to the European Union in December 2011, in becoming a candidate country with the status of an active observer in the EU institutions and that the ratification process of the Accession Treaty is underway. The SA Council expects that Croatia will become a full-fledged member state of the European Union on 1 July 2013.
The SA Council received the Report of the Monitoring Commission on Croatia's preparations for EU Accession of 24 April 2012, and took note of the conclusions and recommendations listed within. The SA Council was pleased to note that Croatia's preparations are on schedule. The SA Council invited Croatia to continue with its reform efforts further, particularly in key areas such as market competition policy, the judiciary and fundamental rights, freedom and security and to persevere in making further economic reforms. The SA Council encouraged Croatia to continue transposition of the
acquis communautaire and to further strengthen its administrative structure to ensure efficient implementation, to ensure that all obligations ensuing from membership are fully met prior to accession.
The SA Council inquired about the state of Croatia's accession preparations, beginning with political criteria. In the area of reforms to the state administration, the SA Council noted that Croatia has continued with its reform efforts. The Council encouraged Croatia to actively persevere in its efforts to ensure efficient implementation of the legal framework to complete the building of a modern, reliable and depolitical services that serves the citizens, while retaining a high level of political support that is necessary for reforms.
The SA Council praised the progress achieved in the area of regional cooperation, and encouraged Croatia to continue its efforts to improve good neighbourly relations, which remain a priority. The SA Council in particular welcomed the Declaration on the promotion of European values in South East Europe, including Croatia's committed stance that bilateral issues such as border issues should not hinder candidate states on their path towards EU accession.
The SA Council stressed that Croatia has continued its cooperation in resolving war crimes cases at the bilateral and regional levels, and it reiterated the significance of regional cooperation directed and prosecuting these crimes. The SA Council encouraged Croatia to continue working towards finding a mutually acceptable solution for all unresolved bilateral and regional issues with neighbouring countries, including the issues of succession, and furthering efforts aimed at the reconciliation of citizens in the region.
The SA Council observed that Croatia has a functioning market economy that should be capable of handling the competition and market forces in the Union in the mid-term. The SA Council invited Croatia to persevere in the implementation of reform programmes aimed at reducing structural weaknesses and improving competitiveness. In supporting the Government's strong commitment to fiscal consolidation, the SA Council stressed the importance of implementing appropriate economic measures that are a reflection of the clear and comprehensive strategy of economic and structural reforms, which will be important to ensure the sustainability of public finances, particularly in the mid-term.
The SA Council noted that Croatia has achieved a significant degree of alignment with the
acquis communautaire e and progress in fulfilling the obligations and requirements stemming from the pre-accession negotiations. In the majority of areas of the
acquis, the preparations for membership have moved forward. The SA Council called upon Croatia to resolve the issues listed in the Commission Report on the monitoring of preparations for Croatia's accession to the EU of 24 April, particularly in the area of market competition policy, the judiciary and fundamental rights, and justice, freedom and security. It noted that Croatia has achieved a good level of alignment and that attention should be focused on resolving the limited number of outstanding issues in chapters such as the free movement of goods, free movement of capital, public procurement, information society and the media, transport policy, energy and taxation. The SA Council also observed that Croatia has achieved a good level of alignment in the remaining chapters, though efforts are still necessary in the areas of the right of business establishment and freedom of provision of services, agriculture and rural development, food safety, veterinary and phytosafety policy, fisheries, regional policy and coordination of structural instruments, environment and climate change and the customs union.
The SA Council inquired about the implementation of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement which has generally continued without greater problems, while noting that certain issues still require attention. The SA Council welcomed Croatia's continued cooperation in the EU programmes, and analysed the status of achieved financial cooperation, particularly in the implementation of Instruments of Pre-accession Assistance (IPA).
Finally, the SA Council expressed its stance on the recent events in the Western Balkans region.
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