The Minister informed the delegation of the current situation relating to the ratification of the Accession Agreement, stressing that Croatia continues to meet all its obligations ensuing from the Agreement, and that we are fully aware that the process is still ongoing. The Members of Parliament of Ireland (which is set to take over the EU Presidency on 1 January 2013), who are paying an official visit to Croatia, Slovenia and BiH, were interested in Minister Pusić's views on further enlargement, as this will be one of the priorities of the Irish presidency. They were particularly interested in her assessment of the situation in Serbia and BiH.
On this occasion, Minister Pusić stressed that Croatia strongly advocates further enlargement of the EU to the countries of the region, as this process would also be of key importance to Croatia, in the aspects pertaining to the strengthening of state institutions. She stressed that Croatia supports and actively cooperates with its neighbours through the newly instated Centre for Excellence, via which the experiences and knowledge gained in the accession process are transferred to other countries. With regard to BiH, Minister Pusić emphasized that it is very important for Croatia that this country continue with the integration processes, due to the long, common border. She announced that she would be meeting with her Serbian counterpart on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York. She also noted that Croatia would endorse the granting of a starting date for negotiations with Montenegro, as this would indicate that the enlargement process is continuing after Croatia has completed its negotiations, which is a good signal for the region.
The Irish Members of Parliament emphasized that the minister's clear vision of the region's future is promising, adding that Ireland is open to cooperation with Croatia. In discussing economic issues, not only in Ireland and Croatia but also worldwide, the parliamentarians expressed their interest in gathering together similar nations (i.e. in terms of their population, economic and other indicators) into a “community of interest”, as Ireland has great concerns with unemployment, particularly among youth. They also stated that it is important for Croatia to focus not only on fiscal restraint measures, but also in finding measures to stimulate economic growth. The minister stressed that the Irish presidency is very important for Croatia, for the final ratifications will take place during this period, and she agreed that it is important to work on investments that will generate employment, adding that she believes it is important for countries with similar characteristics to work together.
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