Fuele rules out post-accession monitoring, congratulates Croatia

Croatia has conducted all reforms in a credible, sustainable and irreversible manner and there is no reason to continue with the monitoring mechanism, European Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fuele said in Zagreb on Tuesday at a joint news conference with Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic after he presented the Commission's positive final report on Croatia's preparations for admission to the European Union, set for 1 July.

Fuele recalled that Croatia had undergone more demanding negotiations than previous membership aspirants and stressed that the report found that Croatia had demonstrated its ability to implement reforms in a trustworthy, sustainable and irreversible manner.

Therefore there is no reason to impose post-accession monitoring, the commissioner emphasised.

He congratulated all those who had taken part in the long and comprehensive process of negotiations which, he said, resulted in Croatia's "clean bill of health".

He also advised against being complacent after admission to the EU.

The EU membership serves as an additional incentive to carry out reforms and make progress in the rule of law and in the struggle against corruption, he said.

He praised Croatia as a success story in the EU's enlargement policy and for being better prepared for EU entry than previous newcomers.

Thank you very much and my congratulations to Croatia, he underscored.

Prime Minister Milanovic thanked all stakeholders in Croatia who had worked on the country's accession to the Union over the last 20 years, notably those who had been involved in the process in the last 10 years, including top state officials and civil servants.

During that process we have built an institutional capacity so we can cope with challenges which European institutions and globalisation put before a small country such as Croatia, the PM said.

(Hina)



News