Prime Minister Orešković at European Council meeting

Prime Minister Tihomir Oreskovic said on Tuesday evening that the atmosphere at a meeting of 27 EU leaders and British Prime Minister David Cameron earlier in the day was "a bit sad" and that the message of many to Britons was that they could not "have the cake and eat it too."

Commenting on the talks held at a working dinner at the summit of EU leaders, Oreskovic said that Cameron said that migration was the issue that tipped the scales in favour of Britain's exit from the EU.

"They wanted to have control so that they can decide for themselves who to let into the country, and that was possibly the key factor," said the Croatian PM.

He added that Cameron would not send an official notification to the EU on the launching of negotiations on exit conditions but that one would wait for a new leader of the Conservative Party and new Prime Minister to be elected, which was expected to happen on September 9.

Oreskovic said that Britons would like to divorce the EU but keep the conditions they had enjoyed until now, but that many told them they could not "have their cake and eat it too."

Prime Minister Oreskovic said g that Croatia's position on the opening of the policy chapter No. 23 in Serbia's EU entry talks had not changed and that what Croatia insisted on was also insisted on by other member-countries.

"As far as we are concerned, nothing has changed. We want Serbia to meet the same conditions Croatia and other members had to meet," Oreskovic said, adding that Croatia insisted on three conditions - jurisdiction for war crimes trials, protection of minorities and cooperation with the UN war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague.

"Other member countries, too, insist that those criteria be met," he said.

Photo credits: European Council 
 

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