EU foreign ministers on December 8th refused to back the Commission’s call for a reference to an end-date for Croatia’s EU accession negotiations. Diplomats cited Croatia’s long-standing disputes with Slovenia, which have already held up accession talks, alongside Dutch unhappiness at Croatia’s co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and a general uneasiness about the principle of setting target dates.
In November Croatia received a largely positive progress report, although some important shortcomings were outlined. These centred on the need for more judicial reform, to increase transparency and independence, and to wage a more determined battle against corruption and organised crime. In addition, EU states are pressing Croatia to restructure its shipbuilding industry, which is a drag on government finances and a recipient of aid in ways that may run counter to EU rules.
Since that progress report, Croatia has set up anti-corruption courts and is looking actively for solutions to the shipbuilding issue. Nevertheless, Croatia suffered a setback at the October 30th inter-governmental conference in Brussels when Slovenia blocked the opening of four additional negotiating chapters—on the free movement of capital; regional policy and co-ordination of structural instruments; justice, freedom and security; and the environment. These chapters had been approved for opening by all EU member states; Slovenia also in effect blocked the closure of the chapter on Trans-European networks.
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