OSCE Mission applauds Croatia's EU candidate status

ZAGREB, 18 June 2004 - "The granting of European Union (EU) candidate status to Croatia, as well as a date for the start of accession talks, is recognition of the great progress Croatia has made," said the Head of the OSCE Mission to Croatia, Peter Semneby, today.

In a message welcoming the decision by the European Council to grant Croatia an EU candidate status, Ambassador Semneby congratulated the Government and Croatian citizens for accomplishing one of their main goals.

Semneby said that Croatia had accepted the responsibilities attached to its new status and that the path to full membership would require that Croatia meet its future challenges.

"The OSCE will be a reliable partner on this path. We will continue assisting Croatia with issues identified in the avis (opinion) of the European Commission and in the draft European Partnership Agreement, including refugee return and property repossession, the strengthening of regional co-operation, reform of the judiciary, media legislation, and protection of human and minority rights," said the Ambassador.

"Croatia's candidate status sends a strong positive signal to other countries in the region. It can play an important role in continuing to bring about normalisation and promote reconciliation," concluded Ambassador Semneby.