EU advances Croatia entry talks to March

BRUSSELS, Dec 17 (AFP) - EU leaders agreed Friday to open membership talks with Croatia on March 17 next year, a month earlier than expected, provided Zagreb cooperates with the UN war crimes tribunal, the bloc's presidency said.
"That is a well earned result for Croatia," said Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, whose country currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, confirming the date at the end of a two-day summit.
The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has indicted retired general Ante Gotovina on charges of war crimes against ethnic Serbs during the 1991-1995 Balkans conflicts.
Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader told AFP this week that his government was already fully cooperating with the UN tribunal and repeated Zagreb's claim that Gotovina was not in the country.
Balkenende voiced confidence that the Croatia talks can start on time, although he pointed out that it will be up Luxembourg, which takes up the EU's presidency for six months from January 1, to coordinate the actual decision.
"It is up to the Luxembourg presidency to decide it. But we are ... aware that Croatia is willing to cooperate with the Hague tribunal and we have all confidence that the negotiations can start," he added.

12/17/2004 17:19 GMT - AFP