interview: Border dispute sours Croatia EU deal

Croatia's Prime Minister Ivo Sanader is preparing to take his country on two historic leaps forward: joining NATO next month...and becoming the 28th member of the European Union. But not everyone in the Balkans is happy, especially Slovenia. The two neighbours are in a border dispute. They both claim Piran Bay on the Adriatic Coast. And the row also involves other boundary claims left unresolved since the break up of Yugoslavia in 1991. Last December Slovenia accused Croatia of not playing fair, saying it was wrong to bring maps and boundary documents to the EU negotiating table. Slovenia meanwhile blocked several stages of Croatia's EU talks. With tensions on both sides rising, Sanader met with his Slovenian counterpart Borut Pahor last week. But no solution was found and now there's a question mark over Croatia being ready to join the EU in 2011. euronews recently met with Prime Minister Sanader in Zagreb.
Time to get down to fine detail about the border dispute and Croatia's membership of NATO and the European Union.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• euronews:
• interview:
• Border
• dispute
• sours
• Croatia
• EU
• deal

[Euriel1]

Slovenia is my country's friendly neighbor however Hungary can not support Slovenia in this question of boycotting Croatia's accession to the EU. This small border issue can not be put on the table of the whole EU. Just because Slovenia has a small controversy with Croatia, other EU members will not dislike Croatia. At the other hand, Croatia is well prepared for membership and the EU needs such members!

Croatia was, is, and will always be European!

Hungary WELCOMES Croatia in the EU!

[jusantos85]

It is really not correct that Slovenia is trying to use the power of veto to pressure Croatia to give up it's land. Slo. doen't want this to be brought up in front of EU Court of Justice b/c they know they cannot win this case. And since Cro. needs Slo's assent in order to join the EU in 2011, Slo. is in a situation to blackmail Cro. I am not Croat nor Slo, and I really don't have any interest to defend any of the parties. For futher info, anyone can study territorial maps and make a conclusion.

[H1MLA]

@Euriel1 And you think Croatia alongside other eastern european states who join the EU, are prepared to embrace the EU socially, politically and among other accepted norms of Western EU states? Also, what will Croatia bring to the EU?

[1vilus]

year 1991 slov. ask croatians parlament in zagreb, not to allow yug. army get out of the baraks in zagreb, carlovac, in varazdin to atack slov.Croatin dirty politics was this;they allow, yugos. army to atack slov, thinking they could split slov. with srps,but slov. fouth back. croat. ar dirty traitors!!!!!!

[Mayakeber]

:( 

[bbphnix]

@eulex10 you're sick

[bbphnix]

stupid politics.... a damn port? you're causing tensions between your two countries for a single tiny port? you're dragging the EU into this for a port?

geeeeeez...... let's just call it 1800s and go fighting each other for borders like we did for 99.999999999999999999999999999­999999999999999999999999999999­99999999% of Europe's history; especially Eastern Europe; now that progress! with a minus sign at the front.....

[retardinho]

@pixelator30 Actually the state of the things wasnt that clear at all. The Bay itself was actually part of the court county on the croatian side but the closes police station was obviously in city of Piran so they controlled it. Do not forget this was Yugoslavia we are talking about.

[retardinho]

@pixelator30 Slovenia cannot get the access to international waters even if it gets the entire Bay of Piran because the maritime international laws say specifically that border on the sea must follow the land teritory. I suggest you go and look at some maps and inform yourself before making these ridiculous statements.

[retardinho]

@pixelator30 So how did Slovenia enter into EU with unsetteled borders? Also there are other border disputes between within the EU. How is Croatia different? Well obviously Slovenia wants to blackmail Croatia.

[wk88]

@eulex10

Hahahahaha. Wake up!

[eulex10]

FUK CROATIA,FUK SLOVENIA

THEY BOTH CAN GO TO HELL,AUSTRIAN WHORES!

LONG LIVE GREATER SERBIA AND GREATER YUGOSLAVIA