Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2011-02-16-Speech-3-009-000"
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"en.20110216.4.3-009-000"2
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"Mr President, on behalf of the Presidency of the European Union, may I say that it is a particular pleasure for me to address the plenary sitting of the European Parliament today.
We are therefore very close to the conclusion of the negotiations. However, we still have to close a couple of difficult chapters such as competition, agriculture and rural development, fisheries, regional policy and coordination of structural instruments, the judiciary and fundamental rights, and financial and budgetary provisions, some of them of course with budgetary implications.
In the Council conclusions on Croatia adopted last December, we highlighted key issues that require further work in these areas. You have been informed of them. We would also like to underline some points which are duly reflected in your resolution.
The Council has noted that encouraging progress has been made by Croatia in many areas, including the rule of law and the fight against high-level corruption. At the same time, it is clear that further efforts are required. These concern judicial independence and efficiency and the fight against corruption at all levels.
The Council also encouraged Croatia to step up its efforts to fulfil the remaining benchmarks, including the building of convincing track records, in particular as regards competition policy, as well as the judiciary and fundamental rights.
In this regard, let me underline the importance we attach to the monitoring process in the alignment with – and implementation of – the
with a view to ensuring administrative capacity and to building a convincing track record.
In particular, the Commission’s assessment of progress in the field of the judiciary and fundamental rights in March will be very important as regards the possible closing of Chapter 23 later in the semester. Moreover, on the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY), the Council noted Croatia’s generally good cooperation with ICTY, while reiterating that full cooperation remains essential, in line with the negotiating framework.
Now that the Interagency Task Force has started to explore important new avenues, the Council has called on Croatia to continue the administrative investigation in order to account for the missing military documents.
In addition, the Council welcomed Croatia’s active role in regional cooperation as well as the improvement in its relations with neighbouring countries and its efforts aimed at reconciliation in the region.
The entry into force of the arbitration agreement on the border issue with Slovenia at the end of November was a very welcome development in this regard. Bearing in mind the importance of good neighbourly relations, the Council has encouraged Croatia to build on this progress in its efforts towards resolving all outstanding bilateral and regional issues in cooperation with the countries concerned.
In conclusion, let me reiterate that there is still a lot to be done during our Presidency. Croatia should spare no effort to fulfil the remaining benchmarks, to maintain and improve what has already been achieved and, in line with the negotiating framework, to conclusively address all other obligations still outstanding.
This meeting provides a timely opportunity to review progress on Croatia’s accession process and present the Hungarian Presidency’s plans for this first semester of the year.
For our part, it goes without saying that we count upon the support and cooperation of all Member States, of the European Commission and, of course, first and foremost, of the European Parliament, in this endeavour.
It is essential to keep up this momentum in order to conclude the negotiations successfully, as underlined among the priorities of the Hungarian Presidency until the end of June, i.e. until the end of our Presidency.
First and foremost, I would like to welcome Parliament’s active engagement with the enlargement process, and its constructive contribution to the general debate on enlargement and on Croatia’s accession process in particular.
As we have underlined several times, enlargement reinforces peace, democracy and stability in Europe, serves the European Union’s strategic interests and helps the EU to better achieve its policy objectives in important areas which are key to economic recovery and sustainable growth.
Enlargement is a key driver for political and economic reform. It moves forward at a pace which is largely determined by the candidate country’s respect of the Copenhagen criteria and its capacity to take on the obligations of membership.
Enlargement is one of the main priorities of our Presidency, and our work during this semester will be to advance the policy in line with the renewed consensus on enlargement adopted by the European Council in December 2006, as well as with the Council conclusions of 14 December 2010, which have been endorsed by the European Council.
With regard to Croatia, conclusion of the accession negotiations, as stated in the conclusions of the European Council, is within reach, and our goal is to conclude the negotiations by the end of the Hungarian Presidency – provided of course that Croatia completes the remaining benchmarks for closing the negotiating chapters.
We would also like to finalise the accession treaty as far as possible, thereby paving the way to Croatia’s accession to the EU which we look forward to. Therefore, as highlighted in your resolution, this semester will be crucial for Croatia’s negotiating process.
Let me now speak very briefly about the outstanding issues. So far, since the start of negotiations, 34 of the 35 chapters have been opened for negotiation, of which 28 have been provisionally closed."@en1
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