The chairwoman for the National Committee monitoring Croatia's EU entry talks and president of the Croatian People's Party (HNS) parliamentary group, Vesna Pusic, said in the eastern Croatian city of Osijek on Tuesday that June 21 was a realistic and achievable deadline for closing the talks and Chapter 23, stressing that Croatia was at a turning point and that EU admission was "the third transition and Croatia's chance" not only for this generation, but for future generations as well.
"We have time, provided that all of us get to work to close the remaining chapters, of which the most important is definitely Chapter 23 (Judiciary and Fundamental Rights)," Pusic said, adding that also important was "an intensified political offensive" in which "the main characters are the president of the republic and the prime minister".
Pusic told a news conference, organised by the Osijek-Baranja County branch of the HNS, that elections must be held before a referendum on Croatia's EU entry because a new government must continue to actively implement the most important programme - leading Croatia to the European Union - which, among other things, envisages explaining to citizens what the EU really brings.
"Petty political interests must be put aside at such an important moment for Croatia's future and the future of its citizens," Pusic said.
Asked about a possible election date, Pusic said the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and its coalition partners, which hold a parliamentary majority, had clearly not yet decided on the election date. Pusic said, however, that in her opinion, "if the negotiations end on 21 June, we will not sign the Accession Treaty before 15 November, which indicates that the elections must be held before the referendum".
Pusic said the elections could be held on 26 June, immediately upon the closure of EU entry talks.
