Croatia should close the remaining 11 chapters in its accession negotiations with the European Union by March and conclude the negotiations in June 2011, the head of the national committee overseeing EU membership negotiations, Vesna Pusic, told a press conference after a committee meeting on Tuesday.
Pusic said that five chapters, or policy areas, were expected to be closed at an intergovernmental accession conference in early November. Three more chapters are to be closed in December, and the final three -- Competition Policy, Judiciary and Fundamental Rights, and Finance and Budgetary Provisions -- after the New Year, she added.
If Croatia closes all the chapters by March, it will have a chance to conclude the accession negotiations in June 2011 during the Hungarian presidency of the EU, Pusic said.
She drew attention to Croatia's poor absorption capacity.
We can get no money unless our projects are approved. If we do nothing, we stand no chance of qualifying for EU funds, she said, stressing the importance of training experts for that purpose.
The committee discussed a proposed addendum to Croatia's position on the Environment chapter, including changes of deadlines to meet the EU criteria in that field.
Croatia is requesting transitional periods to meet the standards relating to air and water quality, waste management, industrial pollution, risk management, and environmental protection. Large investments are needed in that area, which are estimated at several billion euros.
Pusic said that Croatia was requesting an extension of the deadline to establish an integrated waste water management system from 2015 to 2018. She added that the request for transitional periods for nitrate fertiliser pollution and manure storage facilities had been abandoned.
