XVIth EPP CONGRESS The EPP: Your Majority in Europe 4 - 5 February 2004 European Parliament BRUSSELS

Resolution adopted by the XVIth EPP Congress
Croatia’s accession to the European Union


The European People´s Party,

a) Having regard to the elections that took place in Croatia on 23 November 2003 resulting in a great victory for the EPP sister party HDZ under the chairmanship of Ivo Sanader;

b) Having regard to the establishment of a new government on 23 December 2003 under the leadership of Prime-Minister Ivo Sanader;


1. Welcomes the declaration of the policy priorities of the new Government on 23 December 2003:

to commit itself to full co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in the Hague. The new Government has taken first steps to show its willingness to fulfil its obligations towards the Court;

to intensify the relationship with the European Union and NATO and to do its utmost in continuing the reform process and fulfilling the Copenhagen criteria in order to make accession happen as soon as possible;

to commit itself to a cooperative approach in solving all problems with its neighbours;

2. Welcomes the government coalition and collaboration agreement made by the new government with minority parties, and in particular the historic Sanader-Stanimirovic Agreement concerning refugee return and restitution of property, leading to the support of the Serbian minority to the new Government in the Sabor;

3. Stresses that for the maintaining and improvement of the stability in the region, accession of Croatia to the European Union is very important;

4. Believes that the capacity of the EU to absorb new Member States must be assured;

5. Calls upon the European Commission and the European People´s Party's Heads of State to establish a strategy for Croatia's accession to the European Union a soon as possible.