CROATIA: European Union foreign ministers have postponed the start of membership talks with Croatia in protest against Zagreb's failure to co-operate fully with the United Nations war crimes tribunal in The Hague.
This is the first time the EU has blocked negotiations with a candidate country over an issue concerning human rights or the rule of law.
Ireland was one of only eight countries to call for an immediate start to accession talks, despite Croatia's failure to arrest General Ante Gotovina, a suspected war criminal who has been on the run for four years.
Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Cyprus and Malta also backed an early start to membership talks with Zagreb. A larger group, including Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and the Nordic countries, insisted that negotiations could not start until Croatia showed that it was co-operating fully with the war crimes tribunal.
Minister for European Affairs Noel Treacy said that Ireland favoured starting membership talks immediately but holding out the option of suspending negotiations if Zagreb failed to co-operate with the tribunal.
"We are talking about a Croatian state here. We are not talking about one individual who could hold that state to ransom. We believe that the expectation of the state of Croatia to be part of accession negotiations should allow them to commence those negotiations," he said.
Mr Treacy said that postponing the opening of talks with Croatia might make it more unlikely that Zagreb would co-operate with the tribunal. "They are isolated as a result of today's decision. As a result of that, it makes it more difficult for them, I think, to deliver this situation," he said.
Luxembourg foreign minister Jean Asselborn, whose country holds the EU presidency, said that the membership talks would not start today, as planned, but he named no new date. "In the absence of a common agreement, the opening of accession negotiations is postponed," he said.
A former French legionnaire, Mr Gotovina commanded Croatian forces during "Operation Storm", a 1995 offensive to recapture the Serbian enclave of Knin. He is accused of murdering at least 150 Serb civilians and destroying their property.
The UN's chief war crimes prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte, has accused Zagreb of not trying hard enough to capture Mr Gotovina and of hampering her investigation.
EU leaders agreed last year to start membership talks with Croatia on condition that Zagreb showed that it was co-operating fully with the war crimes tribunal. The European Commission set the start date for today and Zagreb hoped to complete the negotiations by 2007.
Despite their postponement of the start date, EU foreign ministers yesterday agreed a framework for membership talks once they do begin. Most observers believe that, if Croatia enters into talks soon, it could join the EU by 2009.