EU-DIGEST

Croatia Is A Repressive Country

The world media, which have been following events in Croatia since the start of the so-called Facebook scandal, have also paid attention to the anti-government protest on December 5, organized by Facebook – a social network site. Creator of the “I bet I can find 5,000 people who dislike Sanader” group Niksa Klecak was arrested, along with some other activists who were putting up posters which announced the protests. If all goes as planned the Prime Minister will soon have a much bigger issue on their hands. For a country with less than 600,000 users on Facebook, mobilizing over 10 percent of the Facebook population would be more than an impressive feat. The country’s population is less than 5 million so if the protests materialize, this will be a historic event – Social Times writes, quoting sources from Canada media. Reuters reports that several thousand Croats demanded early elections on a Facebook organised protest, better health care and education - Anti-government protesters gathered in the city's main square called on Prime Minister Ivo Sanader to "go away" in response to his plea that Croats cut their spending in the face of the global financial crisis.

Labels: Croatia, Democracy

Georgia, Ukraine Told They Do Not Meet Standards For NATO Membership - by Liz Fuller

The NATO foreign ministers' decision on December 2 not to offer Membership Action Plans to Georgia and Ukraine should not have surprised anyone. Nor should their reaffirmation of the provision enshrined in the final document of the April 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest that those two countries will at some unspecified future date join the alliance. But the fact remains -- and was stressed by both NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice -- that both Georgia and Ukraine still fall short of basic NATO standards in terms of both political reform and military readiness.

Note EU-Digest:
There also is absolutely no need to admit Albania and Croatia into NATO. As a matter of fact the EU should also insist for reasons of unity and conformity that those EU nations which already are in NATO should be grouped under a single EU unbrella possibly as proposed by French President Nicolas Sarkozy re: EU Elite Defence Force.

Labels: Albania, Croatia, EU, Georgia, Nato, Ukraine

"If anyone is looking for a diversion from the U.S. election this week, may we suggest EU enlargement. This always touchy subject will pop up again tomorrow when Brussels reviews its expansion strategy. The European Commission is expected to announce that Croatia is on track to finish accession negotiations next year and join the union in 2011, and that progress in other countries, including Turkey and Serbia, has been slow in the past 12 months. Then Paris and Berlin will restate their opposition to any more enlargement before the stalled Lisbon Treaty is fully ratified.

Admission to the EU requires candidates and existing members alike to uphold their respective ends of the bargain. At present, both sides have more work to do."

Labels: Croatia, EU, Lisbon Treaty

NATO-The German Question - by George Friedman

German Chancellor Angela Merkel went to St. Petersburg last week for meetings with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev. The central question on the table was Germany’s position on NATO expansion, particularly with regard to Ukraine and Georgia. Merkel made it clear at a joint press conference that Germany would oppose NATO membership for both of these countries, and that it would even oppose placing the countries on the path to membership. Since NATO operates on the basis of consensus, any member nation can effectively block any candidate from NATO membership.In one sense, Merkel’s reasons for her stance are simple. First, expanding NATO guarantees to Ukraine and Georgia is meaningless. NATO and the United States don’t have the military means to protect Ukraine or Georgia, and incorporating them into the alliance would not increase European security. From a military standpoint, NATO membership for the two former Soviet republics is an empty gesture, while from a political standpoint, Berlin sees it as designed to irritate the Russians for no clear purpose. Next, were NATO prepared to protect Ukraine and Georgia, all NATO countries including Germany would be forced to increase defense expenditures substantially. This is not something that Germany and the rest of NATO want to do.Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Germany spent 1945-1992 being the potential prime battleground of the Cold War. It spent 1992-2008 not being the potential prime battleground. Germany prefers the latter, and it does not intend to be drawn into a new Cold War under any circumstances. This has profound implications for the future of both NATO and U.S.-German relations.

Germany is also heavily dependent on Russian natural gas. If the supply were cut off, Germany’s situation would be desperate — or at least close enough that the distinction would be academic. Russia might decide it could not afford to cut off natural gas exports, but Merkel is dealing with a fundamental German interest, and risking that for Ukrainian or Georgian membership in NATO is not something she is prepared to do.

Labels: Croatia, EU, Germany, Nato, Ukraine, US

Croatia’s Jews protest against funeral ceremony of former head of concentration camp

The Jewish community in Croatia has condemned he organization of a funeral for a former concentration camp commander, saying it was turned into a celebration of his crimes. Dinko Sakic, a former commander at the Jasenovac death camp, who died earlier this month, was cremated last week in the Ustasha Croatian pro-Nazi uniform he reportedly wore as head of the camp. Some 70,000 victims, mostly Jews, Serbs and Roma, died in Jasenovac during World War II. Sakic died at the age of 86 while serving a 20-year prison sentence for crimes against humanity.

Labels: Croatia, Jews. massacre, Nazi war criminals

Labels: Croatia, EURO 2008, Turkey

German president to visit Croatia

The German president Horst Koehler is to visit Croatia to discuss the country's efforts to join the EU. Mr Koehler is set to meet Croatian prime minister Ivo Sanader and president Stjepan Mesic.Olli Rehn, the EU Enlargement Commissioner said: "The sooner Croatia meets all the requirements the sooner it will become the EU member."

Labels: Croatia, EU, Germany

Serbia pulls envoys from Hungary, Croatia, Bulgaria

Serbia is withdrawing its ambassadors from Hungary, Croatia and Bulgaria in response to their recognition of Kosovo as an independent state.
The three neighbors on Wednesday dealt a blow to the Serb campaign to overturn Kosovo's month-old independence by announcing they would establish ties with the new republic. “Following official notification the Foreign Ministry has given orders to the ambassadors in Croatia and Hungary to leave their posts,” said ministry spokeswoman Vesna Sekerezovic. “The ambassadors have 48 hours to return to Serbia.”

Labels: Croatia, EU, Hungary, Serbia

Soccer: Croatia gets heroes' welcome after eliminating England

Thousands of fans sporting team shirts and flags welcomed Croatia at Zagreb airport on Thursday following their victory over England at Wembley, which prevented the home side from qualifying for the Euro 2008 finals. "It was a splendid show by Croatia whereas England should bow to our lads and feel blessed to have seen a team of such quality play at Wembley," said daily Vecernji List.

"We are on our way to Austria and Switzerland with our heads up and fire in our hearts, needing no gratitude or presents from the fortuitous Russians," the paper said. Jutarnji List called the outcome "a spectacular win" and said Mladen Petric's winner was "the killer punch" that meant "lights out for England" and "steered Russia across the Alps into the finals."

Labels: Croatia, EU, Soccer

Soccer: England crashed out of Euro 2008 and loses 2-3

England crashed out of Euro 2008 to leave coach Steve McClaren's future in grave danger after Croatian substitute Mladen Petric grabbed a late winner at a stunned Wembley.With 13 minutes remaining, Croatia regained the lead through Petric whose angled drive beat the dive of Carson who got a hand to the ball but could only help it into the net. McClaren brought on Darren Bent for Cole with 10 minutes remaining in a last throw of the dice. Bent came close to equalizing but lofted his drive over the bar and England could not find a way through. England wil not participate in EURO 2008.

Labels: Britain, Croatia, EU, Soccer

Labels: Croatia, EU

Secret CIA Arrests Began in Croatia - by Karmen Horvat

American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) began its operations of arresting terrorists and transferring them across Europe in the mid 1990`s when US agents allegedly arrested Egyptian terrorist Abu Talal in Croatia and transferred him to Egypt, where he was executed, Danish Politiken daily writes Sunday, AP agency reports.

Labels: CIA, Croatia, EU

Zagreb graduates to the first rank of European cities - by Robert Cross

Over the Cold War years and again during the conflicts of the 1990s, Zagreb had filtered through my imagination mostly as a black-and-white image of a troubled and fragmented Yugoslavia.

Now, in person, the capital of an at-last independent Croatia shows off its colors and vibrancy. Maybe it always was thus, but it never came to mind as one of the must-see cities on the Continent.

Labels: Croatia, Europe, Tourism