EU: Croatia's hopes of starting EU membership talks next week are in shreds, after the UN chief war crimes prosecutor told the EU that Zagreb is not co-operating with her investigation.
In a letter sent to all 25 EU leaders yesterday, Ms Carla del Ponte said the Croatian authorities had not attempted to arrest indicted war crimes suspect Ante Gotovina.
"Despite all public and private assurances from Zagreb, Ante Gotovina remains within reach of the Croatian authorities, and until such time as he is brought to The Hague, it cannot be said that Croatia is co-operating fully with the international tribunal."
The EU has made clear that it will not start membership talks with Croatia until it is satisfied that the former Yugoslav republic is co-operating fully with the war crimes tribunal.
Enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn, who is visiting Istanbul, said EU foreign ministers would take Ms del Ponte's letter seriously when they discuss Croatia next week.
"We take into account very strongly the view of the chief prosecutor and The Hague tribunal and we will assess the matter now very shortly, and then it will be the Council of Ministers of the EU which will decide how to proceed," he said.
Former general Gotovina, who fought in Croatia's war of independence, is accused of crimes against humanity during a 1995 offensive against rebel Serbs.
EU ambassadors will discuss Croatia's EU ambitions tomorrow and are expected to recommend that membership talks be postponed until Ms Del Ponte is satisfied that Zagreb is co-operating with her tribunal.
In her letter to the EU, Ms del Ponte acknowledged that the Croatian authorities had taken some steps against Gen Gotovina, including freezing his financial assets.
"It seems to me that these steps come late, are of marginal value and can hardly change the issues.
"Assurances given by the Croatian authorities in the last couple of weeks that finally all institutions and services are fully engaged and have redoubled their efforts clearly prove that until recently they were not doing their utmost, and, as I have stated before, hoped for the voluntary surrender of the accused," she said.
Ms del Ponte also accused Croatian intelligence of targeting her investigators.
"The top leadership of the country was fully aware of these operations and did not inform me. Neither did it order them to be immediately discontinued," she said.