Croatia may complete EU accession talks next year

Croatia looks set to complete EU accession talks before the end of next year, Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg said after a meeting with his Croatian counterpart Gordan Jandrokovic in Prague on Thursday. Mr. Schwarzenberg reiterated the Czech view that further EU enlargement should not be linked to progress on the Lisbon treaty. Croatia is the hottest candidate for EU entry and the Croatian foreign minister said he hoped that the Czech Republic’s EU presidency would lend the accession talks new dynamics.