Speech of the Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek in the Croatian Republic Delivered on 8th September 2008
Croatian success: Milestones on the way to the integration into Euro-Atlantic structures.
I delivered a lecture in Slovenia at the Bled Forum last week and there I said it was my last lecture before the Czech presidency when I was speaking freely and without using the flowery diplomatic speech. Nevertheless, I have quite a simple role today. Croatia is on its way to the Euro-Atlantic structures. I would say that it is a simple title of my lecture and it is quite an easy work for me, as Croatia nowadays has more than one foot in Euro-Atlantic structures – if we understand them as membership in the European Union and in NATO. But what was easy for me, it was not easy for you. And I know exactly what I am saying, because we experienced the same way perhaps ten years earlier. Your country had the way "back to Europe" made more complicated. And I am saying that "back to Europe" and I am really using the quotation marks, because Croatia with its beautiful beaches, islands, lakes and mountains, but also with its feeling that it is situated rather west than east from the Iron Curtain, never ceased to be part of Europe. I understand the word "back" rather as a return to a family, a return to a family with which you are connected by the same values - the return to free, secure and prosperous countries. Every country which decided on this way back, on the way of implementation of reforms, had to overcome great number of troubles. Croatian situation was more complicated as it had to cope with the legacy of the war, with reintegration.
I do not want to revert to that sad stage at all. I am saying this just to point out how highly I value the fact that your nation managed in a relatively short time to cover the way from a country affected by the war – I remember my way through those burnt houses and destroyed villages – up to functioning legal state which deserves to be a member of both NATO and the European Union. There were several reasons why we have always been supporting you. Apart from the fact that we have regarded you as our brothers and for an allied country for centuries, there are quite pragmatic reasons here. It is just the integration of countries of Eastern Europe which is the best safeguard that Europe will live in peace and that this sensitive part of Europe, South Eastern Europe, will not be that fuse as it has been for centuries, in fact.
Therefore, it is not only in your interest but also in our interest to extend those borders of freedom, security and prosperity which are represented by these two organizations to which you are heading. We have bad experience of the last century that bilateral treaties are not sufficient guaranty of these values. And nowadays we can see that a small country can be safe in the face of a more powerful enemy – we are convinced about that – only as a part of an alliance and that our economic cooperation on the common market of the European Union means not only growth of wealth but it is also the best prevention against violence. It is not a coincidence that the original European Coal and Steel Community had after the World War Two as its objective not only prosperity but also security and then, as a final result, peace. Therefore I firmly believe that nations of the West Balkan, which had been chronically plagued by outbursts of violence for centuries, will live together in peace if they are parts of the European Union and NATO. It is the original and still valid objective of the European Integration, to make friends and business partners of former enemies. It is the objective which has been successfully achieved for fifty years. It was a success in Western Europe; it was a success in Central Europe and it was a success in some countries of Eastern Europe. I cannot see any reason for failure just in South Eastern Europe. West countries had easier position and we know it. It was easier because they – and again in quotation marks – "only " had to overcome those six years of the war, while in case of our or your country the totalitarian regime had lasted for fifty years. Moreover, your return to values of liberal democracy was in your case delayed by bloody war. I do not want to analyse that way which you covered in the last thirteen years; it is a failure which must be explained and to analysed; you achieved success. Therefore the first key word of my today's lecture, which describes your way, is the word "success".
Nowadays Croatia is a country which was invited to NATO; deservedly. It had to reduce the number of soldiers from 180 000 in 1995 to 16 000, which was huge logistic, financial and social operation. In 2000 you were invited to the Partnership for Peace. Professional character of your army and especially political and mental preparedness to bear joint responsibility for security of the world proves your participation in the ISAF mission in Afghanistan. With its three hundred soldiers, Croatia is the second most contributing country to this important mission. I would like to thank you for that contribution of yours as I know how many of your soldiers died there as I visit Afghanistan often.
If you successfully managed your tasks related to the reorganization of your army up to now, I firmly believe you will also successfully accomplish the modernization that is planned for 2015. As far as the support of your inhabitants for your accession to the Alliance, I am very optimistic in this respect. The support began to grow only after the accession to NATO in the Czech Republic; by then the public had been rather cold and reserved. But I congratulate you on your work anyway; you play an important role in the entire region, a stabilization role and a role of a kind of an engine of that integration process and an engine of the stabilization role in the entire region.
I believe you will continue and that your cooperation with Serbia and Bosnia, for example, will help these countries to manage the reform of their armies as it was in your case. It will also contribute to the growth of trust in countries of Eastern Europe and its gradual integration to NATO. Armies of NATO are established as defensive armies and reorganization of armed forces means not only reduction of the number of soldiers but also total and essential change of philosophy, which I regard as absolutely crucial.
I value your efforts to cooperate in the framework of the Adriatic Charter with Albania and Macedonia. Of course, I regret that Macedonia was not invited to NATO and just a note in the margin, I must sigh that Georgia was not invited to MAP Membership Action Plan), which had rather fatal consequences. The fact that we want Macedonia and all the three countries to be integrated into the Alliance is demonstrated from your side by dispatching a medical team just to Afghanistan.
I regard the accession to NATO as nearly managed task from your side. I am looking forward to be sitting next to you at NATO summits, and I take it as face value as according to the English seating arrangement we are neighbour countries. The accession to the European Union is drawing closer as well and I hope that the delay, which was ten years in case of the accession to NATO, will be shorter and that the integration effort will end sooner than in 2014. The process is more complicated, more complex, of course.
We are of the opinion that the situation concerning your accession to the European Union was rather complicated by the unfinished ratification of the Lisbon Treaty. Certain countries, in particular those largest ones, take this situation as a pretext for suspension of the process of enlargement or as a pretext that following the unapproved, non-ratified Lisbon Treaty the accession of Croatia to the European Union is impossible. Nevertheless, I personally regard the determination of the number of 27 countries in the Treaty of Nice as just formal, not real, obstacle. Nevertheless, certain countries, as I have already said, use it as a kind of a battering ram, as a tool for extortion. I cannot agree with this. In my opinion, this formal objection cannot be an obstacle of your accession, in particular in case of Croatia and if we take into consideration the entire process, speed of the enlargement and preparedness of other countries for the accession to the EU. We must look for such instruments to overcome it jointly. I regard it as unnecessary and unfair.
Unnecessary, because all countries, apart from Ireland continue the ratification process; nobody withdraw his signature, the ratification process continues. Problems caused by the Irish referendum are serious; the Treaty cannot come into force without the Irish "yes". But it cannot be any problem for real operation of the European Union according to a rule which I know well: where there is room for three children, there is a room for four children. What is operating with 27 states will be operating effectively without any change with 28 states.
The accession negotiations between the European Union and Croatia will be one of priorities of our presidency in the first half of 2009. I believe that we will succeed during the second half of this year, together with Frenchmen, to open all the remaining chapters, those twelve chapters, and that we will be able to identify the most burning problems, and that not only the implementation of the AKI, but also factual and practical implementation of the individual reforms will be making rapid progress and will be accepted by the public. I am saying this in spite of the fact that I know that it is not simple at all – or just because of that.
After the latest wave of enlargement, most European countries will be more critical towards newly accessing countries. The reason is apparent. Even the accession of Romania and Bulgaria was rather conditioned. It brought about a need of subsequent monitoring of the individual processes. The experience of the European Union with this is more or less negative. Be prepared for that. And we are those who will tell you about it and who are telling you about it. In this respect we are open as we will bear responsibility for conclusion of the individual chapters in the first half of 2009. I hope that we will conclude the overwhelming majority of chapters. In case some of them remain, we will proceed in compliance with the Barroso plan, with that road map. If everything continues well, we want to start negotiation on the Treaty on Accession during the Swedish presidency.
To fulfil this it does not mean for you only to work on your homework, not only formally; the European Commission would have to be prepared both in mental and capacity terms for it. To formally mark your homework will not be enough; more effort will have to be made than it has been made so far.
You can rely on us for a long time. Relations between I. Sanadar and me are really above-standard and friendly. In spite of the fact that we are not a presidency country which would be able to dramatically influence the negotiation, we decided to establish working groups which would deal with problems that I could name – the chapter 23, the chapter 24 Justice in Interior Affairs, the chapter on environment or that concerning plant health and genetic regulations. The purpose is to accelerate the process and to achieve our goals.
As people say – all is well that ends well. In case of NATO your way or what you had to achieve ended, in fact, and now it is up to member countries to ratify the treaty agreement and to invite you to the session of the Alliance. The ratification in our country will be finished by the end of this year. Now, the accession to the European Union is ahead of us and we must jointly work on it. Anyway, those last thirteen years showed what last centuries did. That our nations are very close friends and that now when they will become, and I firmly believe they will become, a part of the Euro-Atlantic community, our friendship and partnership will be given something like an official stamp.
Thank you for your attention.
