Croatia celebrates historic EU entry

Croatians gathered on Sunday to celebrate a countdown to their country's entry into the European Union, a historic moment for the former Yugoslav republic that emerged from a bloody independence war in the 1990s. Crowds flocked to the capital's main square to join more than 100 European dignitaries to mark the stroke of midnight (2200 GMT) when Croatia will officially become the bloc's 28th member. The EU anthem, Beethoven's "Ode to Joy", will be played, followed by speeches by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and Croatian President Ivo Josipovic. "Many opportunities will open as we will be officially linked with Europe, we are finally joining our family," said 23-year-old student Nik Kolveshi as he waited with his friends for the festivities to begin.Croatia will become only the second former Yugoslav republic to join the bloc, after Slovenia, following the bloody breakup of the ex-communist federation in the 1990s. But observers say the celebrations are overshadowed by economic worries. In a symbolic gesture, Croatia will remove the "Customs" sign at a border crossing with Slovenia at midnight. At the same time, the "EU" sign will be erected at the land border with Serbia, another ex-Yugoslav republic which on Friday got a greenlight from Brussels to open membership talks by January 2014. The two events will be broadcast live in the Zagreb square, where three stages were decked out in the EU's trademark blue colour for performances by some 700 singers, musicians and dancers. Croatia's cultural heritage and history of scientific innovation will also be showcased, including the neck tie.Heads of state from all six ex-Yugoslav republics will be among the guests, but the leaders of many EU member states including Britain, France and notably Germany will not be present. German Chancellor Angela Merkel cited a full workload to excuse herself from the event, but both Croatian media and the opposition labelled her decision a "diplomatic slap". Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic earlier dismissed fears that Croatia, with a population of 4.2 million, would be an economic burden on the bloc. "Why would we be a problem? After we negotiated for years (with Brussels) every detail... we have a stable political system, we have an economic crisis like every one else, we have a relatively stable banking system," he said on Saturday."At the end of the day we are not a part of the eurozone," he added, referring to the crisis-ridden single currency bloc. Milanovic's centre-left government hopes that EU entry will attract badly needed foreign investment and boost the economy with 11.7 billion euros ($15 billion) of potential financial aid. Its tourism-oriented economy has been either in recession or stagnant for the past four years, while unemployment stands at around 20 percent. The country's per capita gross domestic product is 39 percent below the EU average, with only Romania and Bulgaria lagging behind, the bloc's figures show. Zagreb has aspired to join the EU club ever since it proclaimed independence from the former Yugoslavia, a move that sparked the bloody 1991-1995 war against rebel Serbs backed by Belgrade. In a toast at the official dinner on Sunday President Ivo Josipovic described the EU accession as the "end of one stage in Croatia's history and the beginning of a new, European age for us." "The moment of Croatia's accession to the EU is a time of many doubts and questioning. In Croatia also there are similar dilemmas," Josipovic said in a reference to the eurozone debt crisis. But he insisted that Croatia was convinced "that the EU project is a project of the future." Croatia will become the first new member since Bulgaria and Romania joined in 2007. In addition to agreeing to open accession talks with Serbia on Friday, EU leaders also gave the green light last week to preliminary discussions with Kosovo, the first step on the long path to Brussels.