Slovenia Gives up on Veto on Croatia’s Protocol

The final ratification of Croatia’s protocol in now only threatened by a possible referendum if 2,500 signatures are collected.

ZAGREB, CROATIA – The Slovenian State Council, a sort of upper house of the Slovenian parliament with only advisory functions, has given up on setting a veto on Croatia’s accession protocol for NATO. 

The committee on international relations and European issues of Slovenia’s State Council adopted with a large majority the conclusion that the reason for Croatia’s entry into NATO was more important than reasons against its entry, the Council’s chairman, Blaz Kavcic, said.

In line with its powers, the State Council could have set a suspension veto on Croatia’s entry into NATO or ask that a referendum be carried out about it.

After viewing over documents Croatia submitted to NATO, members of the Council became convinced that “there is no justifiable claim that Croatia has prejudged the border to its advantage”, Kavcic told Ljubljana’s daily “Dnevnik”.

The final ratification of Croatia’s accession protocol is now under threat only by an announcement by Slovenia’s People’s party and nationalists that they would collect enough signatures by Monday to submit a request for a referendum to block the parliament’s decision on the ratification of Croatia’s accession protocol. By Monday they should collect 2,500 signatures to block the parliamentary decision on the ratification and then, within 35 days, another 40,000 signatures for the referendum to take place.