Swedish govt. sends to parliament bill ratifying Croatia's EU entry treaty

ZAGREB, Sept 20 (Hina) - The Swedish government sent to parliament on Thursday a bill on the ratification of Croatia's European Union Accession Treaty, the Swedish Embassy in Croatia said in a statement, adding that the bill reports on Croatia's work on reforms and the results of the accession negotiations.

After comprehensive work on reforms and a fundamental transformation of society, Croatia is ready to honour the EU acquis communautaire and become a member of the EU on 1 July 2013, the statement said.

Croatia's membership is not important only for Croatia but for the Balkan region and the whole Union as well, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said in a comment, adding that Croatia's EU entry was an important signal to the entire region.

Sweden was strongly involved during the negotiations on Croatia's accession. During Sweden's EU chairmanship in 2009, a watershed political success was achieved in the then halted negotiating process and the bilateral dispute between Croatia and Slovenia could be sent to an arbitral tribunal. That paved the way to the completion of Croatia's negotiations, said Bildt.