Slovenia to decide on referendum

Slovenian officials hope the proposer of a referendum on Croatia’s NATO accession, the Slovenian People’s Party (SSN), will stop collecting signatures. Slovenian Parliamentary Speaker Pavel Gantar will today set a deadline by which the non-parliamentary party must gather the 40,000 signatures needed to hold a retrospective referendum on Croatia’s EU accession. He hopes the SSN will reconsider, which it must do by 12:00 CET today. Slovenia to decide on referendum At the same time, during this morning’s emergency session, the Slovenian parliament adopted a declaration that it was protecting its national interests during Croatia’s NATO accession process. Slovenia warned that it would repel attempts to “violate Slovenian’s territorial unity and change the border status on land and sea established on June 25, 1991.” In the declaration, the Slovenian parliament added that the border between Slovenia and Croatia was not final or officially agreed to, and that the governments of both countries would respect the border status as it was at the time of the signing of the joint Brioni Declaration. The declaration also states that Croatia, despite the agreement, did not respect that status on the day of its own independence, “adopting legal acts that changed the territorial status quo, thereby attempting to prejudge the solution to the border issue.” After the declaration was adopted, one of the proposers of the referendum, The Institute for June 25, withdrew its calls for a referendum, while the SSN stated its intentions to continue collecting signatures. By law, they will have 35 days in which to do that, from a date set by the speaker, something that could certainly imperil the time frame already set by NATO. Croatia needs to submit its access protocol in Washington by March 23, in order for both Croatia and Albania to attend NATO’s April 14 summit as fully-fledged members. According to Slovenian media, Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor will attempt to convince the SSN to stop pushing for the referendum, which the majority of Slovenian politicians, he says, consider damaging to Slovenian interests. Croatia dismisses Slovenian declaration Croatia has dismissed claims in a Slovenian parliamentary declaration yesterday that it is protecting its national interests during Croatia’s NATO accession process. The declaration states that Slovenia, before proclaiming its independence, had access to open waters and that it controlled other controversial points along the border with Croatia. The Croatian Foreign Ministry has issued a statement dismissing the claims made in the declaration, calling them “untrue, legally unfounded and without any kind of international legal weight.” “This kind of declaration disproves the Slovenian side’s claims that Croatia is the one who prejudged the border with Slovenia,” it said. “Moreover, that declaration is a contravention of the status of state borders as they were on June 25, 1991, as well as of founding documents adopted by both sides on the day of its independence, and also the Brioni Declaration on Avoiding Incidents that the declaration refers to,” added the statement. The Croatian Ministry said the Slovenian parliament’s opinions left no window for resolving the Croatian-Slovenian border dispute through constructive dialogue, which reinforced the validity of Croatia’s efforts to bring the matter before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague for resolution, as was agreed in 2007 by the Croatian and Slovenian prime ministers. According to the statement, the Croatian government will conduct a detailed analysis of the Slovenian parliament’s declaration, after which the parliament will send a proposal for further action on the matter. The primary purpose of the declaration was to satisfy the right-wing Slovenian Nationalist Party in the Slovenian parliament, which sought to block ratification of Croatia’s accession protocol to NATO and demanded a referendum on Croatia’s membership. Despite the declaration, the possibility of holding a referendum was not completely dismissed, as the marginal, non-parliamentary Slovenian People’s Party, which has the principled support of the Slovenian Nationalist Party, still insists on it.

Slovenia to decide on referendum

At the same time, during this morning’s emergency session, the Slovenian parliament adopted a declaration that it was protecting its national interests during Croatia’s NATO accession process. Slovenia warned that it would repel attempts to “violate Slovenian’s territorial unity and change the border status on land and sea established on June 25, 1991.”

In the declaration, the Slovenian parliament added that the border between Slovenia and Croatia was not final or officially agreed to, and that the governments of both countries would respect the border status as it was at the time of the signing of the joint Brioni Declaration.

The declaration also states that Croatia, despite the agreement, did not respect that status on the day of its own independence, “adopting legal acts that changed the territorial status quo, thereby attempting to prejudge the solution to the border issue.”

After the declaration was adopted, one of the proposers of the referendum, The Institute for June 25, withdrew its calls for a referendum, while the SSN stated its intentions to continue collecting signatures.

By law, they will have 35 days in which to do that, from a date set by the speaker, something that could certainly imperil the time frame already set by NATO.

Croatia needs to submit its access protocol in Washington by March 23, in order for both Croatia and Albania to attend NATO’s April 14 summit as fully-fledged members.

According to Slovenian media, Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor will attempt to convince the SSN to stop pushing for the referendum, which the majority of Slovenian politicians, he says, consider damaging to Slovenian interests.

Croatia dismisses Slovenian declaration

Croatia has dismissed claims in a Slovenian parliamentary declaration yesterday that it is protecting its national interests during Croatia’s NATO accession process.

The declaration states that Slovenia, before proclaiming its independence, had access to open waters and that it controlled other controversial points along the border with Croatia. The Croatian Foreign Ministry has issued a statement dismissing the claims made in the declaration, calling them “untrue, legally unfounded and without any kind of international legal weight.”

“This kind of declaration disproves the Slovenian side’s claims that Croatia is the one who prejudged the border with Slovenia,” it said.

“Moreover, that declaration is a contravention of the status of state borders as they were on June 25, 1991, as well as of founding documents adopted by both sides on the day of its independence, and also the Brioni Declaration on Avoiding Incidents that the declaration refers to,” added the statement.

The Croatian Ministry said the Slovenian parliament’s opinions left no window for resolving the Croatian-Slovenian border dispute through constructive dialogue, which reinforced the validity of Croatia’s efforts to bring the matter before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague for resolution, as was agreed in 2007 by the Croatian and Slovenian prime ministers.

According to the statement, the Croatian government will conduct a detailed analysis of the Slovenian parliament’s declaration, after which the parliament will send a proposal for further action on the matter.

The primary purpose of the declaration was to satisfy the right-wing Slovenian Nationalist Party in the Slovenian parliament, which sought to block ratification of Croatia’s accession protocol to NATO and demanded a referendum on Croatia’s membership.

Despite the declaration, the possibility of holding a referendum was not completely dismissed, as the marginal, non-parliamentary Slovenian People’s Party, which has the principled support of the Slovenian Nationalist Party, still insists on it.