Pope Benedict XVI gave strong backing to Croatia’s bid to join the European Union as he arrived in the Balkan nation today.

Thousands of Croatian protesters accused the government of economic hardship and widespread corruption during a march on a bankrupt factory in the capital, Zagreb.

Legal scholar and left-wing opposition candidate Ivo Josipovic won Croatia’s presidential election, upsetting the capital’s popular mayor and confirming the country’s pro-Western course.

A Social Democrat and Zagreb’s mayor will go head-to-head in the race to become Croatia’s president.