Croatia to join the EU in 2013

CROATIA has signed a treaty to join the EU in 2013, a bittersweet milestone as the bloc prepared to take on a sluggish economy it will have to drag along at the time of its worst crisis.

Meanwhile, EU leaders said they were postponing a decision about whether to make Serbia a candidate for membership.

The EU hailed Croatia’s signing as a historic day for the ex-communist country, but the Croatian government’s decade-long effort could turn out to have been a giant waste of time if the union’s 27 countries fail to solve a financial crisis that threatens to unravel the 53-year-old project to integrate the continent.

Croatia has been hit hard by the global downturn. It had been hoping EU membership would boost its economy. Unemployment stands at about 17% and its credit rating was reduced a year ago by Standard & Poor’s.

EU Council president Herman Van Rompuy said Croatia would be an “active observer” in EU fora until it becomes a full member 18 months from now. Its membership must still be ratified by the legislatures of member nations.

The entry talks lasted seven years and were held up due to territorial disputes with Slovenia.

A decision on Serbia will be made in February, and could then be approved at a summit in March.