Croatia faces EU delay over war crimes manhunt

Barring a last-minute breakthrough, Croatia faces being told it cannot start EU membership talks this week as planned, because it is not fully cooperating in finding a fugitive war crimes suspect, diplomats say.

Croatia, hoping to be the second former Yugoslav republic to join the European Union as early as 2007, was told in December that it could in theory start talks with Brussels on March 17 -- this Thursday.

But that green light was conditional in providing "full cooperation" with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in a manhunt for fugitive general Ante Gotovina.

And the Hague-based court's chief prosecutor Carla Del Ponte -- whose views will provide an important input to the decision to be made by EU foreign ministers on Wednesday -- has made it clear she does not believe Croatia's repeated protestations that it does not know whether Gotovina is.

"Despite all public and private assurances from Zagreb, Ante Gotovina remains within reach of the Croatian authorities," she said in a letter to the EU's Luxembourg presidency last week.

Gotovina, a 48-year-old retired general, is considered a war hero by many Croatians but is wanted by the UN war crimes court for the alleged murder of at least 150 ethnic Serbs during the final stages of Croatia's 1991-95 war.

He is also accused of plundering Serbs' property during the war, during which Serb rebels opposed Croatia's breakaway from the former Yugoslavia.

Croatia leaders including President Stipe Mesic have travelled to Brussels in the last week to lobby the EU, stressing that they are already doing everything they can.

In the increasingly tense diplomatic standoff, much has been made of the exact meaning of "full cooperation" by Zagreb with the ICTY.

Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said last week that he could foresee a green light to start talks even if Gotovina is not actually handed to The Hague.

But any hopes generated in Zagreb by those comments were deflated later in the week when a "large majority" of EU states, in talks among high-level diplomats in Brussels, came out against starting talks as planned.

Only a small group of countries -- Austria, Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia's fellow ex-Yugoslav republic Slovenia -- back Croatia's bid. Under EU rules, a decision to start membership talks needs unanimous backing from all EU states.

Croatia, whose EU credentials have been boosted notably by a huge influx of European holidaymakers and second home owners in recent years, has warned that its EU entry is crucial in a still-fragile Balkan region.

Neighbouring Slovenia -- among 10 mostly ex-communist countries which joined the EU last year -- backs that argument. It notes that a poll this month showed that almost half of Croatians do not believe they will benefit from EU entry.

"It could change the political mood in Croatia and have negative effects on Slovenia and the neighbouring countries," Slovenia's Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel said on Friday.

The EU states' ambassadors will meet again in Brussels on Tuesday to prepare for the ministerial talks. Diplomats say they will agree a framework for the negotiations as a "sign of encouragement" to Zagreb.

But unless Gotovina -- whose supposed whereabouts in recent weeks has included everywhere from France to Patagonia -- makes a sudden reappearance, Zagreb will have to put its EU hopes on ice.

"Miracles exist, but it is very unlikely at the current time that negotiations will start" on March 17, said one Brussels diplomat.