The European Commission will very likely not find any trace of a violation of EU law by Croatia, which Slovenia claims in its complaint to that body regarding the arbitration ruling, and if Ljubljana subsequently decides to go before the Court of the European Union, Zagreb will know how to respond, stated State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs Andreja Metelko-Zgombić in an interview for N1 television on Monday.
Slovenia has initiated proceedings before the European Commission in accordance with Article 259 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, claiming that Croatia, by not recognizing and implementing the arbitration decision of June 29, 2017, is violating EU law. This has formally initiated a procedure within the Commission that lasts three months, during which both parties must exchange written submissions and hold an oral hearing in the European Commission.
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Zagreb has submitted a written response to the complaint to the Commission, and the oral hearing between Croatia, Slovenia, and Brussels will take place on May 2. Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Marija Pejčinović Burić previously emphasized that this is a legal and expert discussion.
State Secretary Metelko-Zgombić expressed confidence in an interview for N1 television on Monday, ahead of that meeting, that the EC will not find any violations of EU law by Zagreb.
“We believe and trust that the European Commission, which is also conducting this procedure from a professional standpoint, will not find any trace of a violation of EU law by Croatia,” said the Secretary, adding that Slovenia thereafter has the option to decide to transfer the case to the Court of the European Union, and that in that case, “Croatia will know how to respond.”
“In the meantime, there will be elections in Slovenia, so we hope that after the formation of the government, quality discussions that have already begun and have yielded concrete proposals on how to move forward and resolve this open border issue of ours can continue,” concluded the Secretary.
