Croatia celebrates its EU membership

Published: Sunday, June 30, 2013 at 5:45 p.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, June 30, 2013 at 5:45 p.m.

 

ZAGREB, Croatia - Fireworks lit the sky and festive crowds gathered on the streets to mark Croatia's entry Monday into the European Union, a major milestone some 20 years after the country won independence in a bloody civil war that shook the continent.

Croatia became the 28th EU member, the bloc's first addition since Bulgaria and Romania joined in 2007. Though enthusiasm for the country's achievement has been dampened by the EU's financial turmoil, it is a historic turning point for the small Balkan nation of 4.2 million, which endured years of carnage after declaring independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991.

"As midnight struck, your country crossed an important threshold," European Council President Herman Van Rompuy told the cheering crowd in Croatia's capital Zagreb. "It will change the life of this nation for good."

"In the history of a nation, there are a few events such as this one," Croatia's President Ivo J

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osipovic said. "The accession of Croatia to the European Union is confirmation that each one of us belongs to the European democratic and cultural set of values."

A decade back, when Croatia started negotiating the entry, the once war-torn country was overjoyed at the prospect of becoming a member of the European elite. With the EU in deep financial trouble and Croatia's own economy in recession for five consecutive years, the excitement has dimmed.

Thousands of people waving small EU and Croatian flags nonetheless joined celebrations across the country, including in Zagreb's main square. There, artists performed for some 100 visiting foreign leaders until midnight when big fireworks and the singing of Beethoven's Ode to Joy - EU's anthem - marked the official entry into the bloc.

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