First Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Karamarko of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) said in Rijeka on Thursday that Croatia would not obstruct Serbia's efforts in its European Union accession because Zagreb wanted to develop good relations with the neighbors.
He said Croatia also wanted the EU borders to be pushed eastwards, including the EU accession of Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, but that in doing so the standards imposed by the EU must be met, Hina news agency reports.
"Serbia must meet some of the standards imposed by the EU and which it should adopt through painstaking negotiations. Everything depends on Serbia," he told the press.
"Serbia can't play the role of a mini-Hague," he said, referring to the UN war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, when asked if Chapter 23, on the judiciary and fundamental rights, could be the first hurdle in the Serbia-EU accession negotiations.