In an interview for the Austrian news agency APA, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt was very careful with dates for the admission of new members - Croatia and Iceland - to the European Union.
Iceland has several more years to EU membership, and Croatia is a little ahead of Iceland, so the two countries don't necessarily have to join the bloc together, Bildt said.
It would be smart not to firmly commit to dates, he said, adding, however, that it was also possible for Iceland to enter the bloc before Croatia.
Bildt said he did not believe that Iceland's EU admission could be halted at a referendum, citing the examples of Sweden, Finland and Austria where the public opinion towards the EU changed for the positive ahead of the vote.
