The head of the German-Croatian friendship group in the Bundestag, Horst Meierhofer, said in Zagreb on Tuesday there was no doubt that the German parliament would ratify Croatia's European Union accession treaty, and that the government and parliament in Berlin did not think that Croatia needed post-accession monitoring.
"No one serious in Germany doubts that the ratification of the Croatian accession treaty must be completed and that Croatia should become the EU's 28th member," the Croatian parliament quoted Meierhofer as saying.
He met with Speaker Josip Leko and congratulated Croatia on the hard and long EU accession process as well as on meeting the requirements, parliament said in a statement, adding that he was especially impressed by the treatment of national minorities and how they are represented in the Croatian parliament.
Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark are the only EU members which have yet to ratify Croatia's accession treaty so that it can join the Union on July 1.
Leko said Croatia appreciated Germany's constant support, ever since the declaration of independence, and thanked it for the financial aid, advice and experience shared.
"We don't think the process of building Croatia ends with EU accession because we are interested in high democratic standards as well as economic development on stable grounds and based on our own abilities," said Leko.
He said the Treaty of Lisbon increased optimism in the wake of complaints about the EU's democratic deficit, informing the German delegation that Croatia was seeking solutions, on the relationship between the government and parliament after EU accession, that would suit Croatia's interest, size and influence.
