"The monitoring report is exceptionally important because we expect it to point out the areas where additional efforts are required - but I also expect and hope that it will contain clear instructions as to which areas require additional efforts so that the overall report in October contains no objections whatsoever," Pusic told reporters after launching the first copy of the Official Journal of the European Union in Croatian.

Asked about the report which is expected to be released on Tuesday, Pusic said the document would focus on three policy chapters on which Croatia was working the most - Judiciary and Fundamental Rights (23), Competition Policy (8) and Justice, Freedom and Security (24).

The most important policy chapter is most definitely "Judiciary and Fundamental Rights", because Croatia gained the most from that chapter and we will continue to work on it indefinitely, the minister said.

The shipbuilding industry will most probably be the only topic mentioned as part of the Competition Policy chapter. "The government has a clear programme for that. This is something that should have been done in 2006. It still needs to be done and it will be resolved," Pusic said.

Policy chapter 24 is important because it is part of preparations for entering the Schengen area, Pusic said.

She added she expected another 5-6 countries to ratify Croatia's Treaty of Accession with the EU by the summer. Pusic told reporters she was informed yesterday that the Lithuanian parliament supported the ratification of the treaty in the first reading, but that the procedure was not done yet.