Milanovic made the statement when asked by reporters if he was afraid that Croatians would vote 'No' to the country's EU accession.

Asked if he felt any Euroscepticism, he said that there was no reason for it, but that he did feel a normal amount of scepticism towards everything, but also optimism with regard to most things.

"You have to have optimism and faith in the future," the PM said.

Asked what benefits he expected from EU accession as a citizen, he said that as Prime Minister he believed in the EU and did not view Croatia's membership through the prism of how he personally could benefit from it.

He said that if he had been asked the same question ten years ago, he would have said that those benefits primarily referred to opportunity for development and progress, for making the most of the country's potential, both in terms of natural and human resources.