Slovenian Foreign Ministry spokesman Milan Balazic said on Thursday Slovenia was not blocking two policy chapters within Croatia's European Union membership talks.
Balazic said that the negotiations between the EU and Croatia were under way adding that Slovenia "wants to protect what is its interest" in that process.
"There is no blockade of the accession negotiations," Balazic told the Slovenian news agency (STA), denying speculations in some Croatian media that quoted unnamed diplomatic sources as saying that Slovenia was obstructing the progress in Fisheries, and the Foreign, Security and Defence Policy negotiating areas which is why there is fear that Croatia will close only one policy chapter at the accession conference set for 22 December.
Slovenia wants to protect its interests within those negotiations, and "it is an entirely natural position of every EU member state. Therefore one cannot talk about the blockade but about a negotiating process with its course," the spokesman said.
"Croatia should focus more on its problems and stop blaming others," Balazic said adding that it was Slovenia's interest to see Croatia enter the EU as soon as possible.
