ČR could stall Croatia's entry to the EU

The Social Democratic (ČSSD) and Communist (KSČM) parties are threatening to block Croatia's entrance to the European Union if the accession treaty vote is connected to a Czech opt-out of a key portion of the Lisbon Treaty that was promised to President Václav Klaus prior to his signing of the agreement in 2009.

Klaus was the last leader of the EU member states to sign the Lisbon Treaty and the vocal Eurosceptic only agreed to do so after the EU granted his demand that the Czech Republic be able to opt out of the treaty's Charter of Fundamental Rights. He continues to maintain that the charter would allow Germans to reclaim property confiscated from the Sudeten areas near the Czech-German border after World War II as part of the Beneš Decrees. Those measures saw the seizure of property of ethnic Germans, Hungarians, as well as Nazi collaborators. Only those who suffered under the Nazis were exempt from the decrees.

Prime Minister Petr Nečas has said he fully intends to submit the so-called "Czech Protocol" or "Klaus adendum" - the opt-out vote - to Parliament along with the Croatian accession treaty.

"It was ... a political agreement reached with the European Council that the Czech Protocol would be negotiated and adopted together with the next accession treaty, which is going to be the one with Croatia," said Vojtěch Belling, director general for European affairs for the Nečas government. "It is unimaginable that the European Council's conclusions would not be respected."

But the left-wing opposition parties say they will not vote in support of the opt-out, even if it means voting against Croatia's entry into the EU.

ČSSD has said their decision has nothing to do with any opposition to Croatia joining the EU, but is directed at Klaus, whom they believe is indulging a "nationalist fantasy" in his belief that the charter would result in loss of Czech property in the border regions.

"The [Lisbon Treaty charter] doesn't mean any weakening or threat of Czech position," said Lubomír Zaorálek (ČSSD), shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs, adding that the president acted alone in securing EU's promise of an opt-out. "The exception that Václav Klaus exacted in the Lisbon Treaty was never approved in Czech Parliament. The president didn't even try to get such a consent."

ČSSD, which has a majority in the Senate, the upper house of Parliament, could be in a position to force a compromise as the ratification of the amendments would require a qualified majority - three-fifths of MPs - in both houses. But the government is maintaining that it not only intends to simultaneously submit both amendments, but that doing so will not impede Croatia's accession to the EU in any way.

"It is inconceivable that the Czech Republic would block the accession of Croatia to the EU," Belling said. "[We] strongly favored an early and smooth accession, and there is no intention to change this. The government would under no circumstances allow taking Croatia hostage of this protocol."

Both Belling and a spokesman for the Foreign Affairs Ministry said there are no plans to discuss the situation with Croatian officials, who are currently celebrating the unofficial green light given to their accession during the June 23-24 EU Summit.

"There is no need to describe, in advance, the detailed course of our national approval procedures to other states, especially when some procedural questions have still not been resolved," Belling said. "In our view, the whole situation is being misunderstood."

Jack Buehrer can be reached at
jbuehrer@praguepost.com