Accesion negotiations among EU and Croatia have moved one great step forward thanks to a a provisional agreemet on free movement of goods

On 19 April accession negotiations between the European Union and Croatia have moved on to a provisional agreement on free movement of goods, which is key for the internal market to bring down barriers, create more jobs and increase overall prosperity.

The EU noted that the requirements of the closing benchmarks are considered fulfilled and that, at this stage, this chapter does not require further negotiations. Since the start of the negotiations in 2005, thirty chapters have been opened, of which eighteen have been provisionally closed.

Croatia, the Balkan nation of 4.4 million was on track to become the 28th EU country in 2011. But a border dispute with EU member Slovenia stalled talks for more than a year. The negotiations resumed recently after the two countries agreed on a procedure for resolving the dispute.

In 2008, the European Commission published a strategy paper on enlargement which already provided that "If Croatia meets the necessary requirements at the end of 2009, it could reach the final stage of accession negotiations", a process that has been delayed by the country's need to combat corruption and organized crime.