EUobserver.com

EUOBSERVER / WEEKLY AGENDA (6 - 13 April) – This week the European Parliament will vote on reports assessing Croatia and Macedonia's progress towards the EU.

The vote will take place on Wednesday (9 April) and is likely to be followed closely after NATO last week offered Zagreb membership of the Alliance, but failed to do the same for Macedonia due to a 17-year-old Greek-Macedonian name row.

Several observers have suggested that the NATO setback will also be negative for the ex-Yugoslav country's EU integration. Croatia on the other hand is hoping the green light it got for joining the military alliance will have a positive impact on its EU aspirations.

Croatia is expected to become the EU's 28th member state by 2011. Macedonia is a candidate country, but has not yet been given a date for starting accession negotiations.

Also on Wednesday, MEPs are expected to approve the new EU health commissioner from Cyprus, Androula Vassiliou, who replaced Markos Kyprianou last month after he went back home to become the country's foreign minister following a general election.

The following day (10 April), Euro-deputies are to table a motion for a resolution on Tibet, following the crackdown by Chinese authorities.

Also on Thursday, a group of MEPs will discuss the prospects for setting up a Europe-wide alert system for cases of child abduction. The discussion coincides with the tabling of a draft declaration on emergency cooperation in recovering missing children. Kate and Gerry McCann, parents of Madeleine, who went missing in Portugal last year will also be present at the debate.

On Tuesday (8 April) MEPs from the civil liberties committee will hold a debate with EU transport commissioner Jacques Barrot on border controls, migration policies and security in transports, while MEPs of the industry, research and energy committee will have a hearing with EU enterprise and industry commissioner Gunter Verheugen.

Before that, Eurogroup president Jean-Claude Juncker will speak in the economic and monetary affairs committee on Monday (7 April), while on the same day MEPs will meet representatives of national parliaments for a roundtable discussion on terrorism and on including public provocation to commit terrorist offences, recruitment and training for terrorism, in a revision of a framework decision on fighting terrorism.

EU transport and energy ministers will meet in Luxembourg to examine proposals on road transport – including common rules for access to the international road haulage market, or for access to the market for coach and bus services.

For its part, the European Commission will on Wednesday present a communication on its progress towards attainment of the so-called millennium development goals, which 189 UN states agreed to reach by 2015.

The goals include eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, achieving universal primary education, promoting gender equality, reducing child mortality and ensuring environmental stability.

And at the end of the week, Italians will vote to choose a new government after centre-left leader Romano Prodi lost a vote of confidence in the Italian senate and resigned as prime minister on 24 January.

Polls currently put the centre-right opposition leader and media tycoon, Silvio Berlusconi, who has already been prime minister twice, well ahead of his opponent, Walter Veltroni.

The elections will take place on 13 and 14 April.

This WEEK in the European Union