The European Council will this week signal that Croatia's accession talks are close to being concluded if the country continues to fulfil the remaining criteria.
The EU candidate country is expecting the extradition of former prime minister Ivo Sanader from Austria, to face charges for corruption.
WAZ.EUobserver has seen draft conclusions for the meeting which show what member states will adopt at their foreign ministers meeting in Brussels, as part of an "enlargement package".
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