Britain may huff and puff about leaving the European Union, but other nations are queuing up to join.
The latest new member to accede to the EU is Croatia.
The Balkan state will join the EU on July 1, 2013, amid fireworks and celebrations.
Other nations wanting to join include more former Yugoslav republic states.
Iceland has cold feet and has suspended membership talks, while the EU has put the brakes on Turkey’s application to join due to political unrest.
The talks were due to resume this month, but are now delayed until at least October 2013 after some nations, led by Germany, raised concerns over the way Turkey’s government is handling political protests.
Turkey and Croatia started membership talks in 2005, but the EU has stalled talks with Turkey over human rights and political issues.
Croatia profile
As the EU’s 28th state, Croatia will not immediately become part of the single currency or open border.
“We need to join to become part of a wider Europe,” said Croatia President Ivo Josipovic. “To Croatia, the union represents peace, trade and prosperity. And more than just economics, the European Union is also a cultural zone.”
So what should Europeans know about Croatia?
Sitting on the Mediterranean between the EU state of Slovenia and Bosnia, Croatia also borders Hungary to the north and Serbia to the east.
The capital is Zagreb. Other major cities include Split and Dubrovnik.
The population is around 4.3 million and falling.
In 2011, GDP was estimated at $81 billion and average GDP income per person was $14,457
Certainly, Croatia is not a rich nation, with average wages of just under $1,000 a month and 20% unemployment. The main industry is tourism – accounting for 20% of GDP.
Meanwhile, the European Commission has announced Latvia will join the single currency on January 1, 2014.
Latvia to join eurozone
Latvia won an economic and monetary affairs committee vote on Eurozone membership by 35 to one against, with two abstentions.
The poll followed a positive recommendation from the commission earlier in June 2013.
However, the vote was not without reservations from European politicians.
“Reforms must continue. The government needs to put right employment problems and tackle poverty,” said a report before the committee.
“Income also needs to be shared more equally.”
The report also revealed that Latvia’s banks are consider ‘sound’ but regulators need to better monitor deposits from offshore.
One concern for the committee is that Latvia imports most of the nation’s energy, and this policy makes the country and the economy dependent on external pricing.
