“Croatia is not a garden of roses, but it's definitely not Greece,” said Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic in an interview Sunday for the German FOCUS magazine.
Milanovic has rejected any comparison with the Greek situation in his country, in an attempt to reassure German citizens that Croatia’s expected accession to the European Union on 1 July will not be a “burden” for them and the economy.
“My message to the German taxpayers: we cost you nothing,” continued the prime minister, elaborating that his country has built its highways already long ago without German financial assistance. “On the contrary, come here, earn money with us,” called Milanovic. He gave Slovakia and Poland as an example where German taxpayers’ money “is involved in the form of infrastructure and regional EU funds.”
“Even if we collapse, which I'm sure we won't, that would be our, not the German tax payers' problem,” continued the prime minister.
Last but not least, Milanovic said that there was no reason to place work restrictions on low-skilled Croatian workers in Germany. “Croatians are not a threat to German employees,” said the PM, adding that his countrymen knew that Germany no longer had any big factories and that only skilled workers were needed.
Germany was the last the member state to ratify Croatia’s treaty in May. The authorities in Berlin waited for the latest report from the European Commission before moving towards the final step. The report came out in late March and concluded that Croatia is ready to join the union.
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