Croatia to sign EU treaty at the end of 2011

Croatia is on track to sign its European Union accession treaty in late November or early December and become the bloc’s 28th member in 2013, Poland, holder of the EU’s rotating presidency announced.

Zagreb wrapped up accession preparations last month, paving the way for it to become the second Western Balkan state after Slovenia to join the EU, more than two decades after the breakup of ex-Yugoslavia.

“We only have technicalities left. We hope in September we will meet in Zagreb and I will be able to hand over the final version of the treaty,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.

“We expect the end of November or start of December to be the time when we are ready to sign it,” Tusk said.