Is Croatia ready to join the EU?

20 January 2012 Last updated at 03:00 ET Help

Croatians are expected to vote in favour of joining the EU in Sunday's referendum, despite some misgivings about a loss of sovereignty.

Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic has told parliament the country has no better option than the EU now.

If the referendum comes out in favour of joining, Croatia is expected to become a full EU member state in 2013.

The EU's Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule told the BBC's Chris Morris he believed Croatia would be "ready to fully assume the responsibility of the membership" by that point.

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