The leaders of the European Union (EU) member states will hold a serious discussion on recent developments in Southeast Europe at their next summit, said Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic.

“I signaled to my colleagues that we need to have a serious discussion at the next European Council meeting about the situation in our neighborhood, given recent developments in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, which was accepted,” Plenkovic said after the conclusion of the EU summit in Brussels, Hina reported.

Asked by reporters whether Croatia had pushed for a stronger wording on the Western Balkans in the preparatory meetings at lower levels, Plenkovic said that Croatia and Slovenia had done so, but that it involved “basically just two sentences” and was therefore “totally unimportant”.

He added that a different wording of the conclusions on the Western Balkans was not even discussed at Thursday’s meeting because “it was not realistic given the packed agenda.”

The European Council conclusions merely state that “the situation in the Western Balkans was discussed and that the Council (ministerial level) is invited to address the issue in April,” Hina reported.

The Croatian daily Vecernji List reported that Budapest has once again positioned itself as a defender of the interests of Belgrade and Banja Luka in Brussels.

It quoted Plenkovic as saying that he wanted to take the opportunity at the European Council meeting to draw attention the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, and to try to attract the European leaders’ focus.

According to information obtained by Vecernji List from two European diplomats, Croatia attempted to include a statement in the European Council conclusions expressing concern that the troubling events in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia threaten to destabilize the broader Western Balkans region. The daily reported that Hungary prevented this formulation from being included as a common position of all 27 member states. As the conclusions of the European Council are adopted by consensus, and since Hungary was against Croatia’s proposed wording, the outcome was that the conclusions merely noted that the Council had discussed the situation in the Western Balkans and that “this topic” would be addressed at the April meeting, Vecernji List reported.