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Deutsche Welle

At the signing ceremony in Stockholm on Wednesday, the EU commissioner for enlargement, Olli Rehn, called it "a very good day for Slovenia and Croatia, and the European Union."

The European Union has been waiting for the dispute between an existing member and a candidate member to be resolved before it proceeds with Croatian accession, although the country is already well on the way to finalizing conditions.

The deal allows international arbitration over the Bay of Piran in the North Adriatic Sea, which has been claimed by both countries since they declared independence during the break-up of Yugoslavia in 1991.

Access to the sea

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:  Piran Bay: the disputed waters
Italy controls one edge of the bay and Croatia the other. Slovenia's entire coastline, including the fishing town of Piran, is in the middle, but it has no access to the sea.

The arbitration tribunal's ruling will be binding for both countries and will secure Slovenian access to international shipping waters. Slovenia agreed not to block Croatia joining the EU and that arbitration will only start after Croatia has concluded its negotiations.

At the signing ceremony, Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor told his Croatian counterpart Jadraka Kosor: "The trust between the two of us was of crucial significance. We overcame the obstacles on the border issues which were too high to reach for negotiations before us."

mll/AFP/dpa//Reuters
Editor: Nancy Isenson