Slovenia's presidency of the EU intends to propose conclusions that Croatia has met all the conditions to access the Schengen Area which should be adopted by the EU's interior ministers at a meeting on 9 and 10 December, a diplomatic source said on Thursday.

Ahead of a meeting of the Home Affairs Council, a draft conclusion will be put to the Permanent Representatives Committee (Coreper).

The conclusion on the fulfillment of all the conditions to implement the Schengen Area acquis in Croatia will formally confirm the completion of the evaluation.

Conclusions are the first step in the decision-making process to access the Schengen Area. In parallel to that, the Council is working on a draft decision to accept Croatia and that should be on the agenda during the French presidency which begins on 1 January 2022.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who visited Zagreb on Thursday, explicitly expressed support to Croatia.

Croatia is ready for Schengen. It has met the accession criteria, confirming that it is firmly organised and capable of protecting its own borders, which are also the external borders of the European Union, against smuggling, Macron said at a news conference he held with Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic in Zagreb.

A final decision needs to be approved by the European Parliament. This has an advisory nature and the Council can but does not have to adopt the parliament’s opinion. All 26 member states have to agree on the decision on accession to the Schengen Area.

The entire process could take about six months.