European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said on Thursday that Croatia should become a full Schengen member and that the Commission was finalising its assessment.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic met Juncker in Brussels and they talked about Croatia’s Schengen entry, a law on the development of the eastern Croatian town of Vukovar, Croatia’s preparations for chairing the Council of the EU next year, and the EU budget for the next seven years.

The Commission said after the meeting that Juncker reiterated the Commission’s position that Croatia should become a full Schengen member and that the Commission was finalising its assessment.

In mid-October, the Commission should adopt a report on Croatia’s compliance with the Schengen entry criteria. A positive assessment from the Commission is not enough for joining as the assessment is only about technical readiness. The final decision is made by all member states.

The Commission also said that Juncker and Plenkovic also talked about possible support measures for Vukovar.

Both officials expressed the wish that negotiations on the next EU budget be concluded swiftly, and Juncker thanked Croatia for its constructive role in the negotiations, the press release said.

If the negotiations on the multiannual financial framework are not concluded by the end of this year, Croatia will have to work on this issue as it chairs the Council of the EU in the first half of 2020.