The United States congratulates the Republic of Croatia on its recent accession to membership in the European Union. It “is an occasion to honor Croatia and the many achievements of its citizens,” said Secretary of State John Kerry.
美国对克罗地亚最近正式加入欧盟成员国表示祝贺。美国国务卿约翰·克里（John Kerry）表示，“这是向克罗地亚及其公民取得的众多成就致敬的一个机会。”
Eighteen years after the end of the Balkan civil war, Croatia is, after Slovenia, only the second of the seven countries that emerged from the break-up of Yugoslavia to join the European Union, or EU. Qualifying for membership was not easy, nor was it painless for this country of just over 4 million people.
巴尔干内战结束18年后，克罗地亚成为继斯洛文尼亚之后加入欧盟，也是南斯拉夫分裂后出现的7个国家中第二个加入欧盟的国家。取得欧盟会员资格并不容易，对这个4千万人口的国家来说也并非没有阵痛。
Croatia is largely dependent on the tourist industry, a difficult proposition in the midst of a global recession, and has an unemployment rate that fluctuates around 20 percent. Still, the country and the politicians from all parties made a commitment to harmonize Croatia’s standards to those of the EU, something that involved much hard work.
克罗地亚很大程度上依赖旅游业，这全球衰退背景下是个难题。克罗地亚的失业率在20%上下波动。尽管如此，克罗地亚及所有党派政治家承诺使克罗地亚的标准和欧盟相一致，这需要付出巨大努力。
Croatia reformed its judicial system to be more transparent and accountable; cracked down on corruption and organized crime; strengthened the protection of minorities and human rights; and resolved a border dispute with Slovenia. Croatia stopped subsidizing its shipbuilding industry, and changed its laws to allow foreign nationals to purchase Croatian property. And it extradited several citizens accused of war crimes to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.
克罗地亚改革了司法体系使其更加透明负责，并打击腐败和有组织犯罪，加强保护少数民族和人权，解决了和斯洛文尼亚的边界争端。克罗地亚停止了补贴造船业，并修改法律允许外国公民购买克罗地亚不动产。并向前南斯拉夫问题国际刑事法庭引渡了一些被指控犯有战争罪的公民。
It has not been easy, but in the long run, Croatia and its people will reap the benefits. Membership qualifies Croatia for EU financial assistance, including for infrastructure improvement; and restriction-free trade throughout the EU, already Croatia’s biggest trading partner.
这并不容易，但从长远看，克罗地亚及其人民将从中受益。欧盟会员资格使得克罗地亚有资格获得欧盟财政援助，其中包括改善基础设施，以及同整个欧盟展开自由贸易。欧盟已经成为克罗地亚的最大贸易伙伴。
“On behalf of President [Barack] Obama and the people of the United States, I am delighted to send best wishes to the people of the Republic of Croatia,” said Secretary of State John Kerry.
美国国务卿克里说，“我代表奥巴马总统和美国人民，向克罗地亚共和国人民送上最美好的祝福。”
“Croatia has worked diligently for over a decade and over many administrations towards the goal of European Union membership. I know it was not always an easy path. I commend Croatia’s perseverance and the courage of your leaders and citizens as Croatia has rebuilt its economy and government structures to meet European Union standards,” he said.
他还说，“克罗地亚朝着欧盟成员国目标辛勤工作了十来年，历经磨练。我知道这不太容易。我赞扬克罗地亚的毅力，以及克罗地亚领导人和人民的勇气，因为克罗地亚已经重建其经济和政府结构以达到欧盟标准。”
“The United States looks forward to strengthening the ties between our peoples as we build together a future of peace and progress.”
“美国期待加强两国人民之间的联系，共建和平进步的未来。”
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