Croatia rings in New Year as fully integrated EU member

By SABINA NIKSIC
Associated Press

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — At the stroke of midnight on Saturday, Croatia switched to the shared European currency, the euro, and removed dozens of border checkpoints to join the world’s largest passport-free travel area, completing a dream conceived 30 years ago when it fought a war for independence from Yugoslavia in which 20,000 people were killed and hundreds of thousands displaced. Joining Europe’s ID-check-free Schengen zone means Croats will now be among almost 420 million people who are free to roam its 27 member countries without passports for work or leisure. Adopting the euro will likewise offer Croatia the benefits stemming from deeper financial ties with the currency’s 19 other users and with the European Central Bank.