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Croatians went to the polls on Sunday in a nationwide referendum on EU membership, a vote that political leaders here see as key for the future of the Balkan country 20 years after independence.

Surveys show that some 60 percent of Croatians back entry into the European Union, paving the way for the former Yugoslav republic to formally join the bloc in 2013.

Polling stations opened across the country at 0600 GMT and will close 12 hours later at 1800 GMT. The electoral commission is to release the first partial results at 1900 GMT.

Croatia's leaders say that entering the bloc has been a strategic goal since Zagreb won its hard-fought independence following the 1991-95 war with rebel Serbs and will confirm a break from the volatile Balkans region.

The importance of EU membership is one of the few issues on which all major Croatian political parties agree.

Of the six former Yugoslav republics Slovenia is the only EU member, although Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Bosnia all have aspirations.

"I will vote for the EU since I believe it is good for Croatia, it offers an opportunity ... for the Croatian people to prove themselves," Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic told national television on the eve of the vote.

President Ivo Josipovic labelled the vote's outcome "one of the most important decisions in Croatia's history".

The referendum needs a simple majority regardless of the turnout.

In the 1990s, when other post-communist countries in central and eastern Europe were strengthening their democracies and paving their way towards EU integration, Croatia's EU aspirations were halted by the 1991-95 war and its legacy.

It was not until 2000 that the election of pro-European rulers enabled Croatia's transformation into a genuine parliamentary democracy eligible for EU candidate status.

However long and often thorny accession talks that opened in 2005 dampened enthusiasm for the EU.

Many of the criteria imposed by Brussels, notably full cooperation with the UN war crimes court, were seen as a form of blackmail and going against national interests.

In a surprise move late Saturday former general Ante Gotovina, whose flight from the UN tribunal hampered Croatia's EU bid, urged citizens to cast a 'yes' vote. Gotovina, still seen as a national hero by many here, is held in the prison of The Hague-based court that sentenced him to 24 years. His conviction in 2011 sparked a surge of anti-European sentiment in Croatia.

The current economic crisis within the bloc has further eroded EU support here, so for many Croatians Sunday's vote will be a pragmatic one.

"I will vote 'yes' since it's the lesser of two evils. I have no illusions, but we are too small to remain outside," said Anita Markovic, a 22-year-old student.

Croatia signed an EU accession treaty in December that paved the way for its entry to the bloc next year.

Apart from clearing the referendum in Croatia, the treaty will also have to be ratified by all current member states of the EU.

Croatian politicians have repeatedly warned that EU membership would not automatically resolve all economic woes but stress it would give the country new opportunities.

For the past three years Croatia, whose economy relies on Adriatic tourism, has been mostly in recession.

The national bank forecasts 2011 growth at a modest 0.4 percent but sees the economy shrinking by 0.2 percent this year. Unemployment is almost 18 percent.

All the main political leaders insist that a 'no' vote would be irresponsible and result in downgrading of the country's credit rating.

EU opponents are mostly concerned at perceived loss of sovereignty and national identity in the country of 4.2 million while many fear economic impacts on their everyday life.

However, two anti-EU gatherings held in the capital Zagreb over the past two weeks managed to gather only a few hundred, mainly elderly people each.

AFP