"Croatia and 27 EU leaders on Friday (9 December) signed the Balkan country's accession treaty amid fears of an EU break-up and solemn recollections of European wars. President Ivo Josipovic and outgoing Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor described EU membership as the culmination of Croatia's struggle for independence from Serbia. The war - just 16 years ago - claimed 20,000 lives and coined the phrase "ethnic cleansing." (Quoted from article)