摘要：In all the systems aspiring towards free trade it is of essence to reconcile this interest with the protection of other values; also, the member stets agree to certain restrictions of their regulatory autonomy for the system on the whole to strike an optimal balance among the relevant interests. In relatively heterogeneous systems such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), the members hold on to a significant portion of their regulatory autonomy in order to protect their values though this hampers the liberalization of trade. In relatively homogeneous systems, however, such as the European Union (EU), the members find it opportune to agree to tighter restrictions of their regulatory autonomy since thus they allow for increased trade without severely harming the other values. For Croatia it is good that the liberalization of trade and the restriction of regulatory autonomy have been gradual, occurring in four stages: the WTO membership, the Stabilization and Accession Agreement, negotiations on the EU membership and eventually the full EU membership.
关键词：regulatory autonomy; free movement of goods; free trade; European Union (EU); World Trade Organization (WTO); Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA)
