ZAGREB, 20 July 2022 - The international credit rating agency Moody's has raised the long-term credit rating of the City of Zagreb and the Zagreb Holding multi-utility conglomerate by two notches, from Ba1 to Baa2, that is from a speculative to an investment grade, with a stable outlook, the City of Zagreb said on Wednesday.

"We are glad that Moody's has recognised the financial stabilisation not only in the City of Zagreb but also the restructuring of Zagreb Holding, which was necessary for the City of Zagreb and Zagreb Holding to withstand new challenges caused by global circumstances," Zagreb Mayor Tomislav Tomašević said, commenting on the upgrade of the rating.

After the decision to raise Croatia's credit rating, the agency expects the upgrade of the rating will positively affect the City of Zagreb and Zagreb Holding following the introduction of the euro, having in mind the strategic position of Zagreb within Croatia. A stable outlook related to the credit rating of the City reflects its financial stabilisation and a medium-term reduction in debt burden, the City said.

Moody's says that Zagreb's Baa2 rating reflects its large and diverse local economy, which contributes to a tax revenue base with low volatility and a positive growth trend. It also noted that the debt of some of the City-owned companies would continue to decline in the medium term thanks to better financial results.

The agency stated that Zagreb's solid institutions and its governance strength are reflected in a governance issuer profile score that is neutral to low. The City's high credibility contributes to this, as it manages its operations using prudent financial planning, which allows for multi-year forecasting of key trends, the press release reads.

For more news about Croatia, click here.

July 20, 2022 - From the Golden Valley to the easternmost vineyard in Ilok, a 'Wine Tour de Slavonia' with Mirena Bagur and Winfried Burke.

With Graševina representing one out every four vines in Croatia and being the most produced wine in Croatia, it felt appropriate to celebrate it by introducing influencing guests from the US to the Graševina Festival in Osijek, where several Croatian organizations hosted the conference to discuss the past, present, and future of the variety. 

Hence, we decided to “Head on East Croatia,” the cleverly designed marketing campaign by Slavonia Travel, to truly enjoy and explore all the gourmet experiences Slavonia has to offer.  With three counties, several appellations, and indefinite wine labels later, we can say we were in for a real treat. Most importantly, the people of Slavonia are to be applauded for not only incredibly warm and welcoming hospitality, but also for their expertise in differentiating this experience from the rest of Croatia, so more visitors would come here. We will be back, what about you?

This is a short overview with just a few photos from the inaugural “Croatia Full of Flavors” trip to Slavonia. The two American writers joining this trip included Todd Godbout of WineCompass, and Richard Auffrey, Passionate Foodie Blog, and Sampan, who were initially introduced to us by Luiz Alberto, the American-based wine judge and founder of the  #winelover group, a 10-year old community of 30,000 members on Facebook which also holds periodic in-person gatherings in wine regions. Needless to say, Todd’s and Richard’s brief posts while traveling in Slavonia have already reached a huge number of wine lovers.  

We hope many other writers will want to visit to get the historical and flavors’ profile of the region and visit Slavonia’s wine roads.  We will be writing about each area separately. And, as you can imagine, we are in discussions with various wineries about how to add more Slavonian wines to our portfolio at www.CroatianPremiumWine.com, an online store shipping 70+ Croatian wines to most US states. 

Three Counties, Many Appellations, and a Unified Hospitality 

When thinking of Eastern Croatia, most foreign visitors don’t realize there are three distinct counties and two wine regions in Eastern Croatia. All are blessed with fertile land for many crops, but in addition to “flatlands” there are many rolling hills where vineyards thrive -- hard to imagine without visiting.  The focus of our trip was eno- and gastro-offering of the region, but with the assistance from the Tourism Offices that work together from the Požega-Slavonia, Vukovar-Srijem, and Osijek-Baranja counties, we were able to get a rounded cultural experience. 

We were so full of impressions of an indefinite number of wineries and underground cellars – both very old and ultra-modern ones with vertical archives, with a plethora of traditional and gourmet food offerings, and interactions with people of all walks of life, from tourism to winemaking, that it seemed the trip lasted several weeks. 

Graševina is an incredibly versatile grape variety, and the top-quality wines produced in Slavonia today are obviously prevalent. While a lot of table wine is still produced in Slavonia, we have not visited one winery that did not have great top-quality wine. This is a result of the winemaking renaissance in Croatia led by many experts in the academia as well as a result of hard work in the wineries where the young generation of winemakers is carrying the torch started by the legends like Vlado Krauthaker and others. 

We tasted a lot of Graševina in various forms - from sparkling to fresh or aged, and ultimately ice wine. Our verdict – join the people in the know who are “Heading on East” to get that full experience. It is hard to describe without sharing ratings of various wines and experiences. 

Slavonia wine region (Kutjevo, Feričanci)

Our first stop was Kutjevo, and the area is called the Golden Valley, where we visited three large wineries -- Kutjevo Winery, Krauthaker, and Galić Winery.  From the 1232 wine cellar to the ultra-modern winery, the American wine writers and importers got the front-row seats in exploring Slavonia’s wine routes.

Photo: Kutjevo’s cellar from 1232 and the Galic newest Galileo barrel 

Vlado Krauthaker and his team introduced us to more than 30 wines. And Vlado also showed off not only his legendary charisma, but also his family – from Martina, the winemaker's daughter, to Ivan, the business leader nephew with the “prepare your glasses” moto, and the granddaughter that gave him a big hug at the family dinner to which we were invited. (Needless to say, we were grateful we had a driver!) And the next day, we visited a big winery in Feričanci, formerly known as Feravino, which has recently rebranded itself to Enosophia Winery. The new product line is both produced and designed in a modern way. Interesting to note that wines are aged in Slavonian oak and that the barrels are made by Auric Barrels, a company whose entire forest is FCS certified and is just a few kilometers down the road. Talking about the perfect pairing!

Photo:  30+ wines with Vlado Krauthaker and his team, and listening about the newest brand Enosophia aged in Auric barrels

Croatian Danube Wine Region (Ilok-Srijem, Erdut, and Baranja)

Our travel path from Slavonia took us first to the most eastern area -- Ilok-Srijem, where everything seems to be historical and big. One cannot visit Iločki Podrumi without realizing its long and royal history as well as recent ingenuity in saving the archived wines. Then at TRS Winery we witnessed the modern winery built literally on top of historical cellars, which are in the process of being rebuilt.  And, we had the chance to juxtapose the might of the big wineries with the success on the smaller scale – the most eastern winery in Ilok, Papak Winery, is a family winery of the former leader at Iločki Podrumi whose experience has been transferred to smaller scale but the wine is equally superb, and the young lions at the Čobanković and the Buhač wineries who are starting to win awards with top-quality wines.

Photo: Iločki Podrumi vertical cellar, Principovac, ice wine from Papak Winery, and the TRS juxtaposition 

In the Erdut Danube wine region, we visited one of the biggest wineries, including their biggest wooden barrel of 75000 liters at Erdutski Vinogradi, which makes it the largest wine barrel in use in the world. The barrel is always full, and there is always Graševina in it.

From the gigantic, we moved to charming -- the boutique Antunović Winery is fully in the embrace of the Danube and vines as well as the wisdom, knowledge, and persistency of a woman winemaker – Jasna Antunović is the only Slavonian winemaker with a Decanter Platinum for her wine.  Yes, platinum!

Photo:  The world’s largest barrel at Erdutski Vinogradi and the charming environment and winemaker at Antunović Winery

Lastly, we visited Baranja in its mystical glory. From historical fortification “Tvrđa” in Osijek to the Belje Winery, both old cellars and the new, and finally rural Zmajevac, and the Josic Winery. The allure of this most northeastern part of Croatia is in the combination of their traditional customs with the new twists, and the might and modernism of the winery serving 630 hectares of continuous vineyards as well as the charisma of the village life transposed to rural wine tourism.

Photo:  Belje, the old and the new cellars 

2 Days in Slavonia Equals 2 Kilos Gained 

In addition to wine, we tasted everything from the very traditional “kulen” to the modern representations of modern food. Regardless of the lighter touches of the gourmet cuisine, we were told by the charming lady at the even more charming Maksimilian Hotel in Osijek, “if visitors didn’t gain at least two kilos over one weekend, Slavonians didn’t do their hosting well.”  In retrospect, it appears we didn’t want to offend them – don’t want to reveal any numbers, but we both gained at least that much. Mission accomplished, Slavonia! 

Photo: From old-fashioned, but deliciously spicy “fiš paprikas” at Josić Winery and Restaurant to the presentation of a traditionally-inspired dessert with a reduction of Josić Grand Cuvee.

Our trip to Slavonia ended with a well-visited Wine & Art Festival in Osijek with artists expressing their talents and wineries sharing their high-quality wines with the public. It seemed the whole of Slavonia came to celebrate. As it should. We hope this will make more Croatians and foreign visitors make their plans to visit and taste all the wines and food. Živjeli!

Authors: Mirena Bagur and Win Burke are co-founders of Croatian Premium Wine Imports, Inc, a company that distributes, retails online, and educates about Croatian wines in the US, and ships 70+ Croatian wine labels to most US states. The initial team of American wine writers included Todd Godbout of WineCompass, a directory for winery, brewery, and distillery locators, and BevFluence, an organization created by beverage content creators, for content creators, and Richard Auffrey of Sampan, the New England English-Chinese newspaper, and Passionate Foodie Blog, where he wrote dozens of articles about Croatia and its wine scene before even heading to this trip.

We wanted to thank all organizations and people who helped us put this tour together – from the Croatian National Tourist Board in the US, and regional tourist boards as well as Vina Croatia.hr, a segment of the Croatian Chamber of Economy, and Graševina Croatica, an association of wineries in Slavonia and Danube region. 

And as always, we are thankful to the global #winelovers community for helping us navigate the American wine scene before we even started the business.  The beauty of the group lies in its members consisting of tradespeople and simple wine enthusiasts, amateurs and pros, serious collectors and newcomers, who all share a passion for wine and facilitate communication and education of all facets of the wine industry from vineyard to glass. 

Authors in front of Principovac Summer Residence

All photos by Croatian Premium Wine Imports

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, 20 July 2022 - Deputy whip of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) Siniša Hajdaš Dončić said on Wednesday that SDP had submitted a motion to the Sabor for the establishment of a national council for energy and energy transition in order to activate renewables and help citizens in the energy crisis.

energy That proposal, said Hajdaš Dončić, is a hand to the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and all other parties because infrastructure and energy have no party connotations. "It is a Croatian public good and a Coatian national interest," he told a press conference, stressing that a national consensus is needed on the issue of energy.

He explained that due to the growing energy crisis and deviations in supply routes, "but also the timid implementation of some energy policies," SDP has proposed the establishment of a national council which, in addition to Members of Parliament, would include experts and scientists, and which would not be guided by narrow party interests because, he said, we believe that energy is above all political parties.

Hajdaš Dončić said that Croatia has a good energy infrastructure and the possibility of its expansion, but unfortunately, the INA oil company and the HEP power utility, did not expand into energy companies that would provide citizens and entrepreneurs with a much larger protection against inflation and the rapid energy price hikes.

Although the government and the president have their own councils for energy, it is important that the Sabor has one, too, without any party affiliation because many experts who could make a quality contribution shy away from being linked to a party, said Hajdaš Dončić.

SDP calls for a tax reduction on solar systems and energy savings

His party colleague and former environmental minister Mihael Zmajlović said that the intention is not to establish yet another commission or committee for its own sake but to highlight that energy management is a first-class economic and social issue because citizens are feeling the impact of energy price hikes and consequently increased food prices.

Our goal is to encourage the government to set frameworks so that renewable energy sources and natural resources are used as much as possible. Today Croatia is lagging behind in terms of the use of solar energy in Europe, ranking 24th, warned Zmajlović.

SDP has called for incentive systems to be easier, faster and more efficient, and for a VAT reduction for solar systems, Zmajlović said and added that the European Commission has also requested the strengthening of renewable energy sources and provided funds for this. However, he said, the government has not yet responded, even though this would significantly reduce the cost of living for citizens.

According to the proposal, the council chairman would be from the ranks of the opposition, the deputy chair from the ruling majority, following the example of the Anti-Corruption Council, and their term would last as long as the Sabor sits.

For more, check out our politics section.

ZAGREB, 20 July 2022 - The European Commission on Wednesday proposed the Save Gas for a Safe Winter plan which envisages reducing gas demand by 15% between 1 August 2022 and 31 March 2023.

"The European Union faces the risk of further gas supply cuts from Russia, due to the Kremlin's weaponisation of gas exports, with almost half of our Member States already affected by reduced deliveries," the Commission said.

"Taking action now can reduce both the risk and the costs for Europe in case of further or full disruption, strengthening European energy resilience."

All consumers, public administrations, households, owners of public buildings, power suppliers and industry can and should take measures to save gas, the Commission said.

It is proposing a new Regulation on Coordinated Demand Reduction Measures for Gas, which would set a target for all member states to reduce gas demand by 15% between 1 August 2022 and 31 March 2023.

The Regulation would also give the Commission the possibility to declare, after consulting member states, a Union Alert on security of supply, imposing a mandatory gas demand reduction on all member states. "The Union Alert can be triggered when there is a substantial risk of a severe gas shortage or an exceptionally high gas demand."

The Commission urges all member states to launch public awareness campaigns to promote the reduction of heating and cooling on a broad scale. Member states could mandate a targeted lowering of heating and cooling in buildings operated by public authorities.  

For more news about Croatia, click here.

July 20, 2022 - The 2022 Croatian peak season is in full swing, with around 980,000 tourists currently in Croatia!

About 980,000 tourists are currently staying in Croatia - with 97 percent of the overnight stays achieved compared to the record July 2019. These latest data were presented by the director of the Croatian Tourist Board in Šibenik, where a coordination meeting was held with representatives of tourist boards from Šibenik-Knin County, reports HRT.

In addition to HTZ director Kristjan Staničić and 13 representatives of the tourist boards of cities and municipalities from the county, the coordination included Šibenik-Knin prefect Marko Jelić and Rudolf Štefan, a member of the HTZ tourism council, and the owner of Šibenik's Pelegrini, HTZ announced.

During the meeting, they spoke about the tourist offer and attractions in the county, where the representatives of the local tourist boards pointed out that they are delighted with the current season and the announcements for the postseason.

Thus, in Šibenik-Knin County, the most overnight stays were recorded in Vodice, Šibenik, and Rogoznica, while, for example, Betina surpassed the tourist result from the record in 2019.

They also believe that in July, they will reach the results from the record 2019 in Primošten. Knin is recording an increase in accommodation capacities such as family apartments. The same is the case with Skradin, especially in the segment of more luxurious holiday homes with a swimming pool. HTZ added that Tisno is celebrating 100 years of organized tourism next year, which, in cooperation with HTZ, will be used in advertising on broadcasting markets.

Staničić emphasized the importance of cooperation between the local tourist boards.

"In this way, you can achieve greater promotional visibility and recognition that tourists will be able to appreciate," he said.

He reported that around 980,000 tourists are currently staying in Croatia, while last year at this time, there were approximately 900,000.

"We are at 97 percent of overnight stays achieved in July 2019. Everyone's goal is the dispersion of tourists throughout the year and to achieve as much income from tourism as possible," Staničić said, adding that additional promotional activities are planned for the best post-season, especially in the markets of Slovenia, Hungary, and Germany.

Jelić pointed out that the season is significantly better this year than last.

"What is very important to our visitors and us is that they feel safe in the county, and I would especially like to praise the tourist facilities and numerous events in our destinations. I believe that if we continue like this, we could surpass the results from the record-breaking 2019," said Jelić.

HTZ reported that the topic of the meeting was to allocate funds from the United Tourist Boards Fund, the eVisitor system was discussed, and the current progress in the development of the Strategic Marketing and Operational Plan of Croatian Tourism until 2026 was presented, which will be a turning point in implementing future promotional activities in Croatian tourism.

They also discussed recent changes that will take place in Croatia with the introduction of the euro and the country's entry into the Schengen area, which is estimated to have a positive impact on future tourist flows and trends.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

ZAGREB, 20 July 2022 - Croatia will participate with 76 athletes aged 14 to 18 in the summer European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF), which will be held from 24 to 30 July in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia.

They will compete in eight sports - athletics, badminton, cycling, gymnastics, judo, basketball, swimming and handball.

The Croatian Olympics Committee (HOO) has decided that the flag bearers at the opening ceremony of the EYOF will be Jana Koščak and Petar Šprem.

Heptathlete Jana Koščak won the gold medal at the recently held Junior European Championship (U18) in Jerusalem, where she set a new national record and the fifth result of all time in the world at that age. With that result, she met the norm for participating in the U20 World Athletics Championship, which will be held in early August in Cali, Colombia.

Handball player Petar Šprem is a multiple state champion with the PPD Zagreb team. He has won the award for the best right wing and best scorer in the tournaments in 2019, 2021 and 2022.

Croatia's men's basketball and men's and women's handball teams are the main hopes at EYOF.

A total of 108 Croatians will be in the sports delegation to the EYOF in Banska Bystrica.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 20 July 2022 - In the last 24 hours 2,239 coronavirus cases, out of 5,543 tests, and 12 related deaths have been registered in Croatia, the national COVID-19 crisis management team said on Wednesday.

There are 10,376 active cases, including 560 hospitalised patients, 16 of whom are on ventilators, while 4,475 persons are self-isolating.

Croatia has registered 1,171,581 coronavirus cases to date, the death toll stands at 16,181, and 70.84% of the adult population has been vaccinated, including 68.80% fully.

For everything you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, bookmark our dedicated section and select your preferred language if it isn't English.

July 20, 2022 - A new security protocol for high-risk football matches in Croatia has been introduced. 

At the Ministry of Internal Affairs headquarters, the Protocol on security at high-risk matches was signed, reports Gol.hr.

The protocol was signed by the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Internal Affairs, Davor Božinović, and the president of the Croatian Football Federation, Marijan Kustić.

The signed Protocol regulates the cooperation in the actions of HNS, clubs, and the police at high-risk matches, in the stadium area and at the stadium, during the preparation and implementation of measures for the arrival of fans at the stadium, their stay at the stadium, and their return from the stadium, all to prevent illegal behavior.

The President of the Croatian Football Federation, Marijan Kustić, thanked the Ministry of the Interior for adopting and signing this Protocol, which will be of help to the clubs and significantly contribute to increasing the safety of fans in stadiums, at Supersport HNL matches and, of course, the Croatia national team:

"We as a Federation will do everything to encourage better cooperation between clubs and, of course, cooperation between clubs and their fans," concluded the president of the Croatian Football Federation.

"The fact is that the security aspect is important to hold football matches, and the police are the ones who take care of public order and safety. The police are responsible for any public gathering, and football matches, especially some, gather tens of thousands of people, and that's why we decided that, in agreement with everyone, we will create a procedural document that will provide answers to everything that has been shown to us in practice as a possible source of unrest, dissatisfaction, and even physical confrontations," Minister Božinović explained.

The Protocol precisely prescribes the procedures that will have to be followed, and they were adopted after an agreement with the Croatian Football Federation, the football clubs, and their security commissioners, or the people who are in charge of the security aspect of the Croatian football clubs.

"We worked intensively on preparing this protocol and did not stay only within the Croatian framework. As you know, we went to Geneva and spoke with the leading people of UEFA, who participate in all these, especially international matches. We explained and presented how we intend to solve it, and I can freely say that we have come to an understanding," Minister Božinović explained.

Minister Božinović also stated that all high-risk matches would be coordinated from the headquarters of the Croatian police, headed by the deputy director general of the police Damir Barić, who was accompanied by the director general of the police Nikola Milina and the head of the administration of public order and security, Dragan Tokić.

"In the operational sense, nothing will be left to chance from the moment the match is declared high-risk, which is declared by the Police Directorate based on some dynamic indicators," said Minister Božinović.

He also explained how they were guided by the common goal of creating conditions in which people would freely come to football matches, in which families would go as they used to, and that everyone would feel as safe as possible. As an additional goal, which, according to what was seen after the Super Cup match and the 1st round of the HNL, is being achieved. He pointed out that reports are written after the matches.

"The standard we are setting now must be the standard for the time to come, and there will certainly be no relaxation when we talk about the behavior of all those who are responsible for security both on the side of HNS and the clubs," concluded Minister Božinović.

The most important thing to point out is the defined rule that should avoid a new "Desinec case" and the clash between Torcida and the police on the highway, that is, the problems that preceded the last derby at Maksimir last season. 

- In cooperation with the representative of the visiting fans, the visiting club will provide refreshments (drinks and food) for the visiting fans during the trip to the match and when returning from the match.

- The home club will provide sanitary facilities and access to drinks and food at the locations of the planned gathering of visiting fans upon their arrival and/or in the stadium area.

- In communication with the visiting club, if necessary, the police will, following the security assessment, implement additional measures to secure the locations intended for visiting fans to rest on the way to the football match and the way back.

The protocol can be read in its entirety here.

To read more about sports in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.