ZAGREB, 4 Aug, 2021 - President Zoran Milanović said on Wednesday that the fact that some of the army generals will not attend the Victory Day celebration in Knin is not a boycott, but that they received invitations too late.

Who has announced a boycott? Ljubo Ćesić Rojs has not. Josip Đakić is not a general, he is a bum, and a member of parliament, in other words he is nobody. Rojs will be there, Pavao Miljavac will be there and Ante Kotromanović will be there. Of course, not everyone can come every year, but most  people will be there," Milanović said during a visit to the southern town of Sinj.

He said he did not think there was any pressure on some of the generals by the Defence Ministry "because no one can exert pressure on those people," but noted that some of the generals and commanders were put in an awkward position because they received the invitation the day before the event, which was the ministry's responsibility.

During the visit, Milanović conferred high state medals on retired Brigadier Dušan Viro and posthumously on Franciscan Frane Bilokapić for their acts of humanity during the 1991-1995 Homeland War.

He said he did not consider the decoration of General Mladen Kruljac disputable even though he had been found guilty of corruption. "He is a war commander and is decorated what he did in the war. No one is perfect, but what he did in the war is without a doubt impeccable, and he is not the only one."

Judge Dobronić is my candidate for Supreme Court President

Answering questions from the press, Milanović confirmed that 61-year-old Judge Radovan Dobronić is his candidate for the position of Supreme Court President.

He has responded to the call for applications and "now we will see what will those who undermined, torpedoed and dishonoured my previous candidate do," Milanović said, describing Dobronić as smart, educated, honourable and incorruptible.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

August 4, 2021 - The Speak through Fear workshop will be held on Vis this September. 

If you wish to fight stage fright, if you wish to be able to present yourself or your company or product more convincingly and with a lot more confidence -  and explore beautiful Croatian nature, particularly the island of Vis, now is the time to go for it!

Two in one, so to speak. The workshop „Speak Through fear“ aimed at enhancing the capabilities of public speaking was developed by life coach Ivana Jozić, in order to help participants to find their own voice and authentic style of expression, through a uniquely individualised approach.

Far away from the busy life in the city, it is easier to connect to yourself and combine enjoying nature and working on yourself with the aid of individual coaching.

The workshop will take place from 1st – 5th of September, on the enchanting island of Vis nestled in the crystalline waters of the Adriatic Sea, with limited to a small group of 4 to 10 people.

Under the expert guidance and empathetic mentorship of Ivana Jozić, you will be guided every step of the way to discover and unleash Your Voice. Additional healing elements are incorporated, like aromatherapy treatments, concentration & relaxation exercises. Last but not least, excursions and tastings of locally produced food are also part of the whole attractive package.

More at www.villaviscroatia.com and www.speakthroughfear.com

ZAGREB, 4 Aug, 2021 - The European Commission has approved an additional HRK 220 million (€29.3m) in aid to Croatian livestock farmers, the Agriculture Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. 

HRK 130 million (€17.3m) has been approved under the Animal Welfare Measure of the EU Rural Development Programme, while HRK 90 million (€12m) has been approved for the use of manure on fields.

The Ministry noted that since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic it had adopted a number of aid schemes, worth nearly HRK 450 million (€60m) in total, including those for the livestock sector, adding that aid schemes for the poultry and dairy farming sectors were under preparation.

Due to an increase in prices of cereals and other components of livestock feed, at the last meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council, Agriculture Minister Marija Vučković called on the European Commission to look into possibilities of granting financial aid to stabilise the livestock sector, as well as other possible mechanisms to ensure the equal treatment of Croatian producers on the global market.

The request was supported by 15 member states, and the Commission is expected to continue monitoring the situation and take any emergency measures as may be necessary, the statement said.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

August 4, 2021 - Could Zagorje once again become an important railway link between Southeastern Europe and Central Europe? A look at the potential of Zagorje. 

Located in northern Croatia, the Zagorje region is bordered by Slovenia to the north and west, Međimurje to the northeast, Podravina to the east, and Zagreb to the south. The region’s largest towns are Varaždin and Krapina. 

With its rolling hills, green forests, vineyards, and Habsburg-style castles, Zagorje can be described as a mix between Tuscany and Bavaria. The region is known for its many spa resorts (toplice), most notably Krapinske Toplice, Tuheljske Toplice and Varaždinske Toplice. Other attractions include the Disney-style Trakošćan castle, Marija Bistrica with its pilgrimage church, the Krapina Neanderthal site (Hušnjakovo), the Sljeme ski resort, and the ethno village in Kumrovec. There are also hidden attractions. In Bedekovčina, for example, there are three artificial lakes (bajeri). In the future, the lakes could become a destination for swimmers, sunbathers, and fishers.

Many known Croats were born in Zagorje, amongst them Ljudevit Gaj, the father of the Croatian alphabet (born in Krapina), Antun Mihanović, the author of the Croatian national anthem (born in Klanjec), Ambroz “Matija” Gubec, a 16th-century peasant revolutionary (born around Stubičke Toplice), Franjo Tuđman, the first Croatian president (born in Veliko Trgovišće) and Josip Broz Tito, the long-time dictator of Yugoslavia (born in Kumrovec). 

Zagorje has a perfect location, 30 minutes from Zagreb, less than an hour from Maribor, 1 hour from Ljubljana, and 2 hours from Graz. In addition, two international highways run through the region, the one from Zagreb to Graz and the one from Zagreb to Budapest. 

Not two, but actually three international railway lines pass through Zagorje; Zagreb-Budapest via Varaždin-Kotoriba, Zagreb-Celje (Slovenia) via Kumrovec, and the one from Zagreb-Celje via Zabok and Krapina. Unfortunately, the Kumrovec-line and the Đurmanec-Celje section of the Krapina-line have been closed for decades. Currently, there is no passenger traffic between Croatia and Hungary via Varaždin. 

As seen, the Zagorje railways are underutilized. There are, however, positive signs. At the end of 2019, it was announced that the Harmica-Klanjec section of the Kumrovec-line and the Zabok-Đurmanec section of the Krapina-line would be modernized and electrified. In 2020, the electrification of the Zaprešić-Zabok section of the Varaždin-line was completed. In the coming years, the Zabok-Čakovec section will be modernized. 

Moreover, there are plans to build a new railway from Krapina to Varaždin via Lepoglava and Ivanec, the so-called Lepoglava connection (Lepoglavska spojnica). If built, the travel distance from Zagreb to Varaždin would be reduced from 2 h to less than an hour. Direct train services from Zagreb to Varaždin via Krapina would benefit the whole Zagorje region.

If the Lepoglava connection is built and the lines to Slovenia are reopened and modernized, Zagorje could once again become an important railway link between Southeastern Europe and Central Europe. 

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

August 4, 2021 - The launch of the new ID the other day spurred me to check the government website for the steps I needed to take to become an E-citizen. So, how easy is it to look for information on the web in Croatia? 

I think we can all agree that the Croatian language is not the easiest language to learn. Fortunately, the local bar owners and shopkeepers can often help you along when ordering a meal or a drink by easily switching to English when they find that you are struggling even with the most basic of words. So I was hoping that the government (local and national) would offer an English language option on their website. 

Hooray, I thought, when I clicked on the Government website and found the ‘English’ option. I clicked on the news page and all was clear as it was on several other pages that ‘front’ the site. Knowing the Croatian love of documents and stamped documents I thought it would be useful to look at that page of the site. I may need to check some information that the government wants me to be aware of. The National plan looked like something worthy of reading, so I clicked on the link which said the document is available in English. In anticipation of becoming better informed, I clicked on the link, but sadly no, the document (as with others I clicked on) is only available in Croatian. Many just carry a reference number that does not explain what the actual document is, so I remain in the dark as to the plans and forms for our country. To be fair to the government, the website does at least give availability to the user the option of another language (in this case English) on its pages, so that is good news.

As for becoming an E-Citizen, well as someone from the UK who has residency before the end of last year, I am not sure of the process I need to follow, so have sent a message to double-check. I’m pleased to say the relevant page is in English so that is also good news. Well done the Croatian Government, now you don’t read that very often!

So, is the local government site also available in English?  Sadly as far as I can tell it is not.  

I looked at my local site for Grad Kastela. The website does not offer an English (or other language) option to those who may wish to visit the site for local information. 

Ok, maybe I don’t want to know what the latest planning rules are but if I was a visitor or tourist I may want to know what events are on in Kastela so I can go along and enjoy the singing or dancing, or as a resident of the area (where Croatian is not their first language), I may want to know what is happening with the local amenities or access a document. I can already hear some folk saying ‘learn Croatian then’ and of course they are right, but a little help along the way would be nice, especially in some of the more popular languages (English German perhaps) spoken by visitors or those new to the area which might help them along the path to understanding Croatia.     

For more on lifestyle, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 4 Aug, 2021 - In the past 24 hours, 271 coronavirus cases have been registered in Croatia and there have been no deaths, the national COVID-19 crisis management team said on Wednesday.

The number of active cases is 1,147, including 153 hospitalised patients, 12 of whom are on ventilators, while 3,925 persons are self-isolating.

Croatia has registered 364,244 coronavirus cases to date, including 8,267 deaths and 354,830 recoveries, of which 135 in the past 24 hours.

To date, 2,324,297 persons have been tested for the virus, including 7,996 in the past 24 hours.

Croatia has vaccinated 40.7% of its population, including 49% of adults, 44.48% of whom have completed vaccination.

For more about COVID-19 in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 4 Aug, 2021 - On the eve of Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day, War Veterans Day and the central commemoration in Knin, state delegations laid wreaths at Zagreb's central Mirogoj cemetery on Wednesday.

The government delegation was led by Veterans' Minister Tomo Medved and a delegation of the Croatian Parliament was led by Deputy Speaker Željko Reiner.

The delegations laid wreaths at the Wall of Pain monument, the Central Cross in the Alley of Fallen Croatian Homeland War Defenders, the grave of Croatia's first president Franjo Tudjman, and at the common grave of unidentified victims of the 1991-95 war.

Wreaths were also laid by a delegation of President Zoran Milanović, led by his advisor on defence and national security Dragan Lozančić, as well as a delegation of the City of Zagreb, led by deputy mayor Luka Korlaet.

Shortly after that, a delegation of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), led by member of the SDP presidency and MEP Predrag Fred Matic, laid flowers and lit candles at the Wall of Pain monument and the Central Cross in the Alley of Fallen Croatian Homeland War Defenders.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 4 Aug, 2021 - President Zoran Milanović, accompanied by Chief Firefighting Commander Slavko Tucaković, visited on Wednesday by helicopter locations devastated by wildfires at Seget Gornji, inland from the southern coastal town of Trogir, the President's Office said in a press release.

Before visiting the fire sites, Milanović discussed the situation at wildfire locations at Seget Gornji and in Mirlović in Šibenik-Knin County with local firefighting officials.

Firefighting representatives briefed the president about the efforts firefighters had made so far, and the assistance provided by the Croatian Army.

The president thanked the firemen and all those who helped put out the wildfires.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.