Politics

ZAGREB, 30 April, 2021 - Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman on Friday called on President Zoran Milanović to cease obstructing the process of the appointment of 19 Croatian ambassadors and to go back to the constitutional and legislative frameworks when performing his presidential duties. Grlić Radman's statement ensued after the dispute between the government and the president Milanović about the process of the appointment of 19 ambassadors and six consuls-general whose  current terms will soon expire. "I think that the president is behaving like the Opposition leader rather than the head of state," said the minister. Milanović insists on "a…

ZAGREB, 30 April, 2021 - Croatia and San Marino have great potential to expand their cooperation in their mutual interest, particularly in the economy, culture and tourism, Croatia's Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman said on Friday after meeting with his counterpart from San Marino. Luca Beccari as San Marino's Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Economic Cooperation and Telecommunications is currently on a working visit to Croatia. This is the first visit ever by a minister from San Marino to Croatia. Croatia and San Marino do not have any outstanding issues and they are working on expanding their cooperation in…

April the 30th, 2021 - Croatian MEP Valter Flego has spoken out in favour of securing free coronavirus tests in order to better facilitate the upcoming summer tourist season and to avoid discriminating against those who aren't vaccinated yet. As Novac/Ljubica Vuko writes, Croatian MEP Valter Flego (IDS) spoke at a plenary session in Brussels this week and sought free coronavirus testing, which in Croatia currently costs from 500 to 750 kuna per PCR test, and about 150 kuna for an antigen test. ''If we want to travel without restrictions this summer, we'll need an EU certificate. So that this confirmation…

ZAGREB, 29 April, 2021 - Opposition MPs were not impressed by the announcement by the state secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture that more funds have been allocated for Croatian agriculture in the next EU budget period than in the previous one, saying on Thursday that the situation in this sector was catastrophic. "The situation in agriculture is catastrophic. The number of producers, milk suppliers, is falling, and there are fewer and fewer products made by our own producers that meet our needs," MP Marina Grman Kizivat of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) said, asking about the veracity of the information that…

ZAGREB, 29 April, 2021- At its meeting on Thursday, the government adopted a decision to establish the National Council for the Development of Social Policies and launched a procedure for the preparation of a Strategy for the Demographic Revitalisation of Croatia by 2031. "Social security and welfare for our socially vulnerable citizens is one of the primary objectives of this government's activities. That is an area for which we foresee significant investments in the coming period, partly from the budget and partly from EU funds amounting to more than HRK 5.5 billion," Minister Josip Aladrović said. At the same time, in an effort to…

ZAGREB, 29 April, 2021 - The Croatian government on Thursday adopted the Draft National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NPOO) 2021-2027, worth HRK 49 billion, and it will send it to the European Commission for final harmonisation. The document, which has more than 1,100 pages, contains descriptions of 77 reforms and 152 investments on which EU funds will be spent. It has five components and one initiative: the business sector, with investments amounting to HRK 26.2 billion or 54% of the total amount; public administration, justice and state assets (HRK 4.36 billion or 10%); education, science and research (HRK 7.5 billion or…

April 29, 2021 - The second article in the series "Friends of Croatia" covering all things diplomatic, looks into an overview of the basic terms of diplomacy both for a more accessible following of the series,as well as for safer travel and for being more informed in general. When exploring Croatian diplomatic relations, terms such as diplomats, embassies, ambassadors, and consulates are the keywords of the topic. Diplomacy is important of course for countries to communicate, express and arrange mutual cooperation, push their respective interests, and offer help to their citizens in another country. But, what is for what and who…

ZAGREB, 28 April, 2021 -  President Zoran Milanović said on Wednesday that the Croatian Army was one of the pillars of a civil, democratic state, while attending, in his capacity as the supreme commander, the official oath ceremony of the armed forces' 3rd mechanised battalion. The ceremony was held in the Knin army barracks and was attended by also Defence Minister Mario Banožić, Chief-of-Staff, Admiral Robert Hranj and commander of the land forces Lieutenant-General Boris Šerić, the President's office said in press release. Addressing those present Milanović said that the army is primarily for defending the Croatian homeland, on land and sea. The Croatian…

ZAGREB, 28 April, 2021 - An international arrest warrant has been issued for a 78-year old Croatian citizen Dragan Bešir and 79-year old Serbian national Slobodan Đorđević for murders committed in 1991 and shelling a refugee camp in Grabovac where a three-month old baby was killed. The charges have been forwarded to the County State Attorney in Rijeka after Lika-Senj and Karlovac county police authorities in cooperation with prosecutorial authorities completed the criminal investigation, the police has reported without revealing the identity of the two suspects. The suspects are out of reach of Croatian judicial authorities. They are charged with failing to prevent the murder…

ZAGREB, 28 April, 2021 - The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) mayoral candidate in Zagreb, Davor Filipović, on Wednesday presented his election agenda, and said that fighting corruption was a top priority in the document. "We are going to introduce the ISO 37001 anti-corruption standard, following the model set by the City of Prague, and it refers to the corporate responsibility, control mechanisms and action plans when there is suspicion of cases of corruption in the City of Zagreb or in any city institutions," said Filipović pledging to create an anti-corruption atmosphere in the capital city. He also said that one of…