Politics

ZAGREB, November 13, 2019 - Minister of Labour and Pension System Josip Aladrović said on Tuesday that he would send education-sector trade unions an invitation to a meeting to be held on Wednesday, when the government would present its final offer to union demands, adding that he hoped that after that, the strike in primary and secondary schools would end. "I would like to say that a meeting will be held tomorrow, today we will send an invitation and we expect the unions will respond to see what the government wishes to offer," Aladrović told reporters in Government House after…

ZAGREB, November 13, 2019 - The European Union and NATO are not mutually exclusive, they are complementary and Croatia has no doubts about NATO's relevance, Defence Minister Damir Krstičević said on Tuesday. "NATO and the EU have to cooperate. They are not mutually exclusive and we always have to take their complementarity into account. NATO and the Croatian Army are the foundation of security. NATO is the largest, strongest military-political alliance and we have no doubts whatsoever about its relevance," Krstičević told reporters in Brussels when asked to comment on French President Emmanuel Macron's recent statement that NATO had experienced…

ZAGREB, November 13, 2019 - Norway's honorary consul in Dubrovnik, Tonči Peović, has received the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit, awarded by King Harald V, for his outstanding service. The medal and diploma were presented to him by the Norwegian ambassador to Croatia, Haakon Blankenborg, at a ceremony in Dubrovnik on Tuesday evening. Addressing the ceremony, Peović called it a great recognition for his self-effacing work. He said he had been of service to Norwegians visiting southern Croatia and had helped them in cases of loss of documents, traffic accident, hospitalisation and even death. "Today, relations between the two countries…

ZAGREB, November 12, 2019 - Croatia's presidency over the European Union in the first half of 2020 can facilitate efforts to upgrade relations and dialogue between the EU and Russia, Russian Ambassador to Zagreb Anvar Azimov said on Tuesday. Addressing a conference on gas as the future of energy, the ambassador said that both Europe and Russia suffered losses due to sanctions imposed on Moscow over the issue of Crimea. Therefore, Azimov proposed that during its EU chairmanship Croatia should organise an energy conference bringing together European and Russian experts, and described such an event as the start of dialogue…

ZAGREB, November 12, 2019 - Croatia's Foreign and European Affairs Minister Gordan Grlić Radman said at the 2nd Paris Peace Forum on Tuesday that he was in favour of strengthening multilateralism and he underlined its importance in dealing with geopolitical challenges. "In today's world of great challenges, unity on peace and stability is of extreme importance. Responding to geopolitical challenges requires joint efforts and advocacy for stronger multilateralism," the Croatian minister said, as stated by the Foreign and European Affairs Ministry. Grlić Radman said that he was glad to hear French President Emmanuel Macron underline the necessity of multilateralism. In…

ZAGREB, November 12, 2019 - The letter sent by a US official to Minister Nina Obuljen Koržinek, which was published by the Serbian Kurir newspaper and concerned the shooting of a film about Jasenovac, was not an official request forwarded to the Croatian government but the diplomat's private e-mail correspondence, the Croatian Culture Ministry said on Monday. Minister Obuljen Koržinek has already explained that the ministry is not the address to which the film director should forward his requests about the film shooting, the ministry said. The pro-government tabloid Kurir recently ran a copy of an email which the State…

ZAGREB, November 12, 2019 - The Zagreb County Office of the Prosecutor has dismissed reports filed against Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS) leader Milorad Pupovac, accusing him of inciting hate and defaming the country's reputation with comments he made following attacks on members of the Serb minority this past summer. Without revealing Pupovac's identity, the county prosecutor's office said it had dismissed all 13 reports alleging that Pupovac had incited violence and hate and defamed Croatia's reputation. The reports, filed by two associations and 11 individuals, referred to Pupovac's comments on attacks on members of the Serb minority that occurred…

ZAGREB, November 11, 2019 - The Women's Room nongovernmental organisation warned on Monday that it was overburdened as the only organisation in the country specialising in assistance to women - victims of sexual violence, and it called on the government to ensure funding for its work. "The issue of sexual violence has attracted great public interest and the Women's Room has been contacted by a large number of persons who have experienced violence, whether sexual or domestic, as well as by other members of the public, media and representatives of state institutions and civil society organisations," the NGO's coordinator, psychologist…

ZAGREB, November 11, 2019 - Presidential candidate Dejan Kovač on Monday called for introducing electronic voting, saying it would increase the turnout both at home and abroad as well as enable the recently emigrated to vote who, he said, would not vote for the ruling HDZ or the opposition SDP. Speaking at a press conference, Kovač called on Prime Minister Andrej Plenković to introduce electronic voting and give all Croatian citizens in Croatia and abroad equal voting rights. The prerequisite already exists, the e-Citizens system, which has 750,000 users and all the necessary data security and encryption certificates, he said.…

ZAGREB, November 11, 2019 - Presenting her election platform for a second term in office on Monday, incumbent President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović said that she wants to be a factor of gathering and joining, a booster of new Croatian unity. "Without you, my dear people, and without the support of Croatian citizens I would not be the president today. I am grateful to the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) for nominating me and I firmly believe that all HDZ members want me to be a factor of gathering and joining, a boost to new Croatian unity," the president said. She recalled that…