Politics

ZAGREB, November 6, 2019 - Croatia will do its best during its presidency of the Council of the EU, together with the next European Council President Charles Michel, so that an agreement on the 2021-27 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) is reached as soon as possible, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said in Prague on Tuesday. The moment when the agreement is reached isn't unimportant. The last seven-year budget was adopted quite late, which affected the implementation of operational programmes and concrete payments to the member states, he said at the end of a summit of 17 EU member states which are…

I recently wrote an article on work permits in Croatia, and delved into what being inside and being outside of the annual quota means. Click here for that, and then read this article which discusses the changes to the Law on Foreigners to see how the changes may apply to you should you be attempting to get a work permit as a third country national in Croatia. The information provided here should allow you to know what to do (should you need to do anything at all) in order to act accordingly depending on your personal situation. As Poslovni Dnevnik…

ZAGREB, November 5, 2019 - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković, who held a speech in Shanghai on Tuesday, underscored the excellent China-Croatia cooperation in several areas as well as the significance of the "17+1"and the "Belt and Road" initiatives for this cooperation, the Croatian parliament said in a press release. Addressing an economic forum within the 2nd China Import Expo, which brought together over 1,500 guests from all over the world, Jandroković spoke about regulations and a business climate conducive to opening markets and the role of governments and prospects of multinational companies. Jandroković said that the role of governments and…

ZAGREB, November 5, 2019 - Presidential candidate Miroslav Škoro said on Tuesday that the primary task of the Croatian police was to protect the territory and citizens of Croatia, but that it would be good if the military also joined in because the border police were stretched to their limit. "We want to be part of the Schengen area and we have our own law on the movement of foreigners. We need to know who comes into the country, who moves around and passes through, and of course, protect the territorial integrity of Croatia and all its citizens. We have…

ZAGREB, November 5, 2019 - Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković met with his Czech counterpart Andrej Babis in Prague on Monday evening, discussing ongoing negotiations on the multiannual EU budget, strengthening economic cooperation and trade between the two countries, enlargement of the Schengen area, migration, and the priorities of the forthcoming Croatian presidency of the EU. The meeting took place ahead of Tuesday's summit of Friends of Cohesion, an informal group of EU member states that receive more from the EU budget than they contribute to it. "It is very important to us that the amount of funds that we…

ZAGREB, November 5, 2019 - The ministry of demography, family affairs, youth and social policy on Monday put to public consultation amendments to the Maternity and Parental Allowance Act whereby the maximum pay during parental leave (after the first six months of the child's life) would be raised to 5,654 kuna (€759). Under the amendments, as of April 1, 2020 the maximum allowance paid for the duration of parental leave (after the first six months of the child's life) to employed and self-employed parents would be raised from the current amount of 3,991 kuna (€536) to 5,654 kuna. The amount…

Buzzfeed, the American internet site with a strong investigative journalism team, published what they call the "Mueller Report’s Secret Memos'' today, and Ivanka Trump in Croatia plays a prominent role in the article. As the authors explain, they had to sue the American Government to gain access to the documents created by the team lead by Robert Mueller III, which didn't make it into the final text of the Mueller Report (officially titled "Report on the Investigation into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election"). And in those documents, as well as in the article published by Buzzfeed about them,…

ZAGREB, November 4, 2019 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandić said on Monday they were pleased with a meeting at which they had talked about the capital's zoning plan, but did not say if city councillors from Plenković's HDZ party would back the plan and MPs from Bandić's party the state budget. "We agreed the process of adopting the zoning plan for the City of Zagreb. The mayor's associates briefed us on the procedure. It's an expert topic and they are considering every aspect of its compliance with the law and the plan in the Construction…

ZAGREB, November 4, 2019 - The opposition SDP, HSS, HSU and SNAGA parties on Monday signed an anti-corruption declaration whereby they express the political will and determination to fight corruption, which they consider a danger to Croatia's survival and security and the prosperity of its citizens. SDP (Social Democratic Party) president Davor Bernardić said a research showed alarming data that only 4% of citizens would report corruption and that corruption in the public sector was perceived as widespread. Corruption is a sign and a consequence of bad government, as proved by the fact that this summer half the government had…

ZAGREB, November 4, 2019 - Southeast Europe is one of the priorities of Croatia's presidency of the EU in the first half of 2020 because Southeast European countries deserve a European future and Croatia must lend a hand, Foreign and European Affairs Minister Gordan Grlić Radman said on Monday, noting that support to Southeast Europe also guaranteed Croatia's security. "As of January 1, Croatia is neutral in terms of the presidency itself, meaning that it is responsible for all member countries and must listen to what they say and pursue a policy of consensus. And Southeast Europe indeed is one…