Politics

ZAGREB, July 10, 2019 - The Constitutional Court has upheld a complaint which former Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) leader Tomislav Karamarko lodged against the rulings of administrative courts that confirmed the 2016 decision by the Conflict of Interest Commission that during his term as Deputy Prime Minister he was in a conflict of interest due to his business and private relations with MOL's consultant Josip Petrović. Karamarko's lawyer Vesna Alaburić told Hina on Wednesday that the explanation of the Constitutional Court's judgment would be forwarded to her and his client on Friday, but that the minutes of the court session…

ZAGREB, July 10, 2019 - Prime Minister and Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) leader Andrej Plenković said on Tuesday evening that he had been supported by the party leadership to reshuffle his cabinet. "Members of the HDZ presidency and the national council gave me the support to take measures I find necessary to refresh the government," Plenković said after the meeting of the HDZ leadership in Zagreb. He said that the purpose of this refreshing will be to streamline the efforts aimed at achieving the goals from the government's agenda and to prepare Croatia for the chairmanship over the European Union…

ZAGREB, July 10, 2019 - Three ministries, local tourism boards, associations, three counties and dozens of towns on Tuesday signed a cooperation charter with the Nikola Tesla Memorial Centre in the village of Smiljan near Gospić, where Tesla was born 163 years ago, thus launching the procedure of certification of the Nikola Tesla Network project at the Council of Europe Institute for Cultural Routes. The certification will make it possible for destinations in Croatia that are connected with Tesla to become part of the European network of cultural routes. Tourism Ministry State Secretary Frano Matušić said today that a task…

ZAGREB, July 10, 2019 - The man, suspected of killing a social worker and wounding a legal adviser in the Đakovo social welfare centre on Tuesday morning, was arrested on Tuesday evening after an extensive police search for him, the local law enforcement authorities said. The man, who escaped the shooting scene on a bicycle, was on the run for a few hours and the police found him near an entry to the motorway outside the eastern Croatian town of Đakovo in the evening. Minister of Demography, the Family, Youth and Social Policy Nada Murganić, who arrived in Đakovo on…

ZAGREB, July 9, 2019 - International university professors and experts for urban planning have sent an appeal to members of the Zagreb City Council urging them to reject the proposed amendments to the city's general spatial plan that envisage the implementation of the so-called "Zagreb Manhattan" project on the banks of the Sava River. INURA presents itself as "a network of people involved in action and research in localities and cities" and the network "consists of activists and researchers from community and environmental groups, universities, and local administrations, who wish to share experiences and to participate in common research". INURA,…

ZAGREB, July 9, 2019 - The Croatian People's Party (HNS) whip, Milorad Batinić on Tuesday said that the HNS was more than a fair coalition partner to the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) despite the ultimatum it set with regard to replacing Administration Minister Lovro Kuščević, who stepped down on Monday evening, assessing Prime Minister Andrej Plenković's move as "correct and statesmanlike." Asked whether HNS expects Plenković's retaliation seeing that with its publicly announced ultimatum they put him in an awkward position, Batinić said that more information about that would be provided after a meeting between coalition partners. "That's a matter…

ZAGREB, July 9, 2019 - Members of parliament on Tuesday discussed the resignation of Public Administration Minister Lovro Kuščević, with the opposition saying he was not the only one, and the ruling HDZ party responding that they would not be lectured on morals by those who did not have the right to do so. "If Kuščević were the only one, that would be news, but he isn't," said Mirando Mrsić on behalf of the HSS-Democrats caucus. The HDZ holds Croatia firmly in "the shackles of conflict of interest, corruption and nepotism" which began with former president and HDZ leader Franjo…

ZAGREB, July 9, 2019 - Public Administration Minister and Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) political secretary Lovro Kuščević resigned from both posts on Monday, and Prime Minister and HDZ president Andrej Plenković told reporters after a marathon meeting in the party's headquarters that he had accepted Kuščević's resignations. "Minister Kuščević and I talked upon my return from Poland and over the weekend and today. He tendered his resignation as both public administration minister and as the HDZ's political secretary. As prime minister and party president, I accepted his resignation and... he will return to parliament," said Plenković. "Given all the activities…

ZAGREB, July 9, 2019 - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday suggested reviving dialogue between Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), and Serbia to improve the situation in the region and reinforce good neighbourly cooperation, according to a press release issued after his meeting with the members of the BiH Presidency. Erdogan held talks with Milorad Dodik, Šefik Džaferović and Željko Komšić in Sarajevo, where he arrived to attend a summit of the South-East European Cooperation Process. The Presidency's press release said Erdogan expressed willingness to support the revival of cooperation between Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. He also…

As Index writes on the 9th of July, 2019, Finance Zdravko Marić and Governor of the Croatian National Bank (CNB/HNB) Boris Vujčić expressed their joint satisfaction on Monday in regard to the reactions they've received after sending a letter of intent on entering the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM II) on behalf of the Republic of Croatia. This move marked the first official step to Croatia's Eurozone entry. They were also satisfied with the manner in which it was received by the powers that be. MEPs from nineteen Eurozone countries and Denmark, the president of the European Central Bank and…