ZAGREB, April 10, 2018 - Croatia sees a partner country in Finland and is counting on more intensive cooperation within the European Union, and the two countries could also cooperate in the protection of the Arctic region, Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović said on Tuesday after meeting with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto.
The two countries can do a lot in international cooperation, notably within the EU, Grabar-Kitarović told reporters and Niinisto agreed. He is on a two-day visit to Croatia, his first trip abroad in his new term.
At the start of 2020, Croatia will take over from Finland the presidency over the EU and we wish to build a programme which will have continuity and strengthen the EU and European values, Grabar-Kitarović said, adding that the programme would focus on youth, employment, EU growth, the growth of the EU's global role and of Europe's connectivity. She said EU enlargement would be an important part of Croatia's EU presidency and that she was pleased Finland supported enlargement.
Finland has always supported EU enlargement, but it's necessary to meet the requirements, of course, Niinisto said, adding that Finland saw Croatia's role in Southeast Europe as a positive model for other countries.
As for areas in which cooperation could be strengthened, Grabar-Kitarović mentioned the Three Seas Initiative, the Baltic Initiative, projects between Finland and Scandinavian and Baltic countries, and the continuation of cooperation in twinning projects.
The time has come for Croatia and Finland to act together, notably in Southeast Europe, in twinning projects which will give us the experience necessary to help our neighbours strengthen their state administrations, align with all requirements and implement all the reforms necessary for EU membership, she said, adding that joint projects with third states, notably Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro, were very important.
We will be very pleased to continue the twinning projects with you in the Balkans, said Niinisto.
Grabar-Kitarović also underlined stronger cooperation in education and science. The experience with the curricular reform is extremely useful to Croatia for the modernisation of its whole education system, from kindergarten to university, where a whole person is made and where the emphasis is on social skills, creative thinking and coping in the modern world, she said, adding that education must align with the modern labour market.
Finland implemented its curricular reform 40 years ago and its education is among the best in the world.
Grabar-Kitarović went on to say that the Arctic region was becoming increasingly interesting, also due to climate change, and that Croatia's cooperation with Finland and other countries should be aimed at protecting the Arctic. Our scientists and institutions can contribute a lot and our experience in exploring the Adriatic can be useful, she said.
The state of the environment in the Arctic is key from the global perspective. The Arctic is a global issue and I welcome your interest and offer of cooperation in that region, said Niinisto.
The two presidents agreed that economic cooperation could and must be better in trade and investments, notably in IT. Croatia is well-known in Finland, not just for football and the country's beauty, but also because of Finnish tourists, said Niinisto.
