ZAGREB, 12 May 2022 - Croatia has so far taken in 18,000 Ukrainian refugees and the problem with the current energy crisis caused by the Russian aggression is that it is not known how long it will last, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Thursday addressing a conference of young European leaders.
"The problem with this crisis is that nobody knows how long it will last and instruments of control of energy product prices are weak," the PM said in his address at the European Young Leaders (EYL40) conference, speaking about the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
"In fact, we do not have global mechanisms to control prices of energy products," he said, stressing that a common European solution to the crisis was necessary.
Unlike the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected only a fragment of the population, elderly and at-risk groups, the energy crisis is affecting everyone because "99% of human activities" are connected to energy products, he said.
The Zagreb conference was attended by some 40 successful individuals from all around Europe - parliament members, business people, astrophysicists, athletes and artists, among others, including Sarajevo Mayor Benjamina Karić.
Speaking of the Russian aggression, Plenković said few people had expected it to happen and that it was interesting that intelligence data from Western allies had proven "completely precise."
The Russian attack has caused a tragedy for the Ukrainian people, with close to six million having left the country and 13 million having been internally displaced, and, together with the energy crisis, it has caused wider political instability, Plenković said.
"We do not know if the aggression on Ukraine will be the only or the last aggression," he warned, mentioning in that context developments so far in the east of Europe, notably Georgia, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Belarus.
He said that Zagreb's official position is one of full solidarity with Ukraine and that so far 18,000 Ukrainians had arrived in Croatia.
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