June the 14th, 2022 - Croatian Tourism Minister Nikolina Brnjac has announced a massive payout totalling 1.25 billion kuna for Croatia's most important economic branch.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the Ministry of Tourism and Sport has opened an e-consultation on a public call/invitation for grants entitled "Strengthening the competitiveness of enterprises and encouraging the green and digital transition of the tourism sector", worth 1.25 billion kuna, it was announced on Saturday.

Minister Nikolina Brnjac said that the aim of the call was to direct as much money as possible to tourism companies, meaning that a significant 60 percent of the total amount provided for tourism under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NPOO), or 1.25 billion kuna, is intended directly for investments in the private investment.

"Of that, 1.02 billion kuna is intended for high value-added investment projects such as accommodation facilities and accompanying facilities such as theme and amusement parks and other innovative content in tourism, which will truly transform the Republic of Croatia into a year-round tourist destination," explained Minister Nikolina Brnjac.

She also noted that all interested parties (enterprises, companies) will be able to apply for the public call/invitation under equal conditions, but also that the criterion for selecting projects will be their quality and readiness for implementation, since the deadline for using the funds is the end of 2025.

Given the last two pandemic-dominated years which had an unprecedented and extremely negative effect on the economy, and as such on travel and tourism which accounts for as much as 20 percent of the country's GDP, announcements such as this one will provide an extremely welcome spring in the step of all those companies operating within the sector.

Consultation with the interested public on this public call will remain open until the end of this month, more specifically until the 27th of June, 2022.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated business section.

June the 14th, 2022 - The beginning of the Hvar main tourist season has been excellent so far, with the Suncani Hvar hotel chain rubbing their hands with satisfaction.

With two pandemic-dominated years causing issues and very valid concerns among all those working within the country's most economically powerful sector - tourism, continuing news about excellent tourist numbers during the pre-season and now during the beginning of the height of the summer season are more than welcome.

As Morski writes, things are looking great for the Hvar main tourist season, as there are 1,200 tourists in the aforementioned company's hotels, reservations so far have been very good, and June so far is better than the pre-pandemic June of 2019.

The current visitors to the beautiful island of Hvar come from all over Europe, including Spain, Britain, and Germany. Tourists accustomed to inflation in their own countries are no longer bothered by the current higher Croatian prices, and they aren't complaining about ferry ticket prices or about prices in restaurants and cafes.

''The prices are completely fair,'' said one tourist.

''Hotel occupancy is over 90 percent, most guests at the moment have come from the markets of the United States, Great Britain and other European countries, and in principle they are all guests of higher purchasing power. They stay 3 to 4 days, they like to eat and drink well and they also like excursions and boats,'' explained one employee of the Suncani Hvar hotel chain.

While Hvar has been doing well to gradually begin moving away from its title of the ''Croatian Ibiza'', this Central Dalmatian island continues to be a mecca of good fun. Nightclubs and beach bars are still recovering from the coronavirus-induced damage and are expanding when it comes to their offer.

Everything is ready for another Hvar main tourist season during which this popular island will surely be at the top of various top destinations, both in a global and European sense.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

June 14, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as 29 weekly LOT Croatia flights from Poland will run this summer. 

LOT Polish Airlines has finalized its summer flight schedule to Croatia by announcing a new, third route to Rijeka and increasing weekly operations between Zagreb and Warsaw, reports Croatian Aviation. 

The Star Alliance Group group member will operate 9 international routes from Poland to 5 Croatian airports at the peak of the summer season, namely to Rijeka, Zadar, Split, Dubrovnik, and Zagreb.

The largest number of weekly operations has been announced between Warsaw and Zagreb, where the airline's aircraft will operate 13 times a week, twice a day every day except Monday. Thus, LOT in Zagreb returned to almost the same number of flights as before the pandemic.

LOT already operates to Rijeka from Warsaw, once a week, and at the beginning of July, there are two more lines, from Zielona Góra (Sundays) and Rzeszów (Tuesdays).

Two lines have been announced to Zadar. From Warsaw once a week (on Saturdays) and from Rzeszów, also on Saturdays, from June 18.

On the line between Warsaw and Split, LOT will operate three times a week this summer, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Sundays, and Boeing 737-800 aircraft have also been announced on this line.

LOT will connect Warsaw and Dubrovnik on a daily basis, and will additionally operate on the line between Dubrovnik and Krakow (every Saturday). 

“Last year, we transported over 33,000 Poles to Croatia, and we hope for a much better result this year. I also hope that Croats will visit Poland in greater numbers," said the carrier’s CEO, Rafał Milczarski for Ex Yu Aviation at the beginning of June. 

"Croatia is becoming more and more popular among our passengers each year and is becoming of interest for travelers outside of Warsaw as well. As we continue to increase our offer, both Zagreb and Croatia as a whole are becoming popular for short weekend breaks as well," he added.

“Our performance in Croatia is the result of consistent work by our team as well as the growing popularity of Croatia in Poland and the increasing number of Poles who want to come to Croatia within two hours," said LOT Board Member for Commercial Affairs, Michal Fijoł.  

Overall, 29 weekly flights is a smaller number of operations compared to the 2019 summer flight schedule.

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

June 14th, 2022 - The EU extends COVID certificate regulations, which are intended to facilitate the free movement of people during the pandemic, until June 30th, 2023. Using a QR code, the certificate can be used to prove whether a person has been vaccinated against, tested negative for, or has recovered from COVID-19.

The European Parliament and European governments agreed Monday night that the COVID certification rules will remain in place for the next 12 months because the coronavirus disease pandemic is still ongoing, reports Večernji List.

Representatives of the European Parliament and EU governments have agreed to extend the regulation until June 30, 2023, the French presidency of the EU Council said, adding that the regulation could be revoked before that deadline if the health situation allows.

The certificates are intended to facilitate the free movement of people during a pandemic. Using a QR code, the certificate can be used to prove whether a person has been vaccinated against coronavirus, tested negative for coronavirus, or has recovered from COVID-19.

The digital version can be saved to a mobile device. In February, the European Commission proposed extending the covid certification regulation.

"The virus that causes covid-19 is still prevalent in Europe and at this stage, it is not possible to determine the impact of the possible spread of the infection in the second half of 2022 or the emergence of new variants.", the European Commission said in a statement.

The extension of the regulation allows passengers to continue to use their covid certificate if the Member States maintain certain public health measures.

When it comes to yesterday's coronavirus cases in Croatia, in the last 24 hours there were 19 new cases of the infection with coronavirus, and currently, there are 1,655 active cases in the country, Croatia's COVID-19 crisis management team reported.

For everything you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, bookmark our dedicated section and select your preferred language if it isn't English.

June 14, 2022 - Croatia will kick off the next round of 2023 FIBA World Cup qualifiers against Slovenia away and Finland at home later this month. Croatia will have its NBA starts available for both matches. 

At the end of June, a new qualifying round for the 2023 FIBA World Cup will begin, which will be played in Japan, Indonesia, and the Philippines next year. Croatia will play an away match in Slovenia and a home match against Finland in Rijeka.

June 30, 2022, at 20:15 Slovenia - CROATIA (Arena Stožice, Ljubljana)
July 3, 2022, at 20:00 CROATIA - Finland (Zamet Center, Rijeka)

Coach Damir Mulaomerović led Croatia in the last cycle in February, when the national team recorded a defeat and a victory against Sweden. With that victory, Croatia remains in the race for a spot at the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

Coach Damir Mulaomerović has shortened the previously published list of players for the national team, and 17 players will participate in the preparations that start on June 15 (NBA players will join later due to NBA rules). 

"There were a lot of unknowns about playing NBA players, and in the meantime, we got confirmation that they can train from June 27 onwards, so only three days before the game. So we have a wider list, and all the players deserve to be on it. From that base, we will select those who will come to the preparations on June 15. So we will invite a few more players because we will not be able to use NBA players until the 27th. Of course, we will also watch who finished the competitions and refresh some guys and I hope that as many of us as possible will come to the initial gathering. We have certain problems because, for example, Karlo Matković is in training in the NBA, but we will solve some problems on the fly and soon publish a short list of players for preparations in Opatija," said coach Mulaomerović on June 7. 

Croatia player list:

• Roko Rogić
• Goran Filipović
• Lovro Gnjidić
• Mate Kalajžić
• Bojan Bogdanović
• Mario Hezonja
• Sven Smajlagić
• Mateo Drežnjak
• Toni Perković
• Ivan Ramljak
• Roko Prkačin
• Dario Drežnjak
• Tomislav Zubčić
• Dragan Bender
• Ivica Zubac
• Ante Toni Žižić
• Karlo Matković

Source: HKS

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated sports section. 

June 14, 2022 - At Monday's press conference in Pula, Ivica Tucak determined 13 players who will represent Croatia at the 2022 World Water Polo Championships in Hungary in one week. 

Recall, the Croatia water polo team began its cycle of preparations in Pula before they leave for the World Championships in Hungary from June 18 to July 3. Croatia will play its first game on June 21.

"I made the final decision after much deliberation. Ever since Podgorica and the qualifications for the World League a month ago, I opted for a team like this, a team that is a bit faster, a bit younger, and hopefully more aggressive. We have players who can play both on the right and in the back, those who will, so to speak, "fill" the quota of personal mistakes. I think this team also looked decent in the game in Trieste last Friday against Italy. This is simply the most ideal thing we have," said coach Tucak. 

Croatia and Italy will meet again in a friendly match on June 14 at the Pula City Pool. 

Croatia will start the 2022 World Water Polo Championships in Group B and will play the following schedule: 

June 21: Greece - Croatia (19:30)

June 23: Croatia - Germany (18:00)

June 25: Japan - Croatia (18:00)

Croatia player list for 2022 World Water Polo Championships

Goalkeepers

Marko Bijač

Toni Popadić

Centers

Ivan Krapić (kapetan momčadi)

Josip Vrlić

Defenders

Marko Žuvela

Rino Burić

Attackers

Luka Bukić

Loren Fatović

Ante Vukičević

Konstantin Harkov

Jerko Marinić Kragić

Franko Lazić

Andrija Bašić

Reserves:

Lovro Paparić – center

Ivan Domagoj Zović – attackers

Coaching staff

Ivica Tucak – coach

Zoran Bajić – assistant coach

Jure Marelja – assistant coach

Pero Kuterovac – conditioning coach

Renco Posinković – goalkeeper coach

Igor Pezelj – video analysis

Damir Luketić – physiotherapist

Petar Kopanja – physiotherapist

Dr. Ivan Čurlin – doctor

Recall, defender Hrvoje Benić and goalkeeper Ivan Marcelić were injured already before the preparations, so coach Tucak knew he would travel to the World Championships without these two.

Source: HVS

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated sports section. 

ZAGREB, 13 June 2022 - Defence Minister Mario Banožić said at the 27th edition of the Eurosatory fair in Paris on Monday that the Croatian military industry had become a respectable player on the world market, the Defence Ministry said in a press release.

Banožić and a Defence Ministry delegation visited the Eurosatory defence and security fair in Paris.

In addition to global manufacturers of military equipment and weapons, Banožić toured the exhibition spaces of Croatian defence companies taking part in this year's fair, together with the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, the press release reads.

They have confirmed once again that the Croatian defence industry has become a respectable player on the world market, the defence minister said, adding that the cooperation between domestic companies and the defence ministry has been going on since the 1991-1995 Homeland War.

Banožić noted that this branch of the Croatian economy had become a serious, competitive player on the world market and that Croatia and Croatian soldiers were known in the world for its products.

The Eurosatory fair, launched in 1967, is the leading international air and land defence and security exhibition. It is held every even-numbered year in June at the Paris Nord Villepinte exhibition centre, the Ministry said.

Meeting with Lecornu

The fair was opened by French minister of defence Sébastien Lecornu, with whom Banožić had a bilateral meeting.

The ministers spoke about the current situation caused by the Russian aggression against Ukraine and exchanged views on the current initiatives with the European Union and NATO.

They signed a letter of intent between the two ministries on cooperation within the European Defence Fund (EUF) and expressed satisfaction with strengthening bilateral defence cooperation, which has been significantly increasing since last year's signing of the Strategic Partnership Agreement between Croatia and France, according to the press release.

Banožić and Lecornu exchanged views on the situation in Southeast Europe, notably in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the Croatian minister underscoring the importance of Bosnia and Herzegovina passing an election law that would enable legitimate representation of its constituent peoples in government and institutions.

For more, check out our politics section.

ZAGREB, 13 June 2022 - The 18th Islands of the World Conference - Islands: Nature and Culture, organised within the International Small Islands Studies Association (ISISA), has opened at the University of Zadar, bringing together 120 scientists and other participants from Croatia and nearly all continents.

The programme is extremely rich, University Rector Dijana Vican said in her opening remarks on Monday, noting that small islands would be approached from different scientific points of view.

According to most world classifications, all Croatian islands, which are rich in cultural heritage and various archaeological sites, are small islands. These areas are natural-geographical phenomena that have an important role in modern socio-economic development, especially tourism.

In the last decades, Croatian islands have undergone many negative processes, such as depopulation, population ageing and economic transformation, which have threatened their sustainable development and many important traditional cultural landscapes.

State Secretary Šime Erlić, who opened the conference on behalf of Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, said that islands were of special interest to this government, which didn't mean that all island problems could be resolved easily.

Although the island population has been growing over the past 10 years, due to the pandemic and energy crisis we have reached a moment when life on an island is becoming unbearably difficult. The biggest challenge is to preserve natural heritage and the ecosystem on the one hand, and on the other hand to enable citizens to live in dignity, which means investments and attracting investors, says Erlić.

For more, check out our lifestyle section.