As Morski writes on the 16th of August, 2020, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic is pleased with how tourism is going given the less than favourable situation we've found ourselves in as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

''We can be very pleased with how the entire tourist season has been going,'' said Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, who was in Trsat recently for a celebration.

He pointed out that most of the tourism workers who worked on analysing the predictions and projections for the season had no idea that it would be this good. The results have been above all expectations and that was our key interest, reports HRT.

"That means we did a good job of dancing the dance of closure, as well as opening up in time and taking action," Andrej Plenkovic said.

He said that the increased number of people who have become infected with the new coronavirus in the past few weeks was expected given the large number of people staying in Croatia currently. He emphasised that the message to young people all the time was to adhere to all of the epidemiological measures, but that "all this usually happens when the brakes loosen up a little".

Commenting on the announcement of the introduction of measures for Croatia from Slovenia and Austria, he said that on Friday he was in contact with the prime ministers of those countries who are also monitoring their statistics, the number of people who came home from being on holiday and that they are most afraid of the infection beginning to spread through schools as kids return to the classroom.

He assessed that Croatia opened up in time.

''We've done a good job in regard to tourism and I believe that there will be many more arrivals,'' he said.

''Don't forget what the predictions were, I said that we played a great game in the first half, as far as coronavirus is concerned. Back then, the disease was much more deadly. It wasn’t that long ago, we can remember the pictures from Italy. Most of the infected people who brought the virus to us came from Italy and Austria. It was a much more serious situation then than it is now. Croatia defeated coronavirus in the first half, and as far as preparations for the autumn are concerned, everyone should be very vigilant,'' he said.

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July 26, 2020 - A lot is already publicly known about the new Croatian government, although its ministers are yet to be officially announced. Who will be the new ministers? 

From what we've been able to read in the media so far, the new government will have three first-time ministers, people less known to the Croatian public as they haven't been in the political spotlight in the previous administrations. Jutarnji list writes about those three new ministers in Andrej Plenković's government: Nikolina Brnjac, Boris Milošević, Nataša Tramišak. Let's find out more about them, as the final preparations for Andrej Plenković's meeting with President Zoran Milanović take place. In that meeting, the President will give Plenković the mandate to form the new government. 

There was a lot of talk about Nikolina Brnjac as a minister in the Croatian government whenever there were any changes at any number of ministries since Plenković has been in charge. It's often said that she's one of "his people," and the fact that she joined the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) when he became President in 2016 confirms the bond between them. She's been the state secretary in two different ministries in the previous term: Ministry of the sea, traffic and infrastructure, where she left because of numerous disagreements with minister Butković, and after that, she went to the Foreign Ministry, where she was given an essential diplomatic role during the Croatian presidency, although she had no diplomatic experience. She was born in 1979, has a Ph.D. in traffic sciences. She is expected to head the newly-formed Ministry of tourism, youth, and sports. She held the eighth position on the HDZ slate for the elections, in IV election district, and got 552 preferential votes there, not winning a Parliament seat. 

We've gotten used to the minority representatives in Croatia supporting whoever is forming the government, and once in a while, they even get a seat at the big table. This Andrej Plenković cabinet will be such a cabinet, with the position of Deputy Prime Minister for social activity and human rights created just to seat a minority representative. Boris Milošević will get that position, an experienced politician, born in 1974 in Šibenik, a representative for the Serbian minority. He's a lawyer who's already served in two administrations, both time as deputy Minister of Public Administration (interesting tidbit: once in an SDP government, and once in HDZ-Most government). He's also the President of the Serbian National Council, where he took over after 22 years of Milorad Pupovac's presidency. He got 7.715 votes at the election. 

The least known to the general public among the three is Nataša Tramišak, a 38-year-old lawyer from Osijek, who's spent most of her career working in regional development and EU funds, so it's highly appropriate that she's about to become a minister dealing with these topics. She hasn't always been an HDZ member; before she joined, she ran for Antunović municipality position as a member of heavily right-wing HSP in 2009, along with Ivan Anušić, who has since become an HDZ vice-president. She's worked in Osijek-Baranja County as a person in charge of investments and EU funds, where she's proven herself to be a very successful workaholic, always on top of any project she's in charge of.

If it turns out someone else is named to the Government position for the first time, we will update this article with information about the other new minister (there is still uncertainty on who will be the next Education and Science Minister).

July 16, 2020 - The new government of Andrej Plenkovic should have 16 departments, and it will have four vice presidents in addition to the prime minister. The new government will also be much younger, with an average age of 46. 

Jutarnji List reports that the youngest ministers will be Ivan Malenica, who has not yet turned 35, and Josip Aladrovic (35), while the oldest is Gordan Grlic Radman, who is 62 years old. There will be at least four women in the government.

Davor Bozinovic will continue being Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, and Zdravko Maric Minister of Finance. The new vice president for national security will be Croatian Defense Minister Tomo Medved.

From the national minorities, which with their eight deputies are the second strongest partner in the new ruling majority, SDSS's Boris Milosevic is coming as Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Human Rights.

All the ministers who remain without positions in the Government, namely Vesna Bedekovic, Marko Pavic, Gari Cappelli and Drazen Bosnjakovic, will be members of Parliament.

As Jutarnji already unofficially announced, the Ministry of Demography, Family, Youth and Social Policy could be divided between three departments. The Ministry of Health, which will continue to be headed by Vili Beros, could be joined by the Ministry of Social Policy, while the current Ministry of Labor and Pension System, headed by Josip Aladrovic, should be joined by a section covering family and demography. However, this is not yet the final decision because Aladrovic may eventually have the social welfare department.

The 'new' Ministry of Tourism should be called the Ministry of Tourism, Youth and Sports, and it will be headed by Nikolina Brnjac.

Brnjac was also mentioned as a possible candidate for the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds, but in the end, it was decided that Natasa Tramisak, the current head of the Administrative Department for Investments, Development Projects and EU Funds in Osijek-Baranja County, should take over from Marko Pavic. She is also the only candidate of Slavonian HDZ members who had to get at least one ministry, considering their result in the elections in Slavonia.

Either the Ministry of Regional Development or the Ministry of Agriculture is in the game, which will continue to be led by Marija Vuckovic.

Mario Banozic will no longer be the Minister of State Property but will become the new Minister of Defense after Damir Krsticevic resigned, while the department of state property will be merged with the Ministry of Construction and Physical Planning, headed by the current Minister of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Crafts, Darko Horvat.

The Department of Economy will merge with the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Tomislav Coric will be the head of this mega-ministry.

The departments of justice and administration will also merge. The new Ministry of Justice and Administration will be headed by the current Minister of Administration, Ivan Malenica. Gordan Grlic Radman is the new-old Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Oleg Butkovic remains in the position of Minister of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure, while Nina Obuljen Korzinek will continue to head the Ministry of Culture.

Only the question of the new Minister of Science and Education remains open. It was speculated that Radovan Fuchs would take over the ministry, then that it might be led by the current assistant Ivana Franic. HDZ/EPP MEP Tomislav Sokol was mentioned as a possible candidate, and the latest information is that it could be Mato Njavro, vice dean of the Zagreb School of Economics and Management.

But all these speculations were unofficially denied by the Government, and that remains the only open question.

On Wednesday, Andrej Plenkovic and his HDZ associates held a working lunch at the well-known Zagreb restaurant Baltazar with the new ruling majority. All representatives of minorities were present at lunch - the president of HSLS Dario Hrebak, the president of HNS Predrag Stromar and the president of the Reformists Radimir Cacic.

The last meeting in Baltazar in a similar composition was held in September last year when Milan Bandic threatened not to support the budget, and even then, the Prime Minister said that he would like to continue cooperation in the next term with those who enter Parliament. 

At the working lunch, the Prime Minister spoke to the partners about the new architecture of the Government, presented the further dynamics of events until the constitution of the Parliament and the new Government, and about the Government's program. Namely, separate agreements will not be signed with the coalition partners, but their ideas and demands will be heard and what is logical will be incorporated into the joint program of the Government.

"The conversation took place in an excellent atmosphere and we talked about the cooperation so far and everything we have achieved together in the first term. I also presented the dynamics of this and next week. After the official election results are announced on Thursday, I will have a meeting with the President of the Republic, and after I get the mandate to form the Government, he and the Speaker of Parliament will agree on the first constituent session scheduled for next week," said Plenkovic after lunch. He added that it is first a matter of voting on systemic laws on the new government, and then a vote of confidence in the government. The constituent session of the Parliament is planned for July 22 in the Parliament building, and the next day, Thursday, a vote of confidence in the Government will be held. There will be no parliamentary sessions on Friday.

SEC President Đuro Sessa will bring the final results of the presidential election to Pantovcak on Thursday at 11 am, and then at 11:30 am, Plenkovic will come with 76 signatures, and the President will entrust him with the mandate to form the Government at around 12 noon.

The Prime Minister said that on Thursday he would announce the structure of the new government and the number of ministries, and on Monday, after the session of the HDZ Presidency, he would also announce the names of the new-old ministers.

"We have drafted the Government's program based on our "Safe Croatia" program, we will consult with partners to see what their programs are and we will incorporate all this into the joint program of the Government," said Plenkovic.

He also said that the partners would participate in the form of state secretaries in the government.

To read more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 7th of July, 2020, when asked what the turning point in the election was, Andrej Plenkovic said that several elements had been dealt with and that most of Croatia's voters were aware of the achievements [his government] made in its previous term, which was both difficult and challenging.

''We don't have much time to celebrate,'' HDZ President Andrej Plenkovic said for HRT Dnevnik, announcing, among other things, his plan for the reduction of the number of ministries.

Plenkovic said that the celebration after the recent parliamentary elections in which the HDZ won a convincing victory was short lived.

''We don't have much time to celebrate. There are a lot of people who are asking the Government and Parliament to act,'' said Plenkovic, who announced earlier that they have the support of 76 deputies to win a parliamentary majority.

Plenkovic said that they received support in principle from the representatives of minorities, the Reformists and the HNS, but that there was no discussion about the composition of the Government in terms of personnel or departments. When asked whether he would reduce the number of ministries, he answered in the affirmative.

''We have clearly stated that in our Safe Croatia programme. We're holding consultations on how to adjust the future departments in the most functional, most efficient way, but you'll need to allow us a few more days to consult about it among ourselves,'' said Plenkovic.

As the first steps, among other things, he announced a reduction in income tax, profit tax, and quite remarkably, on VAT on all food…

Plenkovic pointed out that the HDZ won in nine of the eleven constituencies, in two they came second, third and eighth, and they achieved the historically best result.

Asked what the turning point in the election was, he said that several elements had been dealt with and that most voters were aware of the achievements his government made in their previous term, which was difficult and challenging.

''I'm sure that there were mistakes made, but despite that, we did everything we could and knew how to in Croatia's interest. The results were there,'' Plenkovic said.

He said that they had won 23 seats in four Zagreb units, the same as back in 2016, but that this time they had managed to win the left-wing coalition in all units.

Speaking about the reconstruction of Zagreb following the devastating earthquake that hit back in March this year, he said that he would try to find a formula through which they could systematically restore and strengthen many buildings that were damaged.

As for the coronavirus pandemic, he stated once again that it is best to be responsible.

''HDD: hygiene, disinfection and distancing. These are the three elements that will best prevent the spread of the infection,'' said Plenkovic, especially appealing to younger people.

He pointed out that the number of hospitalised people with coronavirus is much lower now than it was back in March and that the number of patients on respirators is now very small.

For more on Croatian politics, follow our dedicated section.

June 24, 2020 - The president of the Croatian Tennis Federation, Nikolina Babic, spoke about the coronavirus outbreak at the Adria Tour in Zadar.

Index.hr reports that Nikolina Babic is a member of political party HDZ, and at one time, she was in parliament for 13 days as Darko Horvat's deputy. Babic called in on Skype because she was self-isolating

Babic told Index that, despite following all the recommendations of keeping a two-meter distance indoors and contact that did not last longer than 15 minutes, she went into self-isolation.

"This was a big organization and there was a great desire to organize a tournament in Zadar and Croatia, and to present it with popular players. We did everything in good faith, but what happened, happened," she said.

She also answered the question of why they didn't ensure that matches were monitored according to the regulations?

"We sold tickets according to the recommendation, in all our speeches, we asked the spectators to adhere to the regulations and distances. I don’t know exactly how many tickets were sold, I think about a third. The players themselves were not in contact with other actors, and I'm talking about 15 minutes, the players stopped, took photos, went on, the most threats were among themselves," she said.

She added that there were security guards on the Tour who kept order and disinfectants and that they adhered to the measures.

"There were more than 100 of them, and there were disinfectants everywhere, we adhered to the measures. The virus is among us and will be among us. Life will not stop, and first of all, we must protect ourselves and everything around us. This was all outdoors and there was certainly less risk to it. In other parts of Croatia, there are many more infected without such an event," she added.

She also said the measures did not require tennis players to be tested earlier.

"The measures that were in Croatia did not require it, as foreigners who come to Croatia are not obliged to be tested. If it weren't for Dimitrov, a tennis player, a star, there wouldn't be such tension and a story about this tournament. Of course, it happened that a famous player was infected. Zadar was 'alive', everyone thanked us, the caterers, bookings were full, a nice presentation was given, but unfortunately, what happened happened," she added.

She also commented on Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, who is not in self-isolation.

“Okay, I mean, we know what close contact is, longer than 15 minutes indoors at less than two meters. I was with the Prime Minister from when he arrived to when he left. He really wasn't in any close contact with the tennis players, that is, with Djokovic, except for the picture with Djokovic circulating where he patted him on the shoulder for 30 seconds. 

I'm sorry, if it weren't for the elections, Zadar wouldn't have the connotation it has ... Political targets for political purposes… it's certainly not good and I'm extremely sorry. From the very beginning, the Prime Minister adhered to regulations and measures and guards and watches. Certainly, and considering his function, he cannot be in self-isolation, as he is really very exclusive in that," she said. The journalist interrupted Babic, saying that he did not agree.

Babic added that she was in self-isolation because she had been in Zadar all week and that she was doing it preventively, and that she herself would not have been in self-isolation if she had been in contact with the tennis player for five or ten minutes.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, May 29, 2020 - Commenting on the arrests of state officials, including Croatian Forests CEO Krunoslav Jakupcic and Public Administration Ministry State Secretary Josipa Rimac of the HDZ party, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Friday that nobody was above the law and that one had to put an end to corruption.

"I know about it from what police have reported. In any case, this is an operation of independent prosecutorial and police authorities, as it should be," Plenkovic told Media Servis, an agency specialising in making radio programmes, which published parts of its interview with Plenkovic on its web site.

"If the investigation proves that someone has committed a criminal offence, they should answer for it, regardless of their identity and party affiliation. No one can be above the law and our message is clear: An end must be put to corruption," said Plenkovic.

He added that a continued and uncompromising fight against corruption was part of his personal, his government's and the HDZ's policy.

ZAGREB, May 28, 2020 - By amending the decision which temporarily banned crossing the border, Croatia will enable the entry of citizens of Slovenia, Hungary, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany and Poland, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Thursday.

"According to our comparative analysis of the epidemiological situation, those are the countries with either similar progress as Croatia or the trends are such that we can adopt such a decision and enable the arrival of those countries' citizens during the tourist season, with the appropriate epidemiological recommendations and the special application that has already been made," Plenkovic said at a cabinet meeting.

As the situation improves, the group of countries whose citizens can come to Croatia will expand, he added.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

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May 28, 2020 -It's official - the 305th Sinjska Alka will be held on August 9, 2020. 

Dalmacija Danas reports that a meeting was held on Wednesday in the Croatian Parliament, where the President of the Croatian Parliament Gordan Jandroković received the Mayor of the City of Sinj Kristina Križanac and a delegation of the Knights of Alkar Society, led by the President of the VAD Stipe Jukić.

At the meeting, they informed President Jandroković about the preparations for the 305th Sinjska Alka, which will take place on August 9, 2020, thanked him for his many years of support, and sent him an invitation to this year's Alka festivities.

On the same day, a meeting was held in Banski dvori, where Prime Minister Andrej Plenković received the Mayor of Sinj Kristina Križanac and a delegation of the Knights of Alkar Society Sinj led by President Stipe Jukić and Alkar Duke Boško Ramljak. At the meeting, the Government was informed about the preparations for this year's 305th Sinj Alka.

The Mayor and the VAD delegation thanked the Government and Prime Minister Plenković for the financial support so far in the implementation of projects important for the functioning of the Alkar Society, as well as the continuous financial assistance related to the work of the Sinjska Alka Museum and Alkar Stud Farm.

Prime Minister Plenković expressed his gratitude to the City of Sinj and the Knights of Alka Society and emphasized that by supporting the Sinj Alka we jointly promote Croatian cultural heritage, values and national identity and that the Government will continue to support the City of Sinj and the Sinj Alka through the Ministry of Culture and other departments.

Along with the Mayor of Sinj Kristina Križanac and the President of the Knights of Alkar Society Stipe Jukić, both meetings with the President of the Parliament and the Prime Minister were attended by the Guardian of the Shrine of Our Lady of Sinj Fr. Ante Čovo, Deputy President of VAD Dinko Bošnjak, arambaša Ivo Vukasović, member of the Board of Directors of VAD Igor Vidalina and member of the Court of Honor Tomislav Župić, as well as the President of the Supervisory Board of VAD Hrvoje Markulin.

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

May 19, 2020 - For German national newspaper Die Welt, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic spoke about the upcoming season, how Croatia has dealt with the corona crisis, and the Croatian presidency of the EU.

Novi List reports that Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic expressed in an interview with the daily Die Welt hope that this year's tourist season will still be successful, after Zagreb responded well to the crisis related to the coronavirus pandemic with a relatively small number of infections.

Currently, Croatia, as he said for Monday's issue of the German newspaper, is in the phase of testing measures for the gradual elimination of restrictions in the hospitality industry.

"We are currently looking at how it works in practice. And I am sure that before the summer season we will gather many good practical experiences," said the Croatian Prime Minister.

He expressed confidence that the number of newly infected will not increase during the summer if everyone continues to adhere to the measures, and expressed hope that this season will be successful. He added that the same number of tourists is not expected as last year.

Explaining the relatively low number of infections in Croatia, he pointed out that Croatia “has been closely monitoring developments in China since January 8. And at the end of the same month, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, I talked to the president of the World Health Organization, and even then, it was clear to me that this could be dangerous. "

He concluded that all measures against the spread of the coronavirus were "clearly communicated" to the citizens, but added that the credit also lay with the citizens who followed the instructions.

"I am impressed because our mind is actually Mediterranean. But during the pandemic, we behaved more like northern Europeans," said Plenković, who also pointed to the long tradition of healthcare in Croatia.

Plenković emphasized that the Croatian presidency of the EU was different than expected due to the pandemic, but also that some results had been achieved, of which he pointed out the opening of accession negotiations with Albania and Northern Macedonia.

"Through political and diplomatic efforts, we have changed the position of some rather influential members. That will be remembered as historical merit of Croatia for its neighbors," said Plenković.

He also concluded that the European Union must maintain its presence in the region so that it does not fall under the influence of other powers.

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, May 18, 2020 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic did not enter parliament via the main entrance on Monday to attend a meeting of his HDZ's bench but did leave through it, booed by those who spent the night outside to protest against parliament dissolving without passing a law on Zagreb's post-earthquake reconstruction.

As he was leaving, Plenkovic was briefly stopped by Tomislav Tomasevic, leader of the We Can! platform, who asked him why Construction Minister Predrag Stromar had said that the bill would be ready in two weeks, yet two months had passed since the earthquake, and what the problem was.

Plenkovic said he gave a statement on that to the press in parliament and that there was no point in repeating it given that because of the noisy protest, he could not be heard.

As he was walking to the government, one protester asked him why he was "dissolving parliament if the people of Zagreb have no place to live," adding that they were hungry and faced enforcement procedures.

One of the protest leaders, Vili Matula, urged the prime minister over a megaphone to conduct the first public consultation in Croatia and asked him how he would justify the fact that tens of thousands of Zagreb's residents had lost their homes in the March quake.

Plenkovic walked from parliament to the government amid booing, asked "Why are you running away" and told "Bandic, HDZ, enough of trade-offs," a reference to Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandic.