ZAGREB, December 17, 2018 - Croatian National Security Council met on Monday to discuss relations with neighbouring countries in light of migration, and it decided to establish cooperation between Croatian security and intelligence agencies and partner services in foreign countries.

A statement issued by the President's Office said that the meeting, the second this year, was convened by President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, who also serves as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.

The Council discussed information security and, with regard to non-classified information, it adopted two decisions and one recommendation for state authorities, mostly to raise the awareness, knowledge and efficiency of state institutions. It also discussed relations with neighbours and migration trends in the region.

The Croatian National Security Council approved cooperation with security and intelligence agencies in partner countries and adopted annual guidelines for the work of the security and intelligence agencies for 2019 and the annual plan for the work of the coordinating body of the homeland security system for next year, the statement said.

Although unofficial sources in the President's Office and the government had previously announced that among the topics to be discussed at the meeting would be the so-called fake text messages affair, there was no mention of it in the statement.

The scandal concerns the fabrication by former police IT specialist Franjo Varga of false text messages between former chief state prosecutor Dinko Cvitan and a judge in the trial of former Dinamo Football Club boss Zdravko Mamić. The purpose of the false correspondence was to show that Cvitan tried to exert pressure on the judge to convict Mamić.

In his deposition to investigators, Varga also spoke about his cooperation with former HDZ leader Tomislav Karamarko and his deputy Milijan Brkić as well as with former Agrokor owner Ivica Todorić and presidential defence and national security adviser Vlado Galić, who had introduced Varga to Karamarko.

Media reports have said that Grabar-Kitarović was also involved in the affair and that she attempted to topple the government of Prime Minister Plenković. She has resolutely dismissed such speculation.

Galić stepped down as presidential adviser last week, citing "moral and ethical reasons", and Grabar-Kitarović accepted his resignation.

Another issue that was to be discussed by the National Security Council was problems surrounding the agreed purchase of F-16 fighter jets from Israel.

More news on the national security issues can be found in our Politics section.

ZAGREB, December 15, 2018 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Friday strongly dismissed accusations that he was involved in "the political game", or political horse-trading, that facilitated the adoption of the Zagreb city budget for 2019 on Thursday.

"I dismiss the accusations... this is now happening on a daily basis, it could almost be a topic here at the European Council, which also discussed disinformation," Plenković said in Brussels where he was attending a two-day summit of EU leaders.

The summit discussed, among other topics, the fight against disinformation campaigns in order to ensure, among other things, fair elections for the European Parliament next spring.

The necessary majority to vote in the Zagreb city budget was secured by three members of opposition parties in the city assembly, who voted for Mayor Milan Bandić's budget proposal even though their parties had decided not to support it. The budget was passed by a two-vote margin.

The three City Assembly members, who tipped the balance in favour of Bandić, were expelled from their respective parties amid accusations that they supported the budget in exchange for personal benefits.

Pointing the finger at Mayor Bandić and Prime Minister Plenković, the opposition said that this was a political trade-off and mutual securing of the majority in the national parliament and the city assembly.

Plenković also commented on the resignation of President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović's advisor on national security, Vlado Galić, and speculation that another of her advisors, Mate Radeljić, would leave in January as well.

"The President chose her advisors on her own, I presume that she also makes decisions to relieve them of duty or accept their resignations on her own," he said when asked if those officials had become a burden to Grabar-Kitarović considering that they were being mentioned in the context of the fake text message scandal, and whether the HDZ had made its support to Grabar-Kitarović's campaign for the next presidential term conditional on their departure.

More news about the latest events in Croatian politics can be found in our special section.

ZAGREB, Dec 13 (Hina) - The heads of state or government of the 28 member-states of the European Union convened in Brussels on Thursday for a two-day EU summit which will be dominated by Britain's departure from the EU after Prime Minister Theresa May managed to delay a vote on the Brexit deal in the British parliament.

"We would like to hear the position of Prime Minister Theresa May. Obviously, she is coming with the proposal that she should be given additional assurances. We think that the Brexit deal is really good, and now a lot of political effort is necessary to bring the deal to a conclusion. If that does not happen, the UK can request a prolongation of the deadline, so that a 'hard Brexit' does not take effect immediately after 29 March next year," Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said in Brussels on Thursday evening.

"Anyway, because of this unnecessary referendum on Brexit, which was a defamatory and in many aspects a fake campaign, now the whole of Europe and especially the UK have a problem," Plenković said.

Other topics on the agenda are the proposed multiannual financial framework for the 2021-2027 period, which the European Commission delivered in early May, as well as migrations, the euro area reform and the fight against fake news.

More news about Croatia’s position on Brexit can be found in our Politics section.

Amid rumours that the finance minister, Zdravko Marić, is set to step down from his position within the Croatian Government as soon as next month, PM Andrej Plenković has been having his refusal to outright deny the claims scrutinised, with some believing that this means Marić's departure was imminent and due to take place in early 2019. It seems however, that Marić isn't going anywhere.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 9th of December, 2018, HDZ President and PM Andrej Plenković said on Saturday that Finance Minister Zdravko Maric isn't going to leave the government.

"There will be no departure," Plenković told journalists after the he was questioned about whether or not he'd talked to Marić himself about his alleged departure from the cabinet before the end of his mandate, as was being circulated by some media outlets.

The Prime Minister, upon being questioned about the criticisms of controversial SDSS President Milorad Pupovac regarding recent arrests in Vukovar, said that he didn't listen to that press conference, adding that the current government is not interfering with the work of the police or with the work of DORH in any manner whatsoever.

He pointed out, in order to quell people's natural suspicions that "there are no invisible political hands" holding any influence over this process.

When asked about the elections for the European Parliament, PM Andrej Plenković stated that the party would be "almost sure" on their own and that at least five mandates can be expected. "We'll win convincingly in those elections," he said briefly.

Concerning the controversy around the procurement of Israeli F-16 aircraft, Plenković reiterated that everything that the Republic of Croatia did in this process was done systematically, thoroughly, and in fine detail, and that open issues, if there are any, exist solely between Israel and the United States of America, and are nothing to do with Croatia or the part Croatia played in the process.

He confirmed that he visited Zagreb's mayor Milan Bandić was taken to hospital yesterday morning, adding that Bandić claims to be feeling good and that he believes that he will recover and be back on his feet quickly.

Make sure to follow our dedicated politics page for more on PM Andrej Plenković, the Croatian Government, and updates from both domestic and European politics in Croatia.

Neither Prime Minister Plenković nor Zdravko Marić himself have come out and actually denied the rumours about the Croatian finance minister's potential departure from the government.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 8th of December, 2018, although no one has officially confirmed this, some claim that a quick analysis of the statements made by both Prime Minister Plenković and Zdravko Marić himself suggest that it is apparently ''almost certain'' that the longtime Croatian finance minister is set to leave his government position.

This information has begun circulating at a very inconvenient time and amid quite a bit of controversy, given the fact that Zdravko Marić's older sister has been promoted in HANFA, which is ironically the organisation investigating the finance minister for his activities during the height of Agrokor saga, which still isn't over. Good timing you say? You're right.

To quickly recall, this isn't the first time the Croatian finance minister has fallen out of favour in such a public manner. Marić used to work at Agrokor before taking on his government position, and as more and more came to light in regard to Agrokor's messy story, many began to suspect that he knew much more than he was letting on about the crimes which allegedly took place under the gigantic company's former owner, Ivica Todorić.

Despite having held strong to his statement of innocence and managing to survive this political test, ultimately retaining his position, the cloud of suspicion surrounding him never truly went away, it only engulfed Martina Dalić instead, the fomer deputy PM, who became a welcome distraction for the minister tormented by his past.

Regardless of the passage of time and the stepping down of Martina Dalić, the curse of the former Agrokor crisis has come knocking at Croatian finance minister's door once again, and this time it looks like he won't be getting off quite as lightly.

Upon being asked, Prime Minister Plenković's response has been scrutinised deeply, and for some it could be concluded that the Croatian finance minister's time is up, purely and simply because the he did not deny it when asked, writes Večernji list.

Similarly, Marić didn't deny it himself, either. The question now is not only who would potentially replace Marić in the government, but whether or not this could potentially be a chance for the reconstruction of the current government.

While unconfirmed, speculation suggests that Marić's departure from the government will take place next month, which would in itself be logical because he has already compiled a budget for next year.

The exact name of the person who either may or definitely replace Marić is still unknown, primarily because this information remains officially unconfirmed. But those speculating have suggested that it could be Tomislav Ćorić, the curent minister of energy and environmental protection, but sources close to the government claim that if he is doing his job well and that such a move would make no real sense. It would also be his third new ministry if it were to occur. So, it seems difficult to imagine Corić taking over Marić's job.

The speculation of potential names continues, despite the fact that the rumours of the current Croatian finance minister leaving his position early next year remain unconfirmed. 

Make sure to stay up to date on this situation and much more on the domestic and European political stage by following our dedicated politics page.

As 24sata writes on the 5th of December, 2018, Ivica Todorić, who was recently released from Remetinec prison following his eyebrow-raising payment of a million euros in bail, which he said was paid by friends, has decided to become politically active. On Wednesday, the 5th of December, 2018, he announced his political engagement once again and used the opportunity to criticise Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and the Croatian Government, according to a report from N1.

We've translated his statement in full below:

''Dear all,

Today, following two years of Andrej Plenković's government, the Republic of Croatia is socially and economically completely destroyed, devastated, we have chaos and a dictatorship, we're seeing the destruction of institutions every day, we're the worst member of the EU, we're last on the list by all indicators, we're at the very bottom!

Today, the Republic of Croatia isn't a country of knowledge, it isn't a country [which respects] the rule of law, it isn't a country which cares about its demographic status, the economic position of its citizens, or the state itself.

At the same time, two years have passed since the launch of the plundering of Agrokor, a monstrous criminal project unseen in history in this part of the EU.

That is precisely the best example of corrupt antinational power, which has plagued the future of the citizens of the Republic of Croatia and has thrown the state on its knees.

I fought alone, and I'm still fighting [armed] with the truth and the facts about the crimes which were carried out over my company, my associates, and over me.

Throughout my life I've been giving to my homeland to Croatia, through the Agrokor project, building a modern, competitive industry that eventually became the largest in this part of the EU.

But now I look upon this dictatorship of Prime Minister Plenković, who pitilessly continues to inflict tremendous damage upon the Republic of Croatia, and who is destroying our homeland and its future.

Exactly because of the desire to change this catastrophic position of the Republic of Croatia, I decided to become politically active!

We in the Republic of Croatia need to gather all the potential of every individual to make the best use of our national wealth - forests, water, land, and our sea, in order to realise our national interests in the most functional way.

The Republic of Croatia must get started and become a country of knowledge that respects the rule of law. Severe, serious reforms and investment cycles need to be initiated literally overnight as [otherwise] it will be too late. Croatia needs to be transformed into the construction site for the future of our children and all citizens.

I'm sure that we will eradicate this corrupt, incompetent, dictatorial authority - to ensure a better future for our homeland of Croatia and for our children.

With respect,

Ivica Todorić''

Make sure to follow our dedicated politics page to stay up to date with the Croatian political scene and all of the former Agrokor boss' political moves.

ZAGREB, December 5, 2018 - The GONG nongovernmental organisation on Wednesday accused Prime Minister Andrej Plenković of "dangerously downplaying" the Conflict of Interest Commission's decision on Finance Minister Zdravko Marić and former Economy Minister Martina Dalić regarding the case of dealing with the crisis surrounding the ailing private Agrokor group.

The Commission decided on Monday that Dalić and Marić had violated the principle of holding public office in the case of the indebted Agrokor food and retail conglomerate. The violation does not carry any penalties.

On Tuesday, Plenković stressed that the Commission did not examine "the concept of conflict of interest" and that it did not find that either Marić or former economy minister Martina Dalić had been in a conflict of interest. “It's very important that this message be understood clearly, based on what and about what exactly the Commission was deciding. The Commission examined solely... the principles of holding office," he told reporters when asked if Marić should resign, as demanded by the opposition.

Plenković's statement prompted the GONG association to accuse the prime minister of showing contempt towards the Commission. It also recalled that Plenković's predecessor as HDZ president Tomislav Karamarko had to step down from the government after the Commission had established that he had been in a conflict of interest when he had advocated Croatia's withdrawal from an arbitration procedure with Hungary's MOL over the leading Croatian oil and gas company INA.

The NGO insisted that the process of the adoption of Lex Agrokor was deeply compromised and that therefore Plenković should be held to account before the Commission.

Finance Minister Marić said on Tuesday he would take legal steps to contest the Conflict of Interest Commission decision under which he violated the principle of holding public office in the Agrokor case.

The leaders of the parliamentary opposition parties GLAS, HSS, IDS and HSS on Tuesday held a news conference at which they said that Marić "must go" following Monday's decision by the Conflict of Interest Commission.

Commenting on the Commission's decision, the leader of the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS), Krešo Beljak, also noted that: "The name of this body is the Conflict of Interest Commission and there was no mention of conflict of interest in its decision. ... If Marić and Dalić were in a conflict of interest, the Commission should have said so, because that would have political consequences such as resignation and the involvement of the State Attorney's Office in this whole affair. The problem is that state institutions are not independent and that's why we have such a lukewarm decision."

The leader of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Davor Bernardić, said that "this government is a conflict of interest."

For more on the conflict of interest issues in Croatia, click here.

ZAGREB, December 4, 2018 - Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković condemned on Tuesday Russian action in Kerch Strait, saying that it was an unacceptable violation of international law.

Tension between Russia and Ukraine has escalated after Russia captured three Ukrainian naval vessels and their crews a week ago as they tried to pass through the Kerch Strait between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. Russia has ignored international calls to release 24 crew members, of whom three have been wounded, claiming that they crossed the Russian border illegally.

"We are concerned about the situation in Ukraine. ... That is unacceptable and contrary to international law," Plenković said in his opening remarks at a Central European Initiative (CEI) summit in Zagreb. "We support all international initiatives to ease tensions, fully supporting Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty," he added.

Security and migration are among the topics to be discussed at the summit, with which Croatia wraps up its year-long presidency of the 18-country regional initiative.

Plenković said that the problem of migration could be tackled effectively only if approached comprehensively, by regulating legal migration and preventing illegal migration.

"We are not a country that has decided to put up physical barriers at the border. Instead, we have deployed 6,500 border police to guard the border, preparing to enter the Schengen system," the Croatian prime minister said.

He said that cooperation with other EU members and the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, known as Frontex, was crucial. "I believe that such an approach can deliver results."

Plenković emphasised the importance of the CEI for the transfer of experience to countries aspiring to join the EU and NATO. "As the youngest member state, we will unselfishly offer all our experience, knowledge and political support," he concluded.

The CEI summit is taking place at the end of Croatia's year-long presidency of the organisation. The main topics discussed are security and economic issues.

Five CEI prime ministers arrived in Zagreb on Monday, but Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Romanian Prime Minister Vasilia Victoria Dancila have left before the summit ended. Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov was not present, although he had announced his attendance.

The CEI was established in Budapest in 1989 with a view to assisting countries in the region in joining the European Union. Of the 18 CEI member states, 10 have joined the EU, five are on track to becoming members of the bloc, while three are members of the Eastern Partnership. The CEI members are: Albania, Austria, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine.

The next CEI president is Italy.

For more on the relations between Croatia and Russia, click here.

The Summit of the Central European Initiative (SEI), which brought together the heads of state of six countries in Zagreb, saw the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, arrive in Croatia. Despite talks between the two leaders, the INA-MOL situation remains without real direction.

As Jadranka Dozan/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 3rd of December, 2018, this opportunity, as was well understood by the involved parties, was also used for bilateral talks between the Hungarian PM and Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković. After the meeting, there were more or less protocol words and a few statements decorated with positive intonations released. The talk, according to Plenković, showed the desire of both countries to continue to develop economic cooperation as well as the good will to overcome existing problems primarily regarding INA and MOL, so as to solve and not further endanger the development of relations in all other areas.

Orban isn't quite as diplomatic as the ever-polished Plenković in his view, and in his opinion it isn't normal that two neighbouring states which look to each other as allies have allowed six or seven years to pass since the last official visits between their respective prime ministers.

"During the last few months, we've conducted numerous negotiations, and today I came to bring our relations back," Orban said, recalling that cooperation with Croatia began back in the 1990s with an advocate in the Hungarian parliament, and underlining the fact that he was a friend of President Franjo Tudjman. This will result in a new dialogue between the two neighbouring governments, it's too early to talk in any real detail, but talks on the energy sector are expected, as well as those over the ongoing INA-MOL situation and the question of Hungary's interest in the LNG terminal project on the island of Krk. Despite the aforementioned, the talks between the two prime ministers certainly weren't focused purely on neighbourly relations in terms of business and energy strategies.

Justice had its part to play in the talks. On the one hand, there is the arbitration dispute at the International Settlement of Dispute Settlements in Washington, and other disputes over the request of the Croatian judiciary for the extradition of Zsolt Hernadí of Hungary's MOL.

From the aspect of energy strategy and business, especially in light of the declarative plan of the Croatian Government on the purchase of MOL's stake in INA, the appearance of Minister Tomislav Ćorić on Sunday was very indicative.

The day before talks with the Hungarian side over the INA-MOL situation were due, Minister Ćorić confirmed that the Croatian Government had not yet signed a contract with the investment advisory consortium for the INA project, which was chosen back in April, after a multi-month process which was characterised by several so-called "extensions".

According to the minister, a contract with a consortium in which Morgan Stanley, Intesa Group and PBZ are involved has not yet been signed owing to the fact that when conversation with them following the initial selection, "points around which there was no complete understanding" arose. Despite this, Minister Ćorić claims that "they're currently being resolved". This raised numerous questions from the side of experts and left them wondering what the situation would be like if international consultants hadn't stepped in.

Meanwhile, there were more meetings between representatives of the Croatian Government and Hungarians, and one can quite easily conclude that these talks were without any real specific focus. Most of the bigger problems appear to lie with the sheer lack of clear views on what strategic goals need to be achieved and in which development segments the Croatian Government intends to place the most emphasis.

As with most things in Croatia, the path to solving the INA-MOL situation is littered with obstacles and appears to be very far from a solution, regardless of the apparent good will on both the Croatian and the Hungarian side.

Make sure to keep up with our business, politics and news pages for more.

Click here for the original article by Jadranka Dozan for Poslovni Dnevnik

ZAGREB, December 3, 2018 - Croatian Prime Minister Plenković and Hungarian Prime Minister Orban said in Zagreb on Monday the only issue burdening relations between the two countries was the management of the Croatian INA oil company, in which Hungary's MOL is a part owner, adding that if MOL were to sell its stake to Croatia, the key point was to agree on the price.

The two prime ministers met ahead of a two-day summit of the Central European Initiative (CEI) in Zagreb and discussed many issues, underscoring that this was Orban's first visit to Zagreb in seven years and an opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations burdened by disagreements over the management of Croatia's largest oil company.

"There is good will on behalf of both the Hungarian and the Croatian government to resolve those problems. What we would like is this problem not to burden relations in other areas," Plenković said.

Asked if Croatia was still willing to buy back MOL's stake in INA, Plenković recalled that on the Croatian side was the government and on the Hungarian side a private company. "The Croatian government's stance has not changed and in the end the key thing is to agree on the price."

Orban underscored that disagreements over an economic issue, which he compared to "a thorn under the nail", could not be more important than centuries of common history between two neighbouring nations. "I really don't know of any economic problem that could be more important or difficult than 800 years of common history."

Orban said "it's not a normal situation between two allied and neighbouring states when a Croatian prime minister hasn't been to Hungary in six years." "Until today's visit, I hadn't been to Croatia for seven years. I came here to change this unnatural situation so that we can bring our relations back to normal. The current situation makes me unhappy," he added.

Orban said it was confirmed at the talks with Plenković that the two countries were "on the same side." "We want a strong Europe. We want to strengthen the cooperation between European nations."

He said Croatian-Hungarian cooperation was "good". "Economic figures are good, we have constant trade growth, more and more Hungarians come to Croatia, there's a rise in the number of Hungarian investments in Croatia."

"Hungarians in Croatia speak of the incumbent Croatian government with great respect and Croats in Hungary can't remember a time when they enjoyed such great support from the Hungarian government," Orban added.

"Things look good," he said, but noted that "there's a certain bitter taste in our mouths." "The horizon of our relations is not entirely without clouds. You probably know how a healthy body reacts when a thorn gets stuck under the nail. It's no big deal but it still affects a person's mood."

"That's the situation we are faced with now," Orban said, alluding to the outstanding INA-MOL issue. "We must pull this thorn from under the nail and everything will be all right."

Asked by the press how he looked upon this issue, he said: "Hungary looks upon it as an issue between companies." "Decisions should be made at company level. If Croats and Hungarians can't cooperate in a company, then they shouldn't do it, they should go their separate ways," he said, adding that "in this particular case this means that Croatia should buy out MOL's stake in INA. That's the advice we can give."

Asked by the press how to resolve the issue of Hungary's refusal to extradite MOL CEO Zsolt Hernadi, for whom Croatia issued an arrest warrant on the charge that he had bribed former Croatian PM Ivo Sanader in exchange for securing management rights in INA, Plenković and Orban said it was a judicial matter.

"This government knows what the separation of powers is. This government neither intends to nor can in any way interfere in the work of courts and prosecutors," said Plenković.

Orban too said he considered this "a legal matter" and that in Hungary "politics doesn't interfere in legal matters. The judiciary should take its course. I won't make any secret deals regarding any legal matters."

Plenković said they also talked about transport cooperation, cooperation in the development of an LNG terminal on Krk island, and European matters, notably Croatia's wish to enter the Schengen Area.

"We want to make headway there and I'm sure we'll have Hungary's support in that," he said and Orban agreed. "We'll be glad if Croatia becomes a member of the Schengen Area as soon as possible. That will bolster Europe's importance too," said Orban.

As for Hungary's possible participation in the LNG project, he said it was primarily a question of gas prices. "At the moment, Hungary procures the cheapest gas from Russia. Second is gas from Romania, for which an interconnection is being built, third is the procurement of gas from Slovakia, while Croatia is only fourth," he said, adding, "If we can agree a business model, we'll be able to cooperate."

For more on relations between Croatia and Hungary, click here.