February the 12th, 2021 - Croatian and Israeli companies have put their heads together and engaged in what could potentially be important business talks for the future, and as many as 500 such enterprises have done so.

As Novac writes, almost 500 Croatian and Israeli companies participated in the aforementioned business talks and prepared the ground for further strengthening economic cooperation between the two countries in the future, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the economic woes it presents, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) announced.

HGK President Luka Burilovic pointed out that the Israeli economy is among the most propulsive in the world, and there's a lot to learn from them as they have some of the world's best research institutions because they spend about 5 percent of GDP on research and development and 8.1 percent of GDP on education.

"I hope that these virtual meetings between Croatian and Israeli companies will result in some concrete agreements and that we'll mamage to cooperate strongly in improving both of our economies," said Burilovic, noting that the goal of this project is to export what as many Croatian companies do as possible to Israel and indeed to other such developed markets.

Tomislav Pokrajcic, the director of the Samobor-based company Jel-Tom, who also participated in the talks with Israeli companies, believes that there is great export potential for the export of their products in particular, such as ventilation pipes, greenhouses, tents and wave breakers.

His optimism is shared by the director of the Toptours travel agency, Marina Marunic, who hopes that the the good vaccination process of the Israeli population will have a positive effect on Croatian tourism as it will attract more Israeli tourists to our shores this summer and indeed in future summers.

"I know from previous experience that the people of Israel really like to travel. Over the past month, I have come in contact with three travel agencies from Israel and we've successfully held some online meetings, so we're hoping for positive results from that,'' said Marunic.

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ZAGREB, Dec 28, 2020 - Croatian and Israeli foreign ministers Gordan Grlic Radman and Gabi Ashkenazi respectively have signed a memorandum of understanding on a strategic partnership between the two ministries, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs announced in a press release on Monday.

The signing of the document was agreed to during Grlic Radman's official visit to Israel in September.

"I consider the memorandum to be an important step forward in cooperation between Croatia and Israel. I am convinced that the strategic partnership between our two countries will bring many benefits to both states and our citizens," said Grlic Radman.

According to the memorandum, the two countries will promote political and economic cooperation and strengthen relations in areas such as digital diplomacy, crisis communication, providing humanitarian and development aid to third countries, cooperation within the framework of European Union programmes and projects, cooperation in combating climate change, exchanging academics, experts and diplomats, and promoting cultural cooperation, the press release said.

ZAGREB, Aug 16, 2020 - The government of Israel on Sunday decided to abolish the obligatory 14-day quarantine for arrivals from Croatia and 19 more countries, according to the information published on the government's website.

The 20 countries that are now added to the green list are 15 European states including Austria, Bulgaria, Italy, Germany, Hungary, and Slovenia apart from Croatia. The abolishment also refers to arrivals from Canada and New Zealand.

Although infection with coronavirus remains relatively high in Israel, four countries now accept Israeli tourists: Croatia, Bulgaria, Montenegro and four regions of Greece (Athens, Thessaloniki, Corfu, and Crete). In the said Greek regions, the weekly quota for Israeli holidaymakers is 600.

However, travellers leaving Israel for these countries will have to be tested for coronavirus before departure at Ben Gurion International Airport.

Israel with a nine-million-strong population has to date reported 92,000 cases of the infection with COVID-19 and 679 deaths due to the complications from the infection. According to the University of John Hopkins, this is a high incidence rate, however, the mortality rate is low.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 28th of June, 2020, an Israeli company called Olvitech is providing a new generation of face masks. They don't look any different from the classic surgical disposable masks we've all become so used to seeing since the coronavirus pandemic exploded, except for their colour, but they do boast incorporated copper oxide with antiviral and antibacterial properties in the material from which they're made.

Marija Osterman from Rinigard, which is expecting the first shipment of new face masks soon, explained the above for 24sata. As she stated, the mask can be used multiple times and indefinitely until it is physically destroyed or covered with water.

She pointed out that Olvitech's innovative masks were first designed for medical staff who are in frequent contact with bacteria and viruses.

''It's a mask that can be worn for up to three hours at a time, and then it should be placed on a flat surface and left for about 40 minutes in order for the properties of the material to work and neutralise any pathogens. The scientists who designed it planned for it to be worn by doctors, and developed it based on the technologies they used to make bandages and other military medical equipment. Now they're focusing on protection against the new coronavirus,'' Osterman continued, explaining that this is a unique mask and its effectiveness doesn't decrease over time.

''This solution is cheaper and more cost-effective in the long run than the existing masks,'' Osterman concluded.

The President of the Croatian Chamber of Pharmacists, Mag. pharm. Ana Soldo, stated that she hopes that the masks will be available on the Croatian market as soon as possible.

''From my perspective, these masks are suitable for doctors, but also for the general population,'' concluded Soldo.

10,000 to 20,000 of Olvitech's new masks should arrive here in the Republic of Croatia by July the 15th, and they calculate that the individual price will be around 40 kuna.

For more on the coronavirus pandemic in Croatia, follow our dedicated section.