ZAGREB, May 15, 2019 - During her state visit to Canada, Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović met with business women and women chief executive officers and investors in Toronto on Tuesday, her office said in a press release. The meeting was organised by the Canadian-Croatian Chamber of Commerce.

Addressing those present, Grabar-Kitarović emphasised the strong dynamic of mutual visits at political and other levels which were helping promote friendly relations between the two countries. She in particular highlighted the importance of advancing economic cooperation, which she said had not yet reached its full potential.

The president said that Croatia and Canada had growing potential to boost their economic cooperation, especially in trade, industry, energy, information technology and tourism.

Croatia welcomes Canadian investors and supports Canadian investments, particularly in the manufacturing sector, including oil production, the wood-processing, food and electronic industries, and in services such as tourism, she said.

Canada has a strong, industrially developed and modern market economy and is a G8 member, considerably contributing to the stability and development of the global economy, and it is also one of the oldest and closest partners of the European Union, she added.

By joining the European Union in mid-2013, Croatia has become part of this strategic partnership which has recently been crowned with the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the EU and Canada, and the benefits of the provisional implementation of the CETA are already visible in our economic cooperation, the Croatian president said.

Grabar-Kitarović expressed her confidence that stronger trade with Canada would create new opportunities for growth and job creation in the EU and Canada, and thanked the Canadian-Croatian Chamber of Commerce for helping to establish business and broader economic cooperation between Croatia and Canada.

Also on Tuesday, Grabar-Kitarović had a working meeting with the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Elizabeth Dowdeswell. She expressed her satisfaction with the cooperation between Canadian and Croatian universities, saying that cooperation in science and education was very important for the overall development of relations between the two countries.

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) is an area of constant and accelerated change, which requires a dynamic education system, the Croatian president said, adding that cooperation between Croatia and Canada should be encouraged in STEM areas.

Grabar-Kitarović said that Croatia strongly supported and promoted the activity of the Canadian-Croatian Chamber of Commerce in Toronto and the Croatian-Canadian Business Network in Zagreb, which are making efforts to attract investment and strengthen relations between the two countries.

On Wednesday, the Croatian president is scheduled to visit the western province of Alberta and meet with Lieutenant Governor Lois Mitchell and the local Croatian community.

More news about relations between Croatia and Canada can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, May 14, 2019 - Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Ottawa on Monday for talks about the two countries' economic cooperation, with Grabar-Kitarović saying that the Croatian government was making efforts to improve the investment climate and expressing confidence that Canada would increase its investment in Croatia.

Grabar-Kitarović said the Croatian government was continuously working on improving the investment climate and the legal framework to assist business people in both countries through measures providing equal conditions for doing business and investment for both national and foreign companies. She expressed confidence Canada would recognise Croatia as an investment destination, according to a press release issued by the President's Office.

Stressing the importance of the two countries' cooperation in science and education, Grabar-Kitarović expressed satisfaction with a broad range of cooperation between Canadian and Croatian universities, which includes two Croatian studies centres at the universities of Waterloo and Toronto.

Grabar-Kitarović said she was grateful for the fact that the Croatian language was integrated in the elementary and high school systems in Ontario and British Columbia.

At the talk with Trudeau, Grabar-Kitarović underscored the contribution the Croat community in Canada made not only to the development of strong relations between the two countries but also to Canada's overall development.

Trudeau congratulated Grabar Kitarović on taking over the chairmanship of the Council of Women World Leaders, the only organisation in the world dedicated to women heads of state and government, the statement said.

President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović also met with Governor General Julie Payette in Ottawa. They reaffirmed the strong ties between the two countries bound by friendship, mutual respect and the same values, the President's Office said in a press release.

Grabar-Kitarović said that Croatia and Canada shared the same views, promoting democracy, rule of law, and respect for human rights and freedoms.

Croatia actively promotes gender equality, empowerment of women and girls to ensure equal access to education, justice and political freedoms. We share the same values, we are partners and allies in NATO and other organisations, Grabar-Kitarović said.

The president noted that Canada had one of the largest and most successful Croatian emigrant communities. She said that the Croatian people and she personally were very proud of the Croatian community in Canada and their contribution to the overall development of Canada, adding that the Croatian community was a strong link between the two countries.

Grabar-Kitarović said that Canada was an extraordinary example of multiculturalism and respect for different ethnic groups, their language, culture and customs, expressing her confidence that her visit would encourage further advancement of Croatian-Canadian relations.

After the meeting, the Croatian president attended a tree planting ceremony.

Earlier on, Grabar-Kitarović met with members of the Croatian community and presented the Charter of the Republic of Croatia to St Nikola Tavelić Parish of Montreal and Ottawa's Croatian Catholic Parish of St Leopold Mandić for their outstanding contribution to the provision of social and spiritual care and for their pastoral activity among Croatian emigrants in Canada.

More news about relations between Croatia and Canada can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, May 9, 2019 - Participants in the Brdo-Brijuni Process summit in Tirana on Thursday called on the European Union to take into account also geopolitical reasons in the process of its enlargement to Western Balkan countries, noting that the full integration of Western Balkan countries with the European system of values would be important for Europe's overall stability.

We call on the European Union to consider its enlargement to the Western Balkans as a matter of geopolitical importance, reads a joint declaration adopted at the summit of the Brdo-Brijuni Process.

Full integration of Western Balkan countries with the European system of values is an important factor of overall European stability, the document says.

The meeting in Tirana was a regular annual summit of the leaders of countries involved in the Brdo-Brijuni initiative that was launched by Croatia and Slovenia in 2013.

This year's summit was organised by Albanian President Ilir Meta and attending it, as co-chairs of the Brdo-Brijuni Process, were Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović and Slovenian President Borut Pahor, as well as the leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Kosovo, countries that are at different stages of integration with the EU.

Attending was also the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, and, as a guest of honour, Polish President Andrzej Duda.

Participants in the summit underlined in the closing declaration that candidate countries must meet all EU membership standards and called for a more flexible and faster negotiating process.

They also welcomed the Prespa agreement between Skopje and Athens on the change of Macedonia's name to North Macedonia, which has created the possibility for North Macedonia to continue with its Euro-Atlantic integration process.

We conclude that such examples show the way towards stronger European and Euro-Atlantic ties within the Western Balkans, says the declaration.

The Tirana summit was held several weeks ahead of a summit of EU leaders scheduled for early June, at which a decision could be made on the possible formal start of accession talks between the EU and Albania and North Macedonia, which have the status of candidate countries.

President Grabar-Kitarović said in her address at the summit that she supported the launching of accession talks with the two countries, but underlined that all EU candidates and potential candidates had to implement the necessary reforms and align their foreign and security policies with the EU's.

The EU must not leave the countries of Southeast Europe alone and Croatia will continue to be their advocate in the EU, she said.

Grabar-Kitarović also said that during its presidency of the EU in the first half of 2020, Croatia would put the issue of enlargement to Southeast Europe high on its agenda, and that it would organise a summit on that topic.

Addressing a news conference, however, Grabar-Kitarović stressed that she was worried by the lack of progress in the region and Brussels' lack of interest in the region. She noted in that context that the Brdo-Brijuni Process was important for keeping the EU's attention on the region.

Discussions in the EU focusing on internal topics have helped create a dangerous vacuum in Southeast Europe, with people in the region beginning to doubt more and more that progress is possible, she said.

She added that the vacuum she was talking about was being filled by third parties, which were not necessarily good for the region.

Slovenian President Borut Pahor warned that after the coming European elections, the issue of enlargement to the Western Balkans would probably not be high on the agenda of the next European Commission. "That is why leaders in the region must do their best to make the topic of enlargement more attractive to the rest of the EU," Pahor said.

Participants in the Tirana summit also supported the EU's position that one of the membership criteria should be the settlement of outstanding bilateral issues.

We will actively seek to enable dialogue to continue and trust to become deeper in the region that we represent. All outstanding issues will be solved peacefully, in the spirit of mutual respect and cooperation, reads the closing declaration.

In that context, the summit also discussed relations between Serbia and Kosovo after a recent summit on that topic, organised in Berlin by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron, failed.

President Meta said that the atmosphere at the summit was constructive and expressed a wish for the dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade to continue.

A decision was made that the next summit should be held in Slovenia.

Pahor said that together with President Grabar-Kitarović he had sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres inviting him to be a special guest at the next summit. If Guterres agrees, the next summit of the Brdo-Brijuni Process will most probably be held in mid-November this year in Brdo pri Kranju, said Pahor.

More news about the Western Balkans can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, May 3, 2019 - Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović travels to Canada next week for an official visit from May 12 to 17, during which she will meet with Governor General Julie Payette, who represents the Queen of the United Kingdom.

It will be the first state visit to Canada by a Croatian president since Croatia gained independence in the early 1990s.

President Grabar-Kitarović and her husband Jakov Kitarović are scheduled to visit Ottawa, Toronto, Hamilton and Calgary.

"Croatia is a valued partner for Canada in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the United Nations (UN) and the European Union (EU). Croatian-Canadians make important contributions to Canada's multicultural society," Payette's office said in a press release.

Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković met with Payette in Ottawa in October 2017 after in July of that year she was approved by Queen Elizabeth II as the next Governor General of Canada, becoming the fourth woman to fill this post.

More news about relations between Croatia and Canada can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, April 26, 2019 - Addressing a special session of Karlovac County Assembly on County Day on Friday, President Kolinda Grabar Kitarović said that the most significant measure at the moment needs to be "reforming our mentality," in order to make the Croatians think and work faster, more resolutely and in a better organised manner.

In her speech the president advocated that each measure, including tax, monetary or any other policy and each investment, has to be measurable demographically and in particular in this county.

She praised the Andrej Plenković cabinet for reducing taxes and administration levies, however, she claimed that the "most significant reform we need to implement is to reform our mentality," so that at all levels, we can think and work more resolutely, faster and in a more organised manner.

The head of state pointed out that population policy and economic measures must go hand in hand because money is needed for new investments – and people are needed even more.

"People are our greatest capital, but also the greatest issue, as we have no workers to hire for new jobs," the president said.

She emphasized that for Karlovac County this matter is particularly important in terms of security and in the context of migration issues.

"Keeping the border areas populated is of utmost importance for the State because the border is best guarded by the people who live on it," she underscored.

Plenković commented on a list of projects for the county valued at 5.5 billion kuna, adding that state-owned real estate, estimated at 64 million kuna, had been granted to the county.

He noted already visible effects of the reform, as he said, in particular, decentralisation which means that 56 million kuna more will remain in the county. He underscored that a new development index is being applied and that new statistical regions will be formed to correct the injustice and illogicality of the previous system toward areas such as the town of Slunj for example.

"I think that it will correct the injustice that that will be a much better support to the economy in those parts of Croatia that we want to attract investments to, which should be a big step. That is why I am glad that Karlovac County has sped up procedures for investors," the prime minister underscored.

He added that in 2017, 2018 and now in 2019, 1.3 billion kuna had been secured from the state budget for regional imbalance policies and for the reduction of inequalities in Croatia.

More news about President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, April 19, 2019 - Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Friday offered his best wishes for Easter to Zagreb Archbishop Josip Bozanić, Croatian Bishops' Conference President Želimir Puljić and all members of the Croatian Catholic clergy, as well as to the faithful in the country and abroad.

"While awaiting the resurrection of Jesus, which is the source of Christianity, we contribute to mutual understanding and tolerance and peace among people of good will with a joint prayer. Encouraged by the power of Christ's resurrection, which renews faith, hope and solidarity in the Croatian nation, we continue to work together to the benefit of all Croatian people, notably the neediest ones," Plenković said in the message.

President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović on Friday wished a happy Easter to the Catholic clergy in Croatia and all Catholic faithful in Croatia and abroad, wishing for stronger faith in redemption and salvation.

"I extend cordial greetings for Easter, the most important Christian holiday, which is the centre of faith for all the faithful hoping for redemption, salvation and resurrection. Strengthened with faith, may this holiday fill our hearts and our homes with peace, love and serenity," the president said in her note.

More Easter news can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, April 14, 2019 - President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović visited the Jasenovac Memorial Site on Saturday and laid white roses at the Stone Flower monument to the victims of the WWII concentration camp, continuing her custom of doing so a day before the official commemoration.

"In our homeland, World War Two still brings out painful memories of the numerous victims. By laying a wreath in memory of the victims of the Jasenovac camp and standing in silence by this stone flower, I pay my deepest respect for all the victims who were killed in the camp," the president wrote in the memorial book.

"Let this always be only a place of respect, but also a place which will warn us how important it is to raise young generations for peace, unity and solidarity among people and nations. We can't change the past, but we can build the future in a better way for a more beautiful and more humane life of all the people in Croatia and around the world."

Instead of the president, her chief of staff Anamarija Kirinić will attend Sunday's commemoration with representatives of the government and parliament.

A commemoration was also held on Friday, in memory of the breakout of the Jasenovac inmates, organised by ethnic minority associations and antifascists who, for the fourth year in a row, honoured the victims of the Ustasha regime separately from state officials.

More Jasenovac news can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, April 1, 2019 - President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović on Monday labelled as insinuations Jutarnji List daily's claims that she is writing her doctoral dissertation on a topic already covered under the same mentor, calling them an attempt to politically discredit her and a grave insult to the scientific community, notably the Zagreb Faculty of Political Science (FPZ).

Asked by Hina to comment on the daily's claims, the president said "the topic of my dissertation has passed the necessary verification procedure and it will be additionally verified at university level." She added that the dissertation and her defence of it "will be available to the wider public for further analysis."

Jutarnji List says in today's edition that master of science Bernardka Prasnikar defended at Ljubljana's Faculty of Social Sciences in 2014 a dissertation called "Concept of responsibility to protect and its use on the example of Libya" under the mentorship of Anton Grizold, and that Grabar-Kitarović's doctoral dissertation is called "Responsibility to protect (R2P): Concepts, challenges, limits and lessons learned (Libya)" and that Grizold is her mentor.

In mid-March, the FPZ Academic Council endorsed a report by a commission which assessed the topic of the president's dissertation. In order to become final, the report must be confirmed by the University of Zagreb Senate. Professor Grizold was on the commission.

A source close to the president says she read Prašnikar's dissertation as well as others Prašnikar and Grizold wrote on that topic, and that Grabar-Kitarović's dissertation looks at R2P from an entirely different angle.

The source recalls that the president studied and did research at Harvard, George Washington and Johns Hopkins universities, and that she would never smear her honour by plagiarising another person's dissertation "because she is more than competent and capable of writing her own."

More news about Croatian president can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, March 29, 2019 - Croatia attaches importance to its relations with Russia, especially as a trading partner, and Russia's role in Southeastern Europe cannot be ignored, President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović said on Friday.

"Russia is an important trading partner to us, that is what many of our companies say, and its role in our neighbourhood in Southeastern Europe cannot be ignored, especially in Bosnia and Herzegovina," the president said at a press conference devoted to her foreign-policy activities.

She said it was important that Russia supported the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as President Vladimir Putin had confirmed several times.

During a discussion after the presentation of the latest report on Bosnia and Herzegovina in the UN Security Council, Russia, along with the United States, was the only country to mention the Dayton peace accords and the need to honour them, and was the only country to speak about the equal rights of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Grabar-Kitarović said. "This, of course, is the result of our dialogue and we want to continue this dialogue with Russia, on regional issues, the issues of stability, peace and the future," she added.

The Croatian president said that Putin's visit to Croatia had been agreed and that she wanted it to be a well-prepared, meaningful visit. "There have been plans for the visit to take place before the end of June, but since we are in an election year, I'm afraid that President Putin's visit would be put too much in the context of the elections. I want to avoid that, so we are proposing the next year regardless of who the head of state may be," Grabar-Kitarović said.

She said she was pursuing a two-track policy in relations with Russia: absolute respect for international law when it comes to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of states, and dialogue with Russia.

The president stressed that between Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and her there were no disputes over the conduct of foreign policy. "There are no disputes between the prime minister and me. There may be different interests. He is perhaps more focused on the EU and European issues, and I on the Transatlantic area and other continents," she said.

Asked what she thought of Foreign and European Affairs Minister Marija Pejčinović Burić becoming Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, the president said that it would be "great for Croatia to have the leader of the Council of Europe."

Speaking about relations with Serbia and President Aleksandar Vučić's visit to Croatia slightly more than a year ago, Grabar-Kitarović said that "it takes two to succeed." She said that any dialogue, regardless of its results, was good and that it was necessary to talk.

She said it was Croatia's success that the EU enlargement strategy for the Western Balkans included a requirement that all membership candidates should settle any open issues with their neighbours before joining the bloc. "We don't want to blackmail anyone, but realistically speaking, we have to take advantage of the rights that we have, which will ultimately benefit citizens on both sides," the president said.

As for the issue of missing persons from the 1991-1995 war, Grabar-Kitarović said she was disappointed by the lack of progress. "I see it as my own promise to mothers, parents, sisters and others. I won't say that I'm frustrated, but I am really disappointed that so far we have failed to take concrete steps in resolving and closing this issue," she said.

Grabar-Kitarović once again appealed to all those involved to make maximum effort so that families who have suffered so much can finally learn what happened to their loved ones and that give them a decent burial.

More news about relations between Croatia and Russia can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, March 29, 2019 - Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović and her Latvian counterpart, Raimonds Vejonis, on Thursday said in Zagreb that preserving the unity of the EU and NATO is essential for Europe's stability and added that the coming elections for the European Parliament could significantly determine the direction of the development of the relations in Europe.

Croatia and Latvia share similar views on foreign policy priorities and strive to strengthen their bilateral relations, particularly economic, the two presidents told the media after their meeting.

"Our two countries are not connected only by friendship, similar size and history but also with the fact that we share many views on the EU and global issues," Grabar-Kitarović said.

She underscored that Croatia exceptionally appreciates Latvia's support primarily during Zagreb's endeavours to establish a sovereign state and during Croatia's accession to the EU and NATO.

She said that Croatia considers the EU's defence initiatives and its complementarity with NATO to be important, because that remains to be a pillar of defence in Europe.

Grabar-Kitarović announced the continuation of coordination at the Three Seas Initiative level with the aim of boosting competitiveness of the economies of the countries covered by the Initiative.

She recalled that the Initiative creates opportunities for cooperation in the energy sector, for example through the North-South Europe gas corridor and the future LNG terminal on Krk Island. "The initiative responds to contemporary challenges by bringing positive changes that will contribute to the EU and the Euro-Atlantic community," Grabar-Kitarović said.

President Vejonis, who arrived for an official day-long visit to Croatia, said that his country and Croatia are building relations with the same aim of strengthening Europe's unity, security and prosperity, which includes support for the European prospects of the Western Balkans and closer relations with Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova.

Our two countries are experts for (our respective) regions and I see exceptional potential for the exchange of know-how regarding our regions. It is with that in fact that we can strengthen stability and progress in Europe, Vejonis said.

He added that because of the threats it is exposed to, Latvia considers NATO to be the most important military alliance in the world and thanked Croatia for its participation in the NATO mission in the Baltic region.

Asked what he expects of the European Parliamentary (EP) election in May, President Vejonis said that it is difficult to foresee the results.

The most important thing is to underline that they (results) will be fragmented because the fragmentation of parliaments is visible through various processes in European countries and the EP too will be fragmented, he said.

He added that all EU member states should work more on security issues prior to the election. We see that some countries are trying to influence the election and we need to be prepared for that. Regardless of the differences between member states, we have to be united and participate in the election, that is exceptionally vital, the Latvian head of state added.

Grabar-Kitarović said that she firmly believes in the European project and wants Croatian citizens to participate in the election. She added that growing populism in Europe is the result of "political elite distancing" itself from the real needs of the people, hence the main task is to return citizens' trust in institutions.

More news about relations between Croatia and Latvia can be found in the Politics section.