August 10, 2020 - Dubrovnik Mayor Mato Frankovic has asked the National Civil Protection Headquarters to change the rule banning the entry of ships with more than two hundred passengers into Croatian ports.
Slobodna Dalmacija reports that this is because the global cruise line MSC did not include Dubrovnik in its cruise program.
Namely, representatives of the company have previously expressed interest in including Dubrovnik in the travel program, but the limiting factor for the arrival of larger ships on cruises to Dubrovnik is the rule, according to which ships with more than 200 passengers cannot enter Croatian ports at the moment.
Frankovic briefed Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the National Civil Protection Headquarters Davor Bozinovic and Minister of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure Oleg Butkovic on this very topic.
Following Bozinovic's instructions, Frankovic submitted to the County Institute of Public Health detailed procedures introduced by the MSC for its ships, as well as procedures to be carried out by the Dubrovnik Port Authority and the City of Dubrovnik.
"In the coming days, we expect an official statement from the Institute to the Civil Protection Headquarters and we are convinced that with the approved procedures, ships on cruise trips will be allowed to enter Croatian ports," said Mayor Frankovic.
The prescribed procedures are a challenge for both companies and Port Authorities and the cities where cruise companies enter, but they provide the highest level of health care, and the possibility of spreading the COVID-19 infection is reduced to a minimum, the Dubrovnik City Administration said in a statement.
MSC is one of the world's largest cruise companies and a market leader in Europe.
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