Moldova Invest in dialogue with E.S. Marija Kapitanović, Croatia’s Ambassador to România

The Bilateral dintre România and the Republic of Croatiawere established on August 29, 1992, marking the moment when Romania officially recognized the Republic of Croatia as a sovereign state.

Since then, the two countries have developed and strengthened diplomatic and cooperative relations in various fields. According to statistical data, Croatia ranks 6th in Romania’s top trading partners. This indicates significant trade exchanges between the two countries, benefiting from cooperation in the fields of commerce and investments.

Besides the economic dimension, cooperation between Romania and the Republic of Croatia also extends to foreign affairs. A Cooperation Protocol was signed between the two foreign ministries on January 28, 2011, serving as a basis for their dialogue and collaboration within international organizations, as well as on matters of common interest.

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Your Excellency, before we delve into specific topics, could you provide us with an overview of the current geopolitical and economic realities shaping the relations between Croatia and Romania?

Over these more than thirty years, our two countries have developed partnership and friendly relations, both bilaterally and multilaterally. The strong bond between our countries is the Croatian minority in Romania and the Romanian minority in Croatia, which are guaranteed a high level of protection and appreciation in both countries.

Moldova Invest in dialogue with E.S. Stefan Tomašević, Croatia’s Ambassador to România

A historical Croatian minority in Romania, most of whom live in Caraș-Severin County. We are very glad that Istro-Romanian, spoken in the eastern part of the Istria region, is being taught in one school in the multicultural Croatian peninsula. It is a highly valued part of our cultural and linguistic heritage.

The membership in the European Union, NATO and other international organizations, has created strong partnerships and additional opportunities for deepening the ties between Croatia and Romania.

The bilateral trade exchange has grown over the last couple of years. Our countries share a particular attention and sensibility for our neighborhoods because we know from the first-hand experience that the Euro-Atlantic and EU perspective has beneficial effects on intensity and speed of the reforms that boost the prosperity of the country.

Moreover, both countries are strong supporters of the enlargement; they were strong supporters even before the war in Ukraine. Now, they are even more. Our focus is primarily on the Western Balkans. We also strongly support the European path of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova.

How would you characterize the economic relations between the Republic of Croatia and Romania in 2023?

Economic cooperation is constantly developing positively. In the last two years, trade has recorded double-digit growth rates. The number of Romanian tourist arrivals also has a growing trend, and the direct Bucharest-Split airline in the summer period, introduced two years ago, contributes to it.

The economic bilateral relations are good and we find a lot of potential for further growth – both on bilateral level and in the framework of the EU projects.

There is potential for cooperation in the defense industry as well. A fruitful cooperation is currently underway between the Port of Vukovar and the Port of Constanța under the Memorandum of Cooperation between the two ports. Bilateral freight transport primarily takes place via inland waterways, so cooperation between the ports of Vukovar and Constanța, which are actively working to increase traffic volume, is important for the development of trade relations. Among the areas of cooperation, operations of Croatian companies in Romania in the services sector and in the automotive industry stand out.

Croatia’s tourism industry has witnessed remarkable growth in recent years, establishing itself as a prominent destination in the heart of Europe. Could you share the main strategies and objectives that contributed to this success? Moreover, have there been notable trends in the influx of Romanian tourists visiting the Croatian coastline?

Croatia is a tourist country with an economy largely focused on this sector, a significant part of the GDP comes from tourism. Joining Schengen and Eurozone at the beginning of the past year made Croatia even more easily accessible for foreign tourists. Their number is constantly growing. In Croatia last year, there were 20.6 million arrivals and 108 million overnights. In 2023, Croatia experienced a growth of 9% in arrivals and 3% in overnights compared to previous year.

Croatia is a member of the “Friends of Wstern Balkans” group, along with Austria, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, and Slovakia, advocating for increased support in the Western Balkans region. Bosnia and Herzegovina recently received a strong political signal and a schedule for accession negotiations in March 2024. In this context, how do you envision Croatia’s role in promoting stability and European perspective in Bosnia and Herzegovina? What are the main initiatives or objectives for Croatia in 2024 regarding this region?

Croatia pays special attention and shows particular sensitivity to our neighborhood, as we know from firsthand experience that EU and Euro-Atlantic membership have beneficial effects on a country’s society and prosperity. The EU enlargement in the entire Western Balkans region is in our political and security interest. When discussing enlargement policy, it’s important to convey consistent messages of encouragement to all recently candidate countries and ensure a balanced approach.

Each of the candidate countries awaiting the opening of negotiations should have the opportunity to progress in this process, which should and will continue to be based on firm and fair conditionality, the implementation of reforms, and the principle of merit in meeting accession criteria. The Western Balkans enlargement process should be completed without delay to avoid public disappointment regarding this enlargement process.

The Western Balkan countries have been part of the European integration process for decades. It’s an area with extraordinary people, athletes, courageous and resilient individuals, as demonstrated many times in European history. We expect Bosnia and Herzegovina to start accession negotiations with the European Union in March of this year.

We have already seen the positive effects of granting candidate status to BiH. This has clearly emphasized the need for reforms and the path towards the EU. The opening of negotiations does not automatically mean accession; we all know this is a long and complex process. Therefore, the decision to open negotiations is an important political message. To further support BiH on its path to integration, Croatia has increased technical assistance and expertise sharing. Croatian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Gordan Grlić Radman, recently led a delegation of experts to Sarajevo, focusing on further ways of technical assistance.

From 1992, the Republic of Moldova established diplomatic relations with Croatia. How would you describe the historical context of bilateral relations, especially in economic and diplomatic aspects?

Relations between the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of Moldova have been very good. Starting from 2021, they received a new impetus; In 2022 and 2023 there was an intensive exchange of visits at the level of foreign ministers and parliamentary level. In June 2023, Prime-minister of Croatia, Andrej Plenković, attended the European Political Community Summit. On this occasion, he met with the Prime Minister of Moldova, Dorin Recean.

Last year, we recorded a significant increase in trade. However, the comparative basis wasn’t very large. It’s evident that we aim to expand this cooperation. Economic forums have been organized for this purpose, where companies from Croatia and Moldova had the opportunity to establish business contacts. We intend to strengthen collaboration in other sectors as well: education, culture, tourism, etc.

The Croatian government, through the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, is committed to assisting Moldova in development and humanitarian aid. With the help of UNICEF from Croatia and Moldova, we made a donation to Moldova last year as an emergency response. This donation included eight power generators placed in various locations in Chișinău, including two hospitals and six primary and secondary schools. This was part of Croatia’s contribution to the European effort to improve living standards and conditions for disadvantaged individuals, especially children and women. Shortly after the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Croatia also provided emergency assistance: hygiene products, medical supplies, etc., to mitigate the impact of this crisis.

Croatia and Kosovo were part of the former Yugoslavia between 1918 and 1991. What is Croatia’s official position regarding Kosovo’s status today?

Croatia recognized Kosovo in March 2008 and consistently supports Kosovo in building and consolidating its institutions for the benefit of the Kosovar people.

In the context of recent military events on Romania’s borders, how do you think Western nations should approach preparations for the reconstruction of Ukraine?

In the context of recent military events at Romania’s borders, how do you think Western nations should approach preparations for the reconstruction of Ukraine?

Croatia has immediate experience in post-war reconstruction. Over these more than 30 years, Croatia has come a long and difficult way. Croatia’s path has been different from other EU member states because we had to rebuild a country devastated by war, revitalize the economy, and heal, as much as possible, the wounds caused by the loss of human lives. The latter was the most challenging. Today, we can proudly say that we succeeded on our own.

As a country that experienced war on its territory in the recent past, Croatia has unique experience in post-war transition and peaceful reintegration. We are prepared to offer support for the post-war recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine, which is among the priority countries for Croatia regarding development cooperation.

Croatia and Ukraine already cooperate closely in areas such as mine clearance, caring for war veterans, protecting internally displaced persons, reconciliation, and building trust. Croatia is also ready for a stronger involvement in mine clearance, given that Croatia’s experience in humanitarian mine clearance is highly applicable in Ukraine.

Furthermore, protecting cultural heritage is also an area where Croatia can provide support. The International Donors Conference on Humanitarian Mine Action in Ukraine took place last year in Zagreb, aiming to contribute to the clearance of explosive ordnance resulting from the Russian aggression against Ukraine.

Have collaboration efforts been initiated with cities in Romania? Are there existing bilateral cooperation relations between municipalities or professional associations in Croatia and Romania?

The Embassy works on local-level connections, especially on cooperation between cities and municipalities, as we believe this is the best way for the societies of the two countries to get to know each other better. It is particularly important that this cooperation leads to the exchange of good governance practices at the local level, as well as concrete economic cooperation. There are a number of twinned cities.

One of the recent and concrete examples of cooperation between municipalities is between the municipalities of Novaci in Romania and Dugopolje in Croatia. They have decided to develop cooperation in the field of culture and natural resource conservation.

Could you highlight three common objectives that bring the governments of Zagreb and Bucharest closer? Are there specific plans or measures to support the achievement of these common objectives?

Regarding relations between Croatia and Romania, I am pleased to say that several important bilateral visits took place in the post-pandemic period. The President of the Croatian Parliament, Gordan Jandroković, made an official visit to Romania in October 2022. I am particularly pleased that on this occasion, the President of the Croatian Parliament visited the historic Croatian minority in the Karaševo area.

The Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia, Gordan Grlić Radman, officially met with Minister Bogdan Aurescu in Bucharest in 2022. Also, consultations at the level of state secretaries for European affairs took place. These addressed and coordinated numerous topics of common interest on the EU agenda, such as enlargement policy, cohesion policy, the situation related to the war in Ukraine, as well as bilateral issues.

Regarding the parliamentary dimension, a delegation from the Committee for European Affairs of the Croatian Parliament also visited Bucharest.

The common objectives between the two countries stem primarily from membership in the EU and NATO. We support the continued expansion of the EU, and we are both neighbors of the Western Balkans region. We share similar views on cohesion policy, and last but not least, we strongly support Ukraine.

Our cooperation within the Three Seas Initiative could be an instrument in managing the region’s recovery through major infrastructure projects and increasing energy connectivity. Croatia and Romania cooperate closely within the Danube Commission in the field of inland navigation, and our countries cooperate very well. It is mainly technical cooperation to ensure free navigation on the Danube River.

Lastly, we share the same goal of becoming members of the OECD. Let me reiterate that our country strongly supports Romania’s accession to the Schengen Area.

In the summer of 2024, the Center for Analysis and Regional Development Planning, together with Suceava County Council and the North-East Regional Development Agency, will organize the second edition of the Moldova Regional Economic Forum – 2024. This event will focus on the regions of Southeast Europe. Ambassadors from partner countries with which Romania has established consolidated extracommunity economic relations will be invited.

To what extent is Croatia interested is interested in developing specific relationships with regions in Southeast European countries and implicitly participating in FERM 2024?

Moldova Regional Economic Forum 2024 | “Planning and Cooperation towards the Strategic Goal: Moldova 2030”

We appreciate the availability of the Suceava County administration to host the next edition of the Forum. Croatia, at both central and local levels, is certainly open to cooperation within the Euroregions in the Southeast region of the Union, with a special focus on investments and foreign trade.