BASIC INFORMATION
Full Country Name: The
Country Profile:
Area: 56,542 sq. km (22,830 sq. mi)
Population: 4.5m (July 2004 est.)
Official Language: Croatian
Religion: It is estimated that about 85% of the population is Roman Catholic. Orthodox make up around 5% of the population and Muslims a further 1.3 %.
Currency: Kuna
Major Political Parties: Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP), Croatian People's Party – Liberal Democrats (HNS), Croatian Peasant Party (HSS), Croatian Party of Rights (HSP).
Government: Parliamentary Democracy
Head of State: President Stjepan Mesic
Prime Minister: Ivo Sanader
Foreign Minister: Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic
Membership of International Organisations: United Nations, Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Council of Europe, Stability Pact, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade Organisation, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Partnership for Peace.
HISTORY
Recent History
In response to and 's announcement of independence on 25 June 1991, despatched its army (JNA) in a show of force. After a 10-day war brought to an end through an EC mediated deal between and , the JNA withdrew from and concentrated its efforts in , where open conflict began in July 1991. While the war continued, 's Serbian 'autonomous regions' united in December 1991 to form the self-styled '
Franjo Tudjman was elected as President in August 1992. At the same time, negotiations over the 'RSK' were continuing between Zagreb and Croatian Serb leaders within the framework of the International Conference on former Yugoslavia, established at the August 1992 London Conference. But there was no progress. A surprise attack by Croatian troops in January 1993 resulted in the recovery of the strategically important Straits of Maslenica. Throughout 1994, relations between and the 'RSK' improved, but the latter's leadership continued to resist any form of political reintegration into . Frustrated at the lack of progress on the diplomatic track, launched a sudden military offensive ('Flash') in May 1995, which rapidly recaptured
Longer Historical Perspective
POLITICS
Recent Political Developments
After the death of President Tudjman in 1999, the Croatian political landscape changed. SDP leader Ivica Racan led a coalition of opposition parties to victory in parliamentary elections on 3 January 2000. Stjepan Mesic was elected President on 18 February 2000 and was subsequently re-elected in February 2005.
's acceptance into NATO's Membership Action Plan (MAP) and signature of a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU were key achievements of the post-Tudjman era. This period also saw an improvement in relations between and her neighbours, particularly and and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The most recent Croatian elections in November 2003 saw the return to power of the HDZ, under its new leader Ivo Sanader, whose centre-right agenda sought to make a break with HDZ's Tudjman-era past. The breakdown of the 152 seats as of January 2007 was:
Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) - 63 seats
Social Democratic Party (SDP) – 31 seats
Croatian People's Party (HNS) - 11 seats
Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) - 9 seats
Croatian Party of Rights (HSP) - 7 seats
Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS) – 4 seats
HSU (Croatian Party of Pensioners) - 3 seats
Independent Democratic Serbian Party (SDSS) – 3 seats
Croatian Social Liberal Party (HSLS) – 3 seats
Democratic Centre (DC) - 1 seat
Alliance of Croatian Coast and Mountains Dept (PGS) – 1 seat
Party of Democratic Action of Croatia (SDAH) – 1 seat
Croatian Democratic Alliance of Slavonia and Baranja (HDSSB) – 3 seats
Medimurje Democratic Alliance – 1 seat
Croatian Slavonian-Baranja Party – 1 seat
Independent MPs – 10 seats
Under Sanader's government the political situation has continued to be dominated by Croatia's bid for EU Accession. Domestic politics tends to focus heavily on the need for economic reform. Parliamentary elections are due to take place in 2007.
Croatian news websites with text in
State news agency
State television company
EU and NATO intergration
Euro-Atlantic integration – in particularly membership of the EU and NATO – has been the over-arching foreign policy objective of recent Croatian Governments.
Cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former in The Hague (ICTY) was a prerequisite for starting accession negotiations with the EU. On 3 October 2005, the EU Council agreed to open accession negotiations with , following an assessment by del Ponte that was co-operating fully with the ICTY. On 8 December 2005, the Tribunal's last remaining Croatian indictee, Ante Gotovina, was arrested and subsequently transferred to
EU Integration
The EU opened negotiations with and on 3 October 2005. The first phase of the accession process (screening), where the Commission compares ’s legislation with the EU acquis (the body of EU law), was completed in October 2006. As of January 2007, negotiations had been opened and provisionally closed on two chapters - Chapter 25 Science and Research and Chapter 26 Education and Culture. Negotiations have also been opened on a further three chapters: Chapter 17 Economic and Monetary Policy, Chapter 20 Enterprise and Industrial Policy and Chapter 29 Customs Union. The Croatian Prime Minister, Ivo Sanader, has set a target of 2009 for ’s entry into the EU. When he met Tony Blair on 18 July 2006, Blair emphasised the ’s strong support for Croatian membership of the EU once they had met the standards. Accession Process
In its most recent report on ’s preparations, the European Commission identified a number of areas in which further progress was needed. These included refugee return, minority rights, judicial reform, tackling corruption, administrative reform and the environment.
must continue to address the issue of returning Serb refugees. Between 300,000 and 350,000 ethnic Serbs left their homes in during the 1991-95 war in the former . Croatian government figures from April 2006 suggest that over 120,000 have returned, although this figure probably overestimates the number who have settled in
Much progress has been made in repossessing occupied properties, building new houses for settlers and reconstructing housing destroyed during the fighting. The government has also started providing social housing for those Croatian Serbs who lost their tenancy rights during the conflict. But the process needs to be accelerated.
War Crimes Trials and Judicial Reform
There has been progress in tackling ethnic bias in waswar crimes trials.
In May 2000, joined the NATO Partnership for Peace scheme, which is a programme of practical bilateral co-operation between individual partner countries and NATO. Following this, joined NATO’s Membership Action Programme (MAP) in May 2002. Participation in the MAP is designed to prepare countries for eventual membership.
has been a member of the United Nations since 1992. The Croatian army currently participates in 11 UN peacekeeping missions around the world, including Missions in
ECONOMY
Basic Economic Facts (Source: Croatian National Bank)
Euro: €30 949 million (2005)
Euro per head: €6,972 (2005)
Annual Growth: 4.3% (2005)
Inflation: 3.3% (2005)
Official unemployment: 17.8%(2005) (ILO figure 13.1%)
Major Industries: Shipbuilding, cement, chemicals, fertilisers, pharmaceuticals and tourism
Major trading partners: EU,
Exchange Rate: 11.02 Kuna/� (April 2007)
At present the economy is enjoying relatively fast growth, low inflation and a stable exchange rate. However, the budget deficit remains high. In 2006, it was around 3% of GDP, the current account deficit is expected to be above 6.3% GDP while external debt exceeded 82.5% of GDP. The State still plays a significant role in the local economy and unemployment (13.1% according to ILO criteria) is very high.
needs to tackle the key issues of pension reform and health service reform, state subsidies and privatisation of the state portfolio. Resolving these issues would cut the public wage bill and would provide the necessary environment to make 's economy more flexible, modern and competitive.
Croatia is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the Central European Free Trade Area (CEFTA).
