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Croatia and Romania want
closer bilateral cooperation
[Source: 2011-09-27
HINA
at https://bsanna-news.ukrinform.ua/newsitem.php?id=17261&lang=en]
ZAGREB, September 27. (HINA).
Croatian-Romanian relations are very good and both countries are
interested in developing closer cooperation in all areas of common
interest, notably in the economy, Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan
Jandrokovic and his Romanian counterpart Teodor Baconschi said in
Zagreb on Tuesday.
"We have agreed that relations between Croatia
and Romania are very good, that there are no outstanding issues and both sides
are interested in closer cooperation in all areas of common interest,"
Jandrokovic told reporters after talks with Baconschi, who is on a return
official visit to Croatia and who agreed with Jandrokovic's statement.
One of the main areas of cooperation will be
cooperation within EU institutions, after Croatia joins the EU on 1 July 2013,
said Jandrokovic.
Another important area of cooperation is
cooperation in Southeast Europe, where Romania, as a NАТО and EU member, and
Croatia, as a NATO member and prospective member of the EU, can together help
stabilise the situation and help with their know-how and advice all the
countries that are interested in EU membership, said Jandrokovic.
Congratulating Croatia on having completed its EU
entry talks and on the forthcoming signing of its EU accession treaty, Baconschi
said Croatia served as an example to all countries that were in the process of
negotiating EU membership or planned to embark on it.
The two ministers agreed that bilateral trade was
not adequate. Trade currently amounts to around 180 million euros, but there are
possibilities for enhancing it, and one of the ways to do it would be
introduction of direct flights between Zagreb and Bucharest, the two ministers
said.
Jandrokovic said a Croatian-Romanian business
forum would be organised in the near future and the joint commission for
economic cooperation would meet after almost 11 years.
The two ministers said they saw potential for
cooperation also in the energy sector, tourism and metallurgy. They agreed that
an important area of cooperation was protection of ethnic minorities.
"A small Romanian community lives in Istria. We
discussed ways of helping them preserve their identity, and Croatia is certainly
interested in protecting and promoting the rights of the Croat minority living
in Romania. Both countries are willing to support those minority communities,"
said Jandrokovic.
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