By V. Sankara
KUALA LUMPUR, July 16 (Bernama) — The six-month-long Croatian Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) has marked four main flagship achievement, including the opening of accession negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania to join the EU as member states, said Croatian Ambassador to Malaysia Dr Ivan Velimir Starcevic.
Starcevic said the opening of accession talks sends a clear message not only to the two countries but to the Western Balkans as a whole.
“These two countries are our close neighbourhood countries in Western Balkans and the council has decided to open accession talks with North Macedonia and Albania,” he said, in an exclusive interview with Bernama at the news agency’s headquarters recently.
On Jan 1, 2020, less than seven years after its accession to the EU in 2013, Croatia took over the rotating Presidency of the Council of the EU for the first time – for six months, starting Jan 1 until June 30.
Starcevic said the Croatian Presidency of the Council of the EU saw the leaders of 27 member states under EU and six Western Balkan countries holding a summit called the Zagreb Summit via video conferencing on May 6.
He said the summit was supposed to be held in the Croatian capital of Zagreb but was not possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The summit, he said, strengthened the political dialogue and socio-economic cooperation between the EU and the Western Balkans, and showed solidarity and joint effort in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the third flagship achievement was the Eastern Partnership leaders’ video conference held on June 18, attended by leaders from the Eastern Partnership countries – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine.
He said the leaders reiterated and confirmed the strategic importance of the Eastern Partnership.
“The fourth flagship achievement was the proposal of having Conference on the Future of Europe to get citizens involved in a wide-ranging debate on Europe’s future in the coming decade and beyond, including in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.
He said the Croatian Presidency also focused on the issue of infrastructural (transport, energy and digital) connectivity of the Union.
Starcevic, who assumed the post of Croatian Ambassador to Malaysia in December 2019, said the coordinated short and long term measures undertaken by EU countries, including Croatia, in resolving COVID-19 was relatively successful, with the considerable amount of people’s life returning to normal.
On another note, the envoy said he is looking forward to a closer and more dynamic relationship with ASEAN – having in mind the ASEAN Regional Forum to be held in Hanoi, Vietnam, next month as the first imminent event.
He said Croatia is also looking forward to a strategic partnership and free trade agreement between ASEAN and the EU.
On the trade relations between Malaysia and Croatia, the ambassador said it is progressing well – both in traditional and non-traditional sectors.
“As for traditional sector, Croatia is one of the biggest per-capita importers of palm oil from Malaysia under EU, where 27 per cent of our total import comprises palm oil,” he said, adding the total annual trade between the two countries currently amounted to about US$30 million.
He said Malaysia has been the hub for the Asia Pacific region for the setting up of Croatian-based Information Technology and Telecommunications Company Infobip in Cyberjaya, besides the setting up of Museum of Illusions – a Croatian-franchised interactive museum – in Kuala Lumpur.
Commenting on tourist arrival from Malaysia to Croatia, he said some 36,000 Malaysians visited Croatia in 2018, and Croatia is in the process of finalising an agreement on tourism, culture and heritage with Malaysia.
He said Croatia, home to about four million people, records tourism receipts worth 10 billion euro every year.
— BERNAMA