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Zagreb - Parliament on Friday declared Croatia's Exclusive Economic Zone (IGP) in the Adriatic. All 141 lawmakers who were present during the vote in the 151-seat parliament voted in favour of the IGP.
The decision to declare the IGP will enter into force eight days after being published in the Official Gazette instead of 1 February as had originally been planned.
Parliament was to have voted on the motion last Friday. However, after it was established that there wasn't a quorum, voting did not take place and hence the government proposed an amendment changing the date of the motion coming into force, which was then endorsed in the Parliament.
In comparison to the Ecological and Fisheries Protection Zone (ZERP) that was declared in 2003, the IGP means new rights for Croatia - building artificial islands and using the force of the sea, winds, and currents.
Under ZERP, Croatia enjoys all the contents of the exclusive economic zone, together with the epicontinental sea, with the exception of the right to build artificial islands and the right to produce energy by using the sea, currents, and winds in accordance with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
MP Hrvoje Zekanović (Sovereignists) once again today reiterated that declaring the IGP does not change anything, adding that Italian trawlers would dig in Croatia's section of the Adriatic tonight just like they did yesterday.
The only way to protect that area is to actually protect it, however in light of Andrej Plenković's non-sovereignist policy, that will not occur, said Zekanović, adding that this was just another attempt by the incumbent government to delude the public.