Zagreb – Croatian Parliament Speaker Boris Šprem met with Andrew Scheer, Speaker of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Canada, undertaking an official visit to Croatia.
"Like Croatia, Canada has been facing numerous challenges of the global financial crisis and we think that the kind of encounters like today’s meeting will stimulate and facilitate economic ties and cultural exchange between our countries", said the Canadian Speaker at the press conference held after the meeting. "We will be working on reinforcing our bonds with Croatia, our strong partner in Afghanistan", he promised.
Boris Šprem referred to the relations between the two countries as friendly and increasingly frequent. These are the kind of ties that link partners and allies, he added, highlighting the two armies’ close cooperation in NATO operations in Afghanistan. Economic relations, however, do not follow this trend. Speakers agreed to inform their respective governments of their conclusion that there is considerable room for improving economic cooperation between the two countries.
Šprem reminded there were over 250 thousand Croats living in Canada. "They are an important bridge between Canada and Croatia", he underlined. Scheer said Canada was a country of many different peoples and that the citizens of Croatian descent had given a valuable contribution to its development. "We hope we can now return this favour and we are looking forward to being able to do so", Scheer added. (Hina)