News

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Tuesday received Finnish President Sauli Niinisto for talks on Croatia-Finland relations, preparations for presidency over the Council of the European Union, the EU's future and security challenges in Europe.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Monday, while formally opening a simulation of parliament's plenary session organised by the ELSA association of law students, that it was necessary to develop discussions in a democratic atmosphere and that arguments should be substantiated while avoiding pinning labels on people with different views.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Monday received Algerian Foreign Minister Abdelkader Messahel for talks which focused on bilateral relations between the two countries.

Zagreb - Croatian National Bank (HNB) governor Boris Vujcic said in Parliament on Thursday that it was difficult to find anywhere in the world a crisis that could be compared to the one in the Agrokor conglomerate, stressing however that although the crisis had not significantly affected Croatia's economy, it was necessary to make undermining the financial stability punishable under law.

Sofia – Chairman of the Domestic Policy and National Security Committee, Mr. Ranko Ostojić participated at the Second Meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group on the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) founded pursuant to the Conclusions of the Conference of Speakers of the European Union Parliaments in April 2017.

Zagreb - Parliament on Friday adopted the Law on Strategic Investment Projects which is aimed at strengthening the investment climate and making procedures for preparing investment projects simpler and faster.

Zagreb - Parliament on Friday passed the Family Farms Act which is expected to lead to an improvement in the state of affairs in agriculture, enable distinguishing family farms from other businesses, and help bring order to the market of agricultural and food products.

Zagreb – At the initiative of Mr Marin Škibola, MP, the Financial and Central Budget Committee and the European Affairs Committee of the Croatian Parliament held a joint session on the Strategy for the Adoption of the Euro in Croatia, presented in October 2017 by the Croatian Government and the Croatian National Bank (CNB).

Zagreb - Ireland acknowledges the huge contribution Croatian immigrants have made to its society, visiting Irish Parliament Speaker Seán Ó Fearghaíl said after talks with his host, Sabor Speaker Gordan Jandroković, in Zagreb on Thursday.

Zagreb - Deputy Parliament Speaker Zeljko Reiner on Thursday received a delegation of the World Jewish Restitution Organization to discuss stepping up the restitution of property seized during and after WWII and possible changes to the law on the restitution of property seized in the former Yugoslavia.

Zagreb – The Defence Committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Croatian Parliament jointly organized a thematic session where Mr Damir Krstičević, Defence Minister, presented the programme of the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) incorporated in the European Union's Common Security and Defence Policy.

Zagreb - Due to the amount of work that needs to be done before Easter recess, parliamentary deputies will begin the plenary week on Monday instead of Wednesday, while the parliamentary Committee on the Constitution is scheduled to convene on Tuesday to discuss amendments to a draft Standing Orders.

Zagreb - European Commissioner for Budget and Human Resources Günther Oettinger met on March 8 with the members of the European Affairs Committee and the Finance and Central Budget Committee to present the priorities of the European Multi-Annual Financial Framework (MFF) post- 2020.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Thursday met with Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif who is on an official visit to Croatia.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic on Monday held talks with visiting Maltese President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca on parliamentary cooperation and overall bilateral relations, notably on the economic front.

Zagreb - Parliament on Friday did not elect a Conflict of Interest Commission chair as neither Natasa Novakovic nor Dalija Oreskovic, who chaired it until the end of her term on February 11, received the required 76 votes, while four members were elected.

Zagreb - Parliament on Friday adopted a new Farmland Act, of which Croatian farmers expect a lot, with 78 votes in favour, 49 against and three abstentions. The new law returns the power to manage state-owned farmland to towns and municipalities, shutting down the agency established for that purpose.

Zagreb - Political stability is the main prerequisite for the country's economic growth and development and was therefore a priority in the Croatian government's first year in office, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Wednesday at this year's first business lunch of the American Chamber of Commerce in Croatia.

Zagreb - The European Commission Vice-President for the Digital Single Market, Andrus Ansip, said in the Croatian Parliament on Tuesday that the digital single market was very important for Europe's future.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Monday received Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and they confirmed that continuous dialogue was necessary to improve relations at all levels, notably on outstanding issues such as the war missing, ethnic minorities, the border, and judicial cooperation.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković and his Kosovo counterpart Kadri Veseli said in Zagreb on Wednesday the two countries had very good and friendly relations which had been raised to the level of friendship and cooperation in the ten years since the establishment of diplomatic relations.

Zagreb - A meeting of the members of the European Affairs Committee, Committee on the Economy, Environment and Nature Conservation Committee and Committee on Regional Development and European Union Funds with Commission Vice-President for Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković and delegations of the government and the Office of the President on Friday laid wreaths at the Jewish section of Zagreb's central Mirogoj ceremony to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković and Foreign and European Affairs Minister Marija Pejčinović Burić on Friday commented on an exhibition on the World War II concentration camp Jasenovac, staged by Serbia at the U.N. headquarters in New York, saying that it "manipulates the victims for daily political and propaganda purposes" and that exhibitions of that kind should not be organised the way Serbia had done it.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament started its session on Friday by observing a minute of silence on the occasion of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, with Speaker Gordan Jandroković saying that the victims should remain forever in the collective conscience of human kind so that such crimes could never happen again.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković received newly appointed U.S. ambassador to Croatia W. Robert Kohorst on Wednesday.

Zagreb – The parliament speaker's envoy and Deputy Speaker Milijan Brkić headed on Monday the Sabor´s delegation at a ceremony in Zadar commemorating the 25th Anniversary of the Operation Maslenica.

Sofia - Bojan Glavašević, deputy chairperson of the European Affairs Committee, and Marijana Balić, Committee member, participated in the meeting.

Zagreb - Migration, Europe's future and digital development were the main topics on the EU's agenda in 2017, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said in parliament on Wednesday while presenting a report on meetings of the European Council in 2017, with emphasis on Croatia.

Zagreb - After a month- long recess, Croatian MP are set to return to Parliament on Wednesday, when the 7th session is scheduled to commence.

Zagreb – On the first day of the year, the Republic of Croatia took over the Presidency of the Central European Initiative (CEI). Thereby the Croatian Parliament assumed the Chairmanship of the Parliamentary Dimension of this organization that brings together 18 member states.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Saturday issued a Christmas message with his best wishes for all Croatians in the country and abroad.

Zagreb - This is an exceptionally good initiative and the state should support it, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Thursday after receiving a delegation of the Opatija Initiative which has made its recommendations for a new bill on financing Croatian sports.

Zagreb - Members of the Croatian Scouts Alliance, which this year again organised the arrival of the Bethlehem Light in Croatia, handed the Light to Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Sunday, and he handed it to the rector of the Zagreb Cathedral, Msgr. Josip Kuhtić.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker on Tuesday extended his best wishes to the Jewish faithful on the occasion of Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights.

Zagreb - The constitutional law on national minorities' rights from 2002 has contributed to developing minority rights in Croatia, as it was important in preservation of minorities' cultural and ethnic identity, the chairman of the Croatian Council for National Minorities, Aleksandar Tolnauer said on Monday at a conference organised on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the adoption of the law.

Zagreb - After commenting on amendments to the draft budget for 2018 for several hours on Thursday, members of the Croatian parliament adopted the key financial document for next year as well as financial projections for 2019 and 2020, with 79 MPs voting for and 34 against.

Tallinn - Bojan Glavašević, Deputy Chairman of the European Affairs Committee, took part in the meeting of the Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union (COSAC).

Zagreb - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković presented a draft state budget for 2018 to parliament on Wednesday, saying that next year his government would focus on the needs of the people and on the necessary reforms in order to raise productivity and living standards.

Brussels – Chairman of the Foreign Policy Committee Miro Kovač and Member of the Committee Romana Jerković took part in the interparliamentary meeting on the “Implementation of the European Consensus on Development and the Sustainable Development Goals”, organized by the European Parliament's Committee on Development, and in the interparliamentary meeting on the “European integration process of the Western Balkans”, organized by the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Brussels - Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson and Member of the Gender Equality Committee Ivan Vilibor Sinčić, Irena Petrijevčanin Vuksanović and Silvano Hrelja participated on Tuesday at the Inter-parliamentary meeting around the theme: "The Istanbul Convention: combating violence against women at national and EU level".

Zagreb - Today we are marking one of the most difficult days in Croatia's history which is also the day when we made stronger connections between us and when we grew stronger, Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said in the eastern Croatian town of Vukovar on Saturday.

Zagreb - The 26th anniversary of the massacre in Škabrnja, in which 86 civilians and defenders were killed in 1991, today was marked in the town of Škabrnja with a remembrance procession which brought together more than 15,000 people from all parts of Croatia.

Zagreb - With 79 votes for, the Croatian parliament on Friday revised the 2017 state budget in which revenues amount to HRK 122.5 billion, while expenditures have been slashed by HRK 1.6 billion to HRK 126.8 billion. During the vote, one MP abstained, while 45 voted against.

Zagreb - The Parliamentary Finance Committee on Wednesday upheld the 2018 draft budget and budget planning for 2019 and 2020, with one abstention by Social Democratic Party (SDP) MP Branko Grčić. Finance Ministry State Secretary, Željko Tufekčić underscored that the 2018 budget was a continuation of fiscal consolidation and improving fiscal indicators.

Zagreb - The parliamentary Committee on Human and Minority Rights on Friday unanimously endorsed the annual report on funds spent on minority cultural programmes in 2016, submitted by the government's Council for Ethnic Minorities, according to which a total of HRK 31.9 million was allocated for those programmes.

Zagreb - The ceremony marking International Romani Language Day was held at the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts (HAZU) in the presence of Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković, Minister for Demography, Family, Youth and Social Policy Nada Murganić, presidential envoy Renata Margaretić Urlić, Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandić, member of Parliament for the Roma minority Veljko Kajtazi, and representatives of Roma organisations.

Zagreb - Croatia's Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Friday visited the University of Waterloo and met Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanović and representatives of the Croat community in that Canadian city in southeastern Ontario, which was the last stop of his visit to Canada.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković was received in Ottawa on Thursday by Governor General of Canada Julie Payette, who represents Queen Elizabeth II, and they said the bilateral relations between the two countries were excellent.

Zagreb - The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament, Gordan Jandroković, and the Speaker of the Canadian Parliament's House of Commons, Geoff Regan, underscored excellent relations between the two countries at their meeting in Ottawa.