Ministarstvo vanjskih i europskih poslova

Welcome Message

Dear fellow compatriots and friends, welcome to the website of the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia to the People’s Republic of China!

On behalf of the whole Embassy team, I would like to greet all of you who are visiting this website. Here you can find information about the events organized by the Embassy, our activities, as well as links to the most important state and other institutions of Croatia. We are dedicating special attention to information about consular services and on how to do business with Chinese partners, which most of you require. This website is designed just for you and we would greatly appreciate your recommendations, opinions and questions, so we could improve its informativeness and our communication.

Croatia and China are committed to building and advancing mutual relations, and our leaderships are dedicated to the strengthening of our friendship. After a state visit by President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović to China in October 2015 at the invitation of President Xi Jinping and a working visit by Prime Minister Andrej Plenković in November 2018, as well as a number of his earlier meetings with State Council Premier Li Keqiang, the two countries’ relations received additional boost with Premier Li’s official visit to Croatia and hosting of the Summit of China and Central and Eastern European Countries Cooperation in April 2019 in Dubrovnik. Premier Li underlined then that Croatian – Chinese bilateral relations were in the “diamond period” what was confirmed during the pandemic caused by COVID-19 virus through mutual support in humanitarian assistance of medical equipment.

Regardless of the differences in size, economic power, international influence and geographical distance, our countries share a lot of similarities and interests. Apart from mutual respect and understanding, these are being realized at an increasing rate, especially in the areas of economy and culture, thereby confirming our partnership. In May 2022, we are already celebrating 30th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations and of development of partnership that was strengthened and broadened through Croatia’s membership and actions within the European Union.

Croatia’s position, which links together the Mediterranean, Southeast and Central Europe, and the Danube Region, makes for an excellent strategic gateway to the markets of this part of Europe, reducing the maritime journey of goods by nearly a week. More and more Chinese partners are beginning to recognize such economic opportunities, as evidenced by the rising number of Chinese investments in Croatia. It is worth pointing out that a key infrastructural project connecting two parts of Croatia and therefore the EU – the Pelješac Bridge – is being constructed by a renowned Chinese company, thereby symbolically strengthening the ties between Croatia and China.

The growing number of Chinese tourists visiting Croatia – in 2019, before the pandemic, almost half a million – further deepens our friendship and has the potential to open up new forms of cooperation. The Embassy, in cooperation with the Office of the Croatian National Tourist Board in Shanghai, wants to contribute to an even larger number of visits. This website will therefore give you an insight into the richness of Croatia’s identity, history, natural beauty and culture, as well as all that makes us recognizable worldwide. We also wish to familiarize the Croatian citizens with the impressive history and culture, as well as the economic and technological achievements of China. By learning more about each other, we strengthen our ties and bring our countries closer together. Croatia-China Year of Culture and Tourism in 2019 contributed to further intensification of cooperation and mutual familiarity.

China is the homeland of silk, Croatia the homeland of tie. Therefore, that is one of the links we have yet to build upon in our cooperation, including the Belt and Road Initiative Croatia is participating in. There is also evidence that Marco Polo, who travelled the old Silk Road and brought Europe and Asia closer together, was born in the Croatian city and island of the same name, Korčula, then a part of the Venetian Republic.

One of our most important tasks is working on the branding of Croatia, not simply as a beautiful country and the homeland of various top athletes, but also as a member state of the European Union exporting a large number of premium products and services, from high-tech and software solutions to gastronomic delights, which we would like to see entering the very challenging Chinese market. Our invaluable partner in the strengthening of economic cooperation is the Office of the Croatian Chamber of Economy in Shanghai.

We are paying special attention to the small but dynamic Croatian community in China. In our plans for get-togethers with you, within our “Croatian Corner”, as well as in the cultural and economic activities organized by the Embassy we are, apart from Beijing and Shanghai, also including other cities and provinces with Croatian communities present. In that we will need your support, too, for you are an important link in the chain of our friendship and cooperation, the ambassadors of Croatian identity and recognisability. Finally yet importantly, let us not forget our honorary consuls, Lady Ivy Wu in Hong Kong and Mr. Bat-Erdene Purevdagva in Ulaanbaatar, with whose generous assistance the Embassy has organized activities in the past.

Once again, I welcome you to the website of the Embassy, as I consider it an important form of communication as well as a way to get information about the friendship and cooperation between Croatia and China, Croatia and Mongolia and Croatia and North Korea, which our Embassy covers non-residentially. We are looking forward to your visits and cooperation!

 

Best regards,
 

Dario Mihelin, MSc

Ambassador