First Deputy prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Vesna Pusić began her official visit to Brazil with a meeting with Deputy Foreign Minister Sergio Danese.
“Your tour of these countries shows Croatia’s interest in strengthening the ties, which for us is a good sign,” Danese said.
Pusić informed him about the state of affairs in Croatia and out foreign policy, given that Croatia is a part of the EU and is interested in affairs beyond its immediate neighbourhood. “Latin America is also of interest to us because of our large expatriate communities in some of its countries, but we would like to advance economic relations as well. We could also cooperate in development aid, which is one of the more important segments of Croatia’s foreign policy,” Pusić said, adding that Croatia was interested in building ships for Brazilian customers.
Brazilian deputy foreign minister said Latin America was also striving for an integration of sorts, inspired by the EU, adding that Brazil would like to cooperate more closely with Croatia within the EU-Brazilian relations (Mercosur) as well.
As for bilateral relations, Danese said it was important to organize a business forum, while governmental agencies and departments, such as the Department of Trade and Investment Promotion, were willing to assist in bringing in private ship companies. The Brazilian side also expressed interest in building transport infrastructure and ports, as well as cooperation in military and defence sector.