Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Marija Pejčinović Burić held talks 21 November 2017 in Brussels with European Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Karmenu Vella.
The two officials discussed the joint efforts in sustainable fisheries management, including a draft of a multiyear plan for small pelagic species in the Adriatic, the first European Commission’s plan of such kind for the Mediterranean, whose success hinges on the support by coastal EU member states and it reflecting the traditional way of fisheries management in the region. Pejčinović Burić and Vella expressed satisfaction with a joint project, proposed by Croatia in cooperation with Italy and backed by the European Commission, which resulted in the Jabuka Basin being declared a specially protected fishing area, and confirmed the necessity for continued close cooperation within the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean as well.