.jpg?preset=glavniSlider)
Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman on Friday participated in the 4th session of the Government Council for Croats Abroad.
Addressing the session, Grlić Radman said that the Croatian Government and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs invested bilateral and multilateral efforts to achieve equality for BiH Croats. “We strongly support projects by Croatian institutions that contribute to the preservation of the constitutive status of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the same time, we continue to inform the international public about the difficulties BiH Croats are facing in realizing their guaranteed rights,” he said, adding that the well-being of BiH Croats was Croatia’s constitutional obligation as well as a political imperative.
The minister reflected on the concrete steps and projects that the Croatian Government was implementing to support the political, social and economic existence of BiH Croats. In 2019 alone, 199 projects worth HRK 89.1 million have been implemented in BiH, aimed at the development of institutions, education, economy and infrastructure. “We have run digitalization projects, including support for websites promoting the Croatian language and culture. We have also provided support to education by building, reconstructing and furnishing schools, kindergartens and universities, as well as to healthcare by building, reconstructing and furnishing hospitals and community health centres,” he said.
In addition, Grlić Radman underscored the status of Croat minority in the neighbouring countries of Southeast Europe as well as in the EU member states. “We are pushing for the rights of Croats in Serbia, Slovenia, Hungary, Italy, Austria, Montenegro and Kosovo, based on the principle of reciprocity. In this context one should view Croatia’s support for the European integration of the neighbouring countries as well, where relations towards minorities, and in the case of BiH towards a constituent peoples, is one of the basic criteria that will not be ignored,” he said.
Concluding his address, Grlić Radman reflected on the Croatian diaspora in other parts of Europe and the world, underlining the importance of maintaining ties with the homeland. “We need a structured approach to these people’s integration into communities that allow them to help each other and give them an opportunity to still feel connected to the Croatian society and culture, while at the same time promoting Croatia,” said the minister.