ZAGREB, June 26, 2018 – Atlantic Group management board president Emil Tedeschi said on Tuesday that Croatia undoubtedly was feeling the positive effects of European Union membership and that as a state it should capitalise on all the advantages membership provides.
Speaking at a conference on the five years of Croatia’s EU membership, he said Croatia had belonged to the EU in terms of geography, history, world view and economy for much longer. We should be an open society focused on quality, expertise and transparency, and only through togetherness and by including everyone, including those coming here, can we achieve progress for our society, Tedeschi said.
EU membership is good also for the economy, given that our market is too small, and we must find a way to profit from the big common market, he added. “We must use the existing opportunities as well as the funds at our disposal. We must be competitive in an environment in which we still borrow money more expensively than companies from most EU countries.”
We undoubtedly feel the positives of EU membership, as without it innovative companies such as Infobip, Nanobit and Rimac Automobili, as well as those with a much longer tradition here, such as Ericsson Nikola Tesla, Vetropack and Končar, would find it hard to develop, Tedeschi said.
“These are globally competitive companies, but it is important that there are as many of them as possible. It is important that they can operate and develop in Croatia, pay taxes and create jobs, and raise the bar of society as a whole.”
He said the erasing of barriers as a result of EU membership made Croatia’s economy more exposed and limited the possibility of any policy of favouring or protecting domestic businesses. Some companies have prepared better than others for doing business in the EU, and “in some cases the whole society is painfully feeling the lack of that responsibility,” he added. “Let even the settlement in the Agrokor conglomerate serve as a reminder that the times of protectionism, preferential treatment and non-transparency are behind us.”
Despite disunity and political and security challenges, the EU nonetheless represents a framework for “a much faster and better development path of a prosperous and happier society,” he said. “As a state, let us capitalise all the advantages which membership provides before turning to criticism.”
As an upcoming EU president, Croatia should contribute to a better functioning and success of the community as well as see to the integration of the remaining states, Tedeschi said.
