Croatia currently has a more limited Ecological and Fisheries Protection Zone.
At its first session, Croatian government led by Prime Minister Andrej Plenković asked the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs to enter into consultations with EU member states and the European Commission about the protection of Croatian interests in the Adriatic Sea, including the possibility of the proclamation and full implementation of the exclusive economic zone, reports Index.hr on October 28, 2016.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which will work in coordination with other relevant ministries, has a maximum of one year to submit to the government a report on the results of these consultations.
In 2003, Croatia, in accordance with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, declared the Ecological and Fisheries Protection Zone (ZERP), which includes those rights from an exclusive economic zone related to sovereign rights on exploration and exploitation, conservation and management of living resources beyond the limits of the territorial sea, and jurisdiction over marine scientific research and the protection and preservation of the marine environment.
“Currently, ZERP is being applied to countries that are not EU members, but in the context of the preparations for the implementation of the integrated maritime policy in the Mediterranean, the European Commission has published a study on the benefits of the establishment of such zones and recommended to states to declare them. We are going to conduct our discussion in that context”, said Croatian Foreign Minister Davor Ivo Stier during the session of the cabinet.
“After the end of the consultations, and no later than in one year, the Ministry will submit a report on the results, so that the government can make a decision taking into account all the economic, political and environmental aspects of the issue”, the Minister added.
The proclamation of the exclusive economic zone was one of MOST’s conditions during coalition negotiations with HDZ, but the two sides agreed during the talks that it was necessary to begin a process that would include consultations with other countries, with Croatian experts, and with the European Commission on when to examine the possibility to proclaim the exclusive economic zone. MOST initially demanded that the zone be proclaimed within one month, but later accepted that it would take much longer.
