Speaking at an event organised at the National and University Library in Zagreb to mark Croatian Diplomacy Day, Plenković recalled the beginnings of Croatian statehood and the role of diplomacy in it, noting that present-day Croatia “has an entirely different status and role.”
“I can say freely that we have accomplished all strategic national goals – we have a state, institutions, we have become part of the Western circle to which as a nation we believed to belong,” he said, adding that the remaining goals to be achieved were membership of the euro area and accession to the Schengen area of passport-free movement, the target date for both goals being 1 January 2023.
“The icing on the cake would be membership in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, whose new secretary-general has a favourable attitude to Croatia’s ambitions,” Plenković said, adding that “it won’t happen on 1 January but it will happen in the years ahead.”
He noted that the Russian aggression on Ukraine had caused “tectonic global changes” that would be felt at all levels, including in the global economy.
In circumstances such as these, “every move and word is measured carefully” in the international community, and Croatia must be “a reliable country” in that context, he said.
“It’s worst when you have a state about which those who want to cooperate with it do not know what its position is,” he said, adding that his government’s position had been clear for years while others use belligerent rhetoric, including insults.
The event at the National and University Library was also addressed by Foreign and European Affairs Minister Gordan Grlić Radman.
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