Iran-Croatia relations - bilateral diplomatic relations between Iran and Croatia . Both countries established diplomatic relations on April 18, 1992. Iran then became the seventh in the world, the first in Asia and the first with a Muslim majority state, which officially recognized Croatia’s newly acquired independence. Croatia has an embassy in Tehran , while Iran has an embassy and cultural center in Zagreb . Relations between the two countries are described as good and friendly [1] .
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The origin of the Croats
According to one of the widespread theories about the origin of the Croats, the ancient Croats arrived in Europe from the Eastern European steppes or large Iran . This theory has been developing since the end of the 18th century and gained great popularity after Croatia gained independence in 1990. Numerous ancient writings and various similarities between the two peoples have been discovered, which suggest the possibility that the Croats were once an Iranian tribe .
Relationships
Iranian Vice President Hassan Habibi visited Croatia in 1995, and Iranian President Mohammad Khatami paid a state visit to Zagreb in 2005 [2] . Croatian President Stepan Mesic paid a three-day state visit to Iran in 2001 [3] . In 2008, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad welcomed the relations between the two countries and stated that they share culture and history, in connection with the possible Iranian origin of the Croats, which should strengthen these relations in the future [4] . In the same year, the Croatian national oil company INA expanded its activities in the Iranian ostanan Ardabil [5] .
In October 2011, a senior Iranian parliamentary delegation visited Croatia and met with President Ivo Josipovic and Foreign Minister Gordan Yandrokovich .
The speaker of the Islamic Advisory Council, Ali Ardashir Larijani, met with the Chairman of the Croatian Assembly, Josip Leko, in October 2013. Both expressed a desire to strengthen cooperation between Iran and Croatia in the field of economy, trade, culture, science, sports, agriculture and energy, as well as expand parliamentary cooperation [6] .
A delegation of the Croatian-Iranian inter-parliamentary friendship group visited Tehran in March 2014, emphasizing the need for further development of relations between the two countries. Just before this visit, Croatian President Ivo Josipovic noted the desire of Croatia to expand relations with Iran in the field of politics, economy and culture [7] .
High Representative of the Iranian Parliament Hossein Sheikholeslam visited Croatia in October 2014 at the invitation of Mladen Novak, President of the Croatian-Iranian Friendship Group of the Croatian Sabor. The delegation met with Foreign Minister Vesna Pusich , President Ivo Josipovic and President of the Croatian Parliament Josip Leko.
In January 2015, Croatian Foreign Minister Vesna Pusich visited Iran, where she met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani , Vice President Shahindoht Molaverdi , Vice President Masumeh Ebtekar , Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani and Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif . Minister Pusich noted that the time of her visit to Iran, which took place during the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear deal , "is an appropriate time to strengthen bilateral relations between Croatia and Iran." Pusic also stated that Croatia, as an EU member state, strongly supports the efforts of both parties in the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear deal to ensure a successful conclusion to the negotiations. Minister Zarif noted that Pusich’s visit to Iran will strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries, and that Croatia is an extremely important Iranian partner within the European Union . The Vice President and Head of the Department of Environmental Protection, Molaverdi, spoke with Minister Pusich on strengthening bilateral cooperation between Iran and Croatia in the field of environmental protection. Both sides emphasized the importance of continuing the fight against terrorism, extremism and violence [8] [9] [10] . During the visit, delegations agreed to create a mixed commission of economic experts in the near future [11] .
Economic Cooperation
Economic cooperation between Croatia and Iran is low due to sanctions against Iran . In 2012, Croatia exported $ 2.9 million worth of goods to Iran [12] and imported $ 2.19 million worth of goods from it [12] .
On March 22, 2012, Croatia and the other 27 European Union member states banned the import, purchase and transportation of oil and oil products from Iran. Croatian companies were also prohibited from providing any financing or financial assistance, insurance or reinsurance related to the import, purchase or transportation of Iranian crude oil and petroleum products. In addition, all Croatian citizens who flew under the Croatian flag were forbidden to sell and buy equipment that could be used in the Iranian oil industry [13] .
The leaders of the Rovinj tobacco factory and the Iranian tobacco company signed a contract in 2010 to build a joint tobacco factory in Iran. The factory was opened in 2013 in the city of Sari and is the largest tobacco factory in the Middle East. Investments amounted to about 30 million euros, and the factory produces about 6 billion cigarettes per year [14] .
During the visit of the Iranian delegation to Croatia in October 2011, an agreement was signed on cooperation in shipbuilding between the Iranian provinces of Kermanshah and Khuzestan and the Croatian County of Splitsko-Dalmatinsk . Iran and the Croatian shipyard in Rijeka and previously collaborated [15] . This contract was eventually terminated due to the imposition of sanctions against Iran [11] .
Iranian Ambassador to Croatia Mohammad Taherian Fard said in an interview for the Croatian newspaper Večernji list in April 2015 that he received direct instructions from President Hassan Rouhani to strengthen political, cultural and especially economic relations with Croatia. In addition, the ambassador also said that Iran’s strategic plan is to make Croatia a distributor of Iranian gas to many European countries [11] .
On May 18, 2016, Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic visited Iran and signed an agreement on economic cooperation [1] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 Potvrđeni tradicionalno dobri i prijateljski odnosi Hrvatske i Irana - Večernji.hr . Vecernji.hr. Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ Timeline
- ↑ Iran, Croatia Pledge to Expand Cooperation
- ↑ Iran: Country Study Guide, Volume 1: Strategic Information and Developments (2012), Washington DC: International Business Publications, p. 162, ISBN 1-4387-7462-1
- ↑ Croatia set for all-out cooperation with Iran , Tehran Times
- ↑ Hrvatska i Iran produbljuju suradnju . tportal.hr. Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ Iranska delegacija u polutajnom posjetu Hrvatskoj . tportal.hr (October 16, 2014). Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ Piše: Media servis subota, 01.24.2015. 16:44. Što Vesna Pusić radi u Iranu? - Vijesti . Index.hr (January 24, 2015). Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ HRT: Pusić se sastala s iranskim kolegom Zarifom (Croatian) . Hrt.hr. Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ Hina. FOTO: VESNA PUSIĆ U SLUŽBENOM POSJETU IRANU 'Trenutak je sazrio za okončanje nuklearnih pregovora' . Jutarnji.hr (January 25, 2015). Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ 1 2 3 'Naš strateški cilj je da budete distributer iranskog plina za europske zemlje' - Večernji.hr . Vecernji.hr. Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ 1 2 OEC - Export destinations of Croatia (2012) . Atlas.media.mit.edu. Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ Hrvatska uvela sankcije Iranu - Vlada zabranila uvoz, kupnju i prijevoz iranske nafte i petrokemijskih proizvoda | advance.hr vijesti unopened (inaccessible link) . Advance.hr. Date of treatment November 28, 2018. Archived June 2, 2016.
- ↑ TDR konačno otvorio tvornicu u Iranu . tportal.hr (September 9, 2013). Date of treatment November 28, 2018.
- ↑ Iranski veleposlanik Khodaei: Iranci su Hrvatima prijatelji - Večernji.hr . Vecernji.hr. Date of treatment November 28, 2018.