Croatia, the New Europe and a second chance for Canada
By Ottawa Business Journal Staff
Mon, Jan 30, 2006 12:00 AM EST

In 1989, the Berlin Wall came down and the countries of the Soviet bloc embarked on a process of rapid transformation. Today, they represent, after China, the second most dynamic investment destination in the world. Canada largely missed out on that opportunity, preferring to focus on the United States. Now, countries like Croatia are going through the same rapid economic transition, offering Canada a second chance.

Milan Bandic, the mayor of Croatia's capital, Zagreb, will make an official visit to Canada on Feb. 4 to 9. His itinerary will include Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal, where most of Canada's 100,000 Croatians live. He is expected to meet with municipal and provincial government officials, chambers of commerce, corporations such as Bombardier and Lavalin, as well as business groups such as the Croatian-Canadian Business Association.

While seeking to strengthen ties with cities that have large Croatian populations, Mr. Bandic is also interested in how Canada's municipalities have managed infrastructure, airports and waste. The mayor will talk about Zagreb's economic development strategy, investment in the city, restructuring and privatization, financial programs to support crafts, trades, and SMEs as well as significant initiatives for which partnerships are being sought. Zagreb should be of interest to Canadian business since it is located only hours from major capitals like Vienna and Budapest.

Promoting opportunities and Croatia's modern image are also the main goals for Her Excellency Vesela Mrden Korac, the new Croatian Ambassador accredited to Canada in November. Her priorities are to let Canadians know that Croatia is open for business, has a welcoming investment climate, and offers opportunities in areas such as tourism, transportation, telecommunications, construction and energy. The ambassador would also like to increase cultural cooperation and exchanges.

While the countries of Western Europe represent developed markets, to the east is a New Europe of economies undergoing rapid transition. These markets should interest Canada, which is trying to overcome dependence on a single trading partner.

Situated strategically at the intersection of the two Europes, Croatia offers opportunities for collaboration and partnership as it pursues economic development and strives to meet international standards.

Nowhere is Croatia's startling transformation more evident than in the massive waves of tourists that flock to the Adriatic coastline every year. When Canadians want to vacation they go to Western Europe; when Western Europeans vacation they go to Croatia. The majority of Croatia's tourists come from Germany, Italy, Austria and Slovenia.

In 2004, Croatia was the single largest destination for French tourists. In 2005, the Lonely Planet tourist guide declared Croatia to be one of the most desirable tourist destinations in the world. This judgment was reflected in visits by American tourists – nearly 128,000 of them. This represented an increase of 39 per cent from 2004. An even larger number would visit if there were direct airline connections between the two countries, something the Croatian government is exploring.

All signs suggest that tourism will continue to grow in 2006. Citing the attractions of the Kornati archipelago, National Geographic Adventure recently called Croatia one of the world's most desirable destinations. Croatia also appeals to a special type of tourist. The Ethic Tourist, a non-profit group from Berkley California, has pronounced it to be one of 13 countries that deserve to be visited not just because of natural beauty but also because of a special relationship with the environment and social development.

Beyond tourism, Croatia is positioning itself to become a full participant in the international economy. It became a member of the Council of Europe (1996), NATO's Partnership for Peace (2000) the World Trade Organization (2000), the Central European Free Trade Area (2003) and is gradually concluding free-trade agreements with countries involved in the Stabilization and Association Process. Croatia is expecting an invitation for membership to NATO, having fulfilled all political, defense and military criteria.

The country is also in negotiations to join the European Union and expects to become a member before European Parliamentary elections in 2009. While it is recognized that legislative alignment with the EU institutional framework is a long and complex process, Croatian authorities do not regard membership as an end in itself but rather as a means to reach out to other international markets, including Canada.

Like other countries in southeastern Europe, Croatia is looking for foreign direct investment. It is a member of the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency and it has accorded foreign investors the same rights, obligations and legal status as domestic investors. Special tax exemptions are even offered, depending on the nature of the investment.

Croatia offers investors a tradition of quality, an educated work force, modern communication systems and high standards of transport infrastructure. Opportunities are abundant, even in service areas such as the management of health care, reform of the judiciary, or the development of a new vocational education and training policy to harmonize with Europe. Though it has a small domestic market, it is well situated to act as a springboard into the European Union. In addition, Croatia enjoys established business relationships throughout southern and eastern Europe. Canadians partnering with Croatian businesses can reap the benefit of those links through the Croatian ports of Rjeka and Split, which offer easy access.

In 2004, Croatia's overall trade totalled $28 billion. But bilateral trade between Canada and Croatia amounted to only about $45 million, or 1.6 per cent of the total. Unless it moves quickly, Canadian business will miss out on yet another tremendous opportunity to enter a dynamic region.

By Vesna Knezevic

Special to the Ottawa Business Journal

Vesna Knezevic is a federal policy analyst with a Masters in International Affairs.

http://www.ottawabusinessjournal.com/357724466340615.php

William Feller (1906-1970)

One of the greatest experts in probability theory in history. He was born and educated in Zagreb, where he started his university study of mathematics, a professor at the Universities of Kiel, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Lund, Providence, Princeton etc., a member of many scientific organizations. Many important mathematical notions bear his name: Feller's process, Feller's transition function, Feller's semigroup, Feller's property.
 

William Feller, 100 years since the birth of outstanding mathematician

www.croatianhistory.net
 

BRINGING DOWN BARRIERS IN CROATIA

THROUGH ONLINE PARTNER MATCH

- The Internet Institute in Croatia, which manages the Croatia Country Gateway, has joined a
Europe-wide program called IDEAL-IST which provides an online service to find
and match partners for EU-funded projects related to Internet Society
Technologies (IST). The Croatia program is part of IDEALIST-Extend, which focuses on south-eastern Europe. In addition to wide and intensive dissemination of partner match information, the program supports and trains
those with potential proposals, identifies experts for call evaluations and
brings potential partners together for networking events and workshops.

Learn about IDEALIST-Extend Croatia:
http://www.idealist-extend.hr 

Source: Development Gateway Newsletter

http://www.southeasteurope.org/subpage.php?sub_site=2&id=16195&head=hl

Croatia Delivers Protest Note Over Assault On Diplomats In Belgrade

Croatia delivered a protest note to Serbia and Montenegro on Thursday over a physical assault on two of its diplomats in Belgrade last night, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration said in a press release.
Assistant Minister Damir Kusen handed the note to Ambassador Radivoje Cveticanin in which the Croatian side harshly protested against the assault and demanded a complete report on what was being done.

Croatia said in the note it expected the perpetrators to be found and punished as soon as possible and wanted guarantees for the safety of the Croatian Embassy staff in Belgrade.

Cveticanin expressed regret over the incident, voicing conviction that everything would be done to find and punish the culprits.

The two diplomats were physically assaulted on Wednesday evening in the Senjak neighbourhood, where the residences of a number of diplomats are located, Serbian Interior Ministry spokeswoman Dragana Kajganic told Hina today.

Deputy Ambassador Branislav Loncar and first secretary Boris Herceg were attacked as they were sitting in a car with diplomatic licence plates. Four persons lunged at the vehicle, with one of them smashing a window and hitting Herceg, who was in the driver's seat and sustained light injuries.

Police arrived shortly after the incident but the attackers had fled, said Kajganic, adding that an intensive search for them was under way.

Speaking to the press in Budapest after a session of the Croatian and Hungarian governments, Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader said he assumed this was an isolated incident which had no other political implications.

Friday , 27 January 2006

http://www.turkishweekly.net/news.php?id=25157
 

Tour to Croatia this coming April 24 - May 1

As a tour coordinator for Marshall Field's Travel Service, I have put together an overview tour to Croatia this coming April 24 - May 1, to Zagreb and Dubrovnik. And as a thrid-generation Croatian, I am pleased to present Croatia to the traveling public, now that it has become as popular as it has. Although this tour is not designed for those 1st and 2nd generation Croatians, with immediate family in Croatia, or who have traveled there often, it is designed for those of Croatian descent who have heard stories from their grandparents and the like, and who would like to go back to the "old" country to see it's beauty, charm, and experience the food, wine and the people that make this country so wonderful. I would like your help in trying to get this tour information out to as many people as possible, and would like to find out your thoughts on the best way to promote this. Details on the tour can be found on our website at www.travel.fields.com . If anyone has any questions, they could contact me at 612-375-3631 for more information.

Hvala...jim glad
jglad@mftravel.com

CroNetwork: The Croatian-American Organization for Young Professionals.
 

Hungary and Croatia hold meeting in Budapest

13:35 2006-01-26
Croatia's efforts to join the European Union, cooperation on energy matters, and a joint bid to host soccer's 2012 European Championships are expected to dominate Thursday's joint Cabinet session between Hungary and Croatia. Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany and his Croatian counterpart, Ivo Sanader, will lead the session, to be held at Budapest's Museum of Fine Arts.

The EU opened accession talks with Croatia, a prelude to eventual membership, on Oct. 4, after delaying them for months because of Croatia's failure to capture a top war crimes suspect, Ante Gotovina. Gotovina was eventually arrested in Spain on Dec. 7. Hungary, which joined the EU in 2004, has been a solid supporter of the accession of Croatia, home to an ethnic Hungarian minority of around 17,000 people.

Croatia hopes to join the EU in 2009. Linking the two countries' natural gas pipelines and cooperation on the management of oil reserves are among the energy issues the governments are expected to discuss Thursday.

The two Cabinets are also expected to reiterate their support for a joint bid to host soccer's 2012 European championships. The winning bid is planned to be chosen Dec. 8 and the other two finalists are Italy and a joint bid by Poland and Ukraine.

The meeting will not be held in parliament "so the shadows of history are not projected onto cooperation in the modern era between Hungary and Croatia," Gyurcsany told Hungarian state news wire MTI.

Croatia was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until World War I and under some form of Hungarian or Austrian authority as far back as the 12th century. Sanader and his Cabinet are also scheduled to meet with Hungarian President Laszlo Solyom later Thursday, reports the AP.
N.U.

http://newsfromrussia.com/world/2006/01/26/71824.html
 

Tomislav Japec, victory in his opening match

Ian Marshall, ITTF Publications Editor Overcoming Nerves
Photo By: Sanjin Strukic LIEBHERR Croatian Open, Zagreb

Tomislav JAPEC, a nervous start but victory in his opening match  1/24/2006
The disappointment for table tennis fans intending to watch the Liebherr Croatian Open in Zagreb is the withdrawal from the Men’s Singles of top seed Germany’s Timo BOLL. Nevertheless, the tournament still has a host of world class players on duty and on the morning of Tuesday 24th January 2006 the home supporters had smiles on their faces, thanks to the efforts of twenty-one year old Tomislav JAPEC.

He recovered from a two games to nil deficit to beat Janez PETROVCIC of Slovenia 7-11, 9-11, 12-10, 11-9, 11-8, 11-7.

'I was nervous before the start of the match and I was tentative in the first game', said a somewhat relieved Tomislav JAPEC. 'It’s a long time since I’ve played in Croatia and that had an effect on me, in fact my last tournament in Croatia was the Liebherr Croatian Open a year ago.'

Pressure
Playing in front of your home crowd adds a degree of pressure to the situation; it’s a fact that was endorsed last week by Lleyton HEWITT at the Grand Slam tennis tournament in Australia after he had lost to Juan Ignacio CHELA of Argentina in the second round of the Men’s Singles event and it’s a scenario that seemingly haunts Great Britain’s Tim HENMAN with regards to Wimbledon. They are both tremendous sportsman, superb tennis players but on home soil so much is expected, the pressure is that much greater and both cannot win the title they so crave, the Grand Slam event in their own country.

Nevertheless after a below par first two games JAPEC recovered and duly won the last four games to secure victory.

Determined
Tomislav JAPEC is one of Croatia’s most promising new generation of players and he is a determined young man. One of the national leagues that has grown in strength in the past decade is undoubtedly the French League and for the 2005-2006 season JAPEC moved joined Hennebont in the south of France, having previously played for STK Vecenrnji List in Zagreb. The competition for places in the men’s team in Hennebont is severe but the practice available is of a very high level. BAI Feng Tian, WANG Xin, Artur GRIGORYEV, DĂĄniel GORAK and the man currently ranked number eleven in the world, Kalinikos KREANGA all play for the club.

'I want to make progress, I want to improve, I want to play professionally', said Tomislav JAPEC in a determined tone of voice. 'In Hennebont we have a good coach and of course the players to train with is outstanding.' The coach in question is Milan STENCIL who for several years guided the fortunes of Croatia’s current leading player, Zoran PRIMORAC and has worked for several clubs and national associations in Europe. He is a man with a wealth of knowledge and JAPEC will most certainly benefit from his tutelage.

Improvements
'In the last year I think my head is better, mentally I’ve improved', continued JAPEC. 'I ‘m more professional and I think I appreciate more what I have to do in order to play at a high level.'

The mental aspect of sport is crucial to success. Ask any of the superb Chinese players why they won and time and time again they will tell you that it was because they were mentally strong and had a clear mind. Also, they are the best in the world when it comes to returning the ball short over the net, the deft returns, the flicks, just as important in table tennis as the booming forehand winners.

In this area of play Tomislav JAPEC believes he has improved. 'I’m better at short, short', he said. 'My control and feeling have improved, also my forehand has got better in the last twelve months, my backhand has always been my strength but now my forehand is catching up.'

Conquered
He is improving and today he conquered both his adversary and himself. 'The first two games were not good, I was nervous, people watching expected a lot of me', he added. 'After the second game I had to really fight but as I got more into the match I moved better, I served better and of course it motivated me when I heard people cheering for me.'

It was a tough opening match, another match on the learning curve to a higher status. He was nervous but he was strong enough to recognise that fact and he conquered his nerves. More and more Tomislav JAPEC knows what it takes to be a high level table tennis table and furthermore he would seem to have the appetite to succeed.

http://www.ittf.com/stories/Stories_detail.asp?Year=2006&General_Catigory=General&ID=8548