 | |
 Croatia |  Slovenia |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic mission | |
| Embassy of Croatia,Ljubljana | Embassy of Slovenia,Zagreb |
The foreign relations betweenCroatia andSlovenia are bound together by shared geopolitical and cultural history,ethnogenesis andethnolinguistics, geography as well as shared modern political ideologies and geopolitical alignment. Both states established diplomatic relations in 1992, following thedissolution of Yugoslavia and theindependence of Croatia. Modern relations are warm and friendly, with collaboration across a variety of initiatives. There are limiteddisputes over their border and sovereign rights over certain nuclear and economic assets. The countries share 670 km (420 mi) of common border. They are perennially each other's largest trading partners on an import-export basis.
As the two wealthiest former Yugoslav republicsby GDP-per-capita, Slovenia and Croatia were the first two countries to achieve independence, with both later joining theEuropean Union (EU) in 2004 and 2013, respectively. Both are close military allies, sharing membership inNATO as well as theEU defense forces. Croatia has an embassy inLjubljana and two honorary consulates inMaribor andKoper. Slovenia has an embassy inZagreb and an honorary consulate inSplit.
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Before 1991, both countries were part ofYugoslavia. On June 26, 1991, a mutual recognition agreement was signed by both countries. Diplomatic relations between both countries were established on February 6, 1992. In a series of high-level meetings since the latter half of 1998, Slovenia and Croatia have been engaged in settling bilateral differences, a process which accelerated after the death of Croatian President Franjo Tuđman in 1999. In 2004, Sloveniajoined the European Union, along with a handful of other countries. As Slovenia acceded to theEuropean Union (EU) in 2004, it leveraged this position toblockade Croatia's candidacy in 2013 to join the EU in order to settle some of these disputes. The two states allowed theEuropean Commission to successfully arbitrate which saw to Croatia's membership in the EU andNATO that year.
On 3 March 2013, Croatia and Slovenia reached an agreement onLjubljanska banka. A month after that, the Parliament of Slovenia unanimously ratified the Croatian accession treaty. Croatia joinedNATO in2009. Slovenia joinedNATO in 2004. Croatia joined theEU in2013. Slovenia joined theEU in2004.
The border disputes between the two states concern:
Slovenia claims that the maritime border inPiran Bay does not go through the middle of the bay, while Croatia claims it does. This is causing problems for fishermen due to there being an undefined area where the naval police of each country may patrol. Related to the border in Piran Bay is Slovenian access to international waters in the form of a corridor which would require Croatia to cede its exclusive rights over at least some of its territorial waters to the west ofUmag. The disputed Dragonja area is located near the Sečovlje-Plovanija official border crossing point, set up by an interim agreement of the two countries in the 1990s.
Areferendum regarding the ratification of the agreement on the arbitration between Slovenia and Croatia regarding the Gulf of Piran border dispute washeld in Slovenia in June 2010. Croatia and Slovenia agreed to let outside arbitrators come up with a plan to divide the Gulf in 2009 in the hopes of finding a resolution to the dispute and easing Croatia's entry to the Union. Though the parliaments in both Croatia and Slovenia ratified the agreement, theSlovene parliament additionally voted to require a public referendum on the deal.[1] The agreement was supported by 51.54% of voters and opposed by 48.46% of voters.[2] In October 2010, the Slovenian law on the ratification of the agreement was also unanimously recognized by theSlovenian Constitutional Court as being in accordance with theConstitution of Slovenia.[3] Thediplomatic notes about the agreement were exchanged between theGovernment of Slovenia andGovernment of Croatia on November 25, 2010. The agreement came into force on November 29, 2010.[4]
A disputed issue with Croatia was Slovenian and Italian opposition to the proclamation of the CroatianEcological and Fisheries Protection Zone (Exclusive Economic Zone) in theAdriatic Sea. Slovenia is disputing this, requiring direct access to the international waters. This policy has been in place since late 2004 but excludes the EU countries (namely, Slovenia and Italy).
In the negotiations with the European Union, it was decided that Croatia can proclaim an ecological protection zone for third countries, but not also for the countries of the European Union. About 40% of all the catchment of Slovenian fishermen originates from the zone.[5]
Another open issue is the financial compensation for the Croatian depositors who lost their savings in the liquidation of the Slovenian-based Yugoslav bankLjubljanska banka. DuringSFRY, the said bank had a branch inZagreb.[6] In December 1991, Croatian authorities allowed the transfer of two thirds of the foreign-currency debt of the Zagreb branch of Ljubljana Bank to a number of Croatian banks.[7] Some 132,000 clients kept their savings in Ljubljana bank.[6][7] By 1994, the Slovenian Parliament formedNova Ljubljanska Banka with the old bank's assets but none of its debts.[7] In 1995, the Croatian bankPrivredna banka Zagreb filed a lawsuit against Ljubljana Bank,[6][8] after theCroatian Ministry of Finance authorized it to do so.[7] In 1997 the Slovenian parliament halted all lawsuits against Ljubljana Bank by foreign citizens.[7] In 2001, the Ministry of Finance extended the lawsuit authorization toZagrebačka banka.[7] The two countries signed the2001 Agreement on Succession Issues, dealing with the succession negotiations after the break-up of Yugoslavia.[7] In 2002, succession negotiations were hosted by theBank of International Settlements in Basel, but Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina rejected the proposed model in which they would have to reimburse the depositors. The negotiations stalled after that.[7]
In 2010, after the Kosor–Pahor agreement, the Croatian side had reportedly agreed to the Slovenian position, which was a precondition for Croatia to close the negotiations with the EU regarding Chapter 4 of theAcquis on the free movement of capital.[8][9][10] The Slovenian position has been that the compensation is a succession issue. Slovenia also made it their condition for the acceptance of Croatia to the European Union, most recently in July and September 2012.[6] In April 2012 Croatia passed a conclusion according to which this is only a dispute between the bank and its Croatian savers and should be resolved in courts.[10] The European Commission considers this to be abilateral issue.[11]
On 6 November 2012, theEuropean Court of Human Rights delivered a first-degree verdict in the case of Ališić and Others v. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and the “Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”, finding Slovenia in violation of theEuropean Convention on Human Rights and ordering it to compensate "the applicants and all others in their position" (individual Ljubljana Bank savers).[12] In Croatia, some interpreted this as a precedent for the diplomatic issue,[13][14] but Slovenian Foreign Minister Erjavec released a statement saying this is a separate issue from the diplomatic issue, rather that the latter was about "transferred debt".[15]
On February 7, 2013, Croatian and Slovenian Foreign Ministers said they had solved the problem of the former Ljubljana Bank, which was threatening to impede Croatia's EU accession in July.[16]
The two countries' national power companies jointly manage theKrško Nuclear Power Plant. They have had various issues, particularly between 1997 and 2001.[17][18][19]
Croatia joined theEuropean Union (EU) in2013. Slovenia joined the European Union (EU) in2004. Croatia joinedNATO in 2009. Slovenia joined NATO in 2004.
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see also:Foreign relations of Yugoslavia | ||
