(28 September 2004) - The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament Vladimir Šeks received the Spanish Ambassador to Croatia Alvaro Sebastian de Erice, who informed him about the wish of Spanish parliamentarians to establish co-operation with their Croatian counterparts.

The Speaker agreed that there was a necessity to initiate interparliamentary co-operation, especially in view of Croatias forthcoming negotiations with the European Union, where Spanish experience could be very useful. In addition, Spain and Croatia have many common interests originating from their Mediterranean position, e.g. in the fields of security, stability, ecology and fishing. The Speaker expressed his readiness to forward the wish of Spanish parliamentarians to respective parliamentary bodies.

(27 September 2004) - The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament Vladimir Šeks received the Ambassador of the Peoples Republic of China Wu Zhenglong for his inaugural visit.

The Speaker welcomed the new Chinese Ambassador to Croatia and informed him about Croatias foreign policy goals, emphasising that its accession to the European Union and NATO does not represent an obstacle to the further development of Croatias good political and economic relations with China.

The Ambassador thanked Croatia for supporting the policy of unification of China, pointing out the importance of the principle of state independence and territorial integrity. He also stated that the intensification of relations with the EU is one of the main foreign policy goals of China. Croatias accession to the EU enjoys Chinas support, and may open up new opportunities for the further successful development of relations among the two countries. 

The Speaker wished the Ambassador a lot of success in his future work and asked him to forward his invitation to pay a reciprocal visit to Croatia to the Chairman of the Peoples National Congress.

(16 September 2004) - The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament Vladimir Šeks received his Norwegian counterpart Jorgen Kosmo, who is paying an official visit to the Republic of Croatia from 15 until 19 September.  

Croatian-Norwegian relations were characterised as very good and friendly, without any outstanding issues. As the Speaker of the Croatian Parliament pointed out, Croatia highly appreciates the assistance provided by Norway so far, especially in the areas of special state interest and in the process of Croatias coming closer to the European Union. Both Speakers supported continued demining projects in Croatia, and the Norwegian side said the problem would be presented to the Norwegian parliament and government for further consideration.  

The Speaker of the Norwegian Parliament complimented Croatia for achieving impressive results in the development of democracy, calling it unprecedented in recent European history, especially in view of the recent war activities. Both sides expressed readiness to further promote Croatian-Norwegian parliamentary relations at the level of committees and friendship groups, as well as to engage in concrete projects of co-operation in the field of parliamentary control over the executive branch.

(15 September 2004) - The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament Vladimir Šeks received the Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic Mikulas Dzurinda during his official visit to the Republic of Croatia. The Speaker of Parliament congratulated Slovakia on having become a member of the European Union and NATO, emphasising that Croatia highly appreaciates the Slovak advice and transfer of experience in the fulfilment of Croatias identical foreign policy goals. The Slovak Prime Minister was informed about the current agenda of the parliamentary session, which includes a series of laws which should be harmonised with the European acquis. Against this background, interparliamentary co-operation was highlighted as particularly important for the legislative harmonisation process.

The Slovak Prime Minister Dzurinda expressed Slovakias readiness to assist Croatia in becoming a member of the EU and NATO as soon as possible. As he pointed out, it is important to avoid mistakes in the legislative process, especially in view of a high number of laws which should be harmonised and passed in a relatively short period, a goal which Slovakia completed successfully. Croatias success was referred to by the Slovak Prime Minister as particularly significant, especially with regard to Croatias leading role in the region.

Both sides espressed satisfaction with the position of the Slovak minority in Croatia and the Croatian minority in Slovakia respectively, calling them a bridge which links the two countries. Experience related to legislative solutions governing the protection of national minority rights in both countries was exchanged.

(13 September 2004) - Today the Speaker of Parliament Vladimir Šeks has received a delegation of Western Australia, which is visiting Croatia in the organisation of the Western Australian-Croatian Chamber of Commerce from 12 until 18 September 2004. The delegation, led by the President of the Western Australian-Croatian Chamber of Commerce Brian Rakich, includes representatives of the Government of Western Australia and several prominent business people.

The Speaker of Parliament praised the good bilateral relations between Croatia and Australia, emphasising that there were opportunities for closer economic co-operation which should be intensified in the future, especially in view of the numerous Croatian expatriate community in Australia. The Speaker welcomed the establishment of an Australia-Croatia Friendship Group within the Federal Parliament of Australia, and informed the Australian delegation that such a group had been established within the Croatian Parliament in March this year. The delegation members were asked to contribute to the alleviation of the Australian visa regime for Croatian citizens.

The President of the Western Australian-Croatian Chamber Brian Rakich reported that the long history of good relations among Croatia and Western Australia was visible from the support provided by both governments to the establishment of the Chamber, the seat of which is located in Perth, the capital of the economically most dynamic Australian state. As President Rakich pointed out, Australian business people were very interested in investing into Croatias tourism and shipbuilding industry. Problems related to the land title process in Croatia were highlighted as particularly significant in view of the importance of legal security in proprietary issues.

The Speaker of Parliament informed the Australian delegation about the steps aimed at facilitating land administration, which is indispensable for the development of the market economy and more efficient links with the world. The Speaker thanked the Australian side for the assistance it offered in solving these issues. Both sides expressed hope that the visit of the Australian delegation would result not only in an exchange of useful information, but also in new business deals.