Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković and Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter held talks in Zagreb on Tuesday on bilateral relations, with a focus on further boosting economic cooperation, as well as on issues of global security.
Jandroković and Keller-Sutter, who was on an official visit to Zagreb, confirmed the excellent and friendly relations between the two countries.
Jandroković underlined the importance of maintaining a regular and substantive dialogue between countries that share common values, such as Croatia and Switzerland.
He added that this also includes inter-parliamentary dialogue, which in the future should be intensified through more frequent meetings of various parliamentary committees.
Both sides stressed that the Croatian community in Switzerland represents a strong link between the two countries and makes a valuable contribution to the development of overall relations.
Speaking about areas with potential for enhanced cooperation in the future, Jandroković singled out tourism, the pharmaceutical, chemical, food and wood-processing industries, as well as information technology, artificial intelligence, and defence.
Trade between Croatia and Switzerland has been growing steadily in recent years. Last year it increased by 9%, exceeding €557 million, with the same trend continuing in the first half of this year.
In their discussion on global security, the two officials expressed concern but also hope that the European continent can be preserved as an area of peace and prosperity.
With regard to the situation in Ukraine, Jandroković stressed the importance of European and transatlantic unity in supporting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of that country on its path towards a just and lasting peace.
On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, both agreed that the only long-term sustainable solution is the establishment of two states and that it is necessary to end hostilities as soon as possible.
On the question of EU enlargement to the Western Balkans, both officials assessed that it is of crucial importance for the overall security and stability of the European continent.
Keller-Sutter informed her counterpart about the planned timeline of activities concerning a new package of agreements between Switzerland and the EU, which will serve as the framework for future relations between the two sides.