Croatian Parliament Speaker meets Canadian counterpart in Ottawa

Zagreb - The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament, Gordan Jandroković, and the Speaker of the Canadian Parliament's House of Commons, Geoff Regan, underscored excellent relations between the two countries at their meeting in Ottawa.

Regan thanked his Croatian counterpart for visiting Canada, saying that the visit reaffirmed the good political relations and cooperation between the two countries.
Regan thanked the Croatian Parliament for ratifying the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), a free-trade agreement between Canada and the European Union, adding that it provided a framework for improving economic cooperation between Croatia and Canada, which is still at a low level.

The Croatian Parliament ratified the agreement in June and it is expected to have a positive impact on trade between Croatia and Canada.
Regan and Jandroković exchanged views on Brexit and the challenges it put before the European Union. They also discussed migration and the situation in Southeast Europe.
Jandroković is on an official visit to Canada from October 17 to 20 at the invitation of Senate Speaker George Furey and Regan. On Wednesday he met with Bardish Chagger, Minister of Small Business and Tourism and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons.

A growing number of Canadian tourists visit Croatia and this year saw a 22% increase in their number, so the focus of the meeting between Jandroković and Chagger was on possibilities of cooperation in tourism. Connecting tourism and small business was cited as a good example of how small businesses can help boost tourism in Canada.
Jandroković and the Croatian delegation attended Question Period in the House of Commons and later met with government ministers who had answered questions from MPs. Jandroković also exchanged greetings with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Jandroković also met with Senator Peter Harder, who serves as Representative of the Government in the Senate, and Senator Raynell Andreychuk, Chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade. A meeting was also held with representatives of the Canada-Europe Parliamentary Association.
The Croatian delegation travels to Toronto on Thursday to meet with the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Elizabeth Dowdeswell, the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, Dave Levac, and representatives of the Canadian-Croatian business community. (Hina/Press Office) 

Autor: Hina/Press Office