America News Agency

According to a statement from the Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Croatian Foreign Minister Grlic Radman reiterated his commitment to further strengthening the strong partnership and political-economic cooperation between Croatia and Austria during his meeting with Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger.

During the meeting, cooperation in the energy sector, strengthening secure energy routes, and infrastructure investments that would contribute to Europe’s energy security and resilience were particularly highlighted. The importance of the European integration of the Western Balkans and closely monitoring the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina was also emphasized. Minister Grlić Radman stated that ensuring equality among the three constituent peoples is critical for the country’s stability, particularly for the Croats, who are the smallest constituent people.

Within the framework of the “3seaseu” cooperation, chaired by Croatia, strong participation from Austria is expected at the Summit and Business Forum to be held in Dubrovnik at the end of April. During the discussions, special importance was also given to the role of approximately 50,000 Burgenland Croats in Austria and the wider Croatian diaspora. The preservation of culture, language and traditions was recorded as a shared priority. In this context, the Croatian language will be taught in Austria as a separate language and will be addressed independently from the so-called “BKS group”.

The parties reiterated their determination to continue strengthening the cultural and diplomatic bridge between the two countries.