Regional Ministers Assert: Croatia's Decision is Political, Lacks Economic Basis

In response to Croatia's introduction of the Ordinance on Inspection Supervision and Control of Fruit and Vegetable Compliance with Market Standards, a meeting of ministers from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia, and Montenegro was held in Sarajevo at the invitation of the Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mirko Šarović, reports the Patria agency.

- These measures are completely unacceptable for Bosnia and Herzegovina, and we will not tolerate them. We will certainly take the necessary counter-measures. 1,200 tons of fruit, vegetables, and food enter Croatia, so this trade relationship is two-way. Bosnia and Herzegovina has every right to demand that the measures be abolished. If this does not happen, we will take an adequate response, and we will assess when – stated Mirko Šarović, Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina, after the meeting.

Rasim Ljajić, Minister of Internal and Foreign Trade and Telecommunications of Serbia, stated that Serbia appealed to the Croatian authorities on Sunday to reconsider the decision, but given that there was no response, Serbia has begun to introduce counter-measures.

- We have the right to implement measures in accordance with the signed SAP, because in a way, we must make it known that these measures must be withdrawn, because if we continue to introduce counter-measures, farmers in both countries will suffer damage, which is why Croatia needs to reconsider the measures. We don't need this, but we are simply forced to act because we are under great pressure from our producers, 160 businessmen export fruit and vegetables to Croatia, these people are affected because their trucks are being returned. So, if Croatia does not withdraw the measures, we will be forced to continue strengthening the counter-measures – said Ljajić.

The Serbian minister added that he has repeatedly emphasized that Croatia's moves are purely populist in a political sense, with no economic basis, and that they are not neighborly at all.

Minister Ljajić pointed out that the information that the supervision has been introduced for dairy products as well, not just for fruits and vegetables, is correct.

Rasim Ljajić emphasized that Croatia has given three different explanations in the last three weeks for why they introduced the measures.

- The first week they said it was nothing new and that it represented harmonization with prices within the EU. We proved that this is not true. The second week they said they were doing it to protect their consumers, but in reality, they are protecting producers because the inspection fee for importers has been increased to 2,000 kuna, while it remained 90 kuna for Croatians. The third time they cited a reason that insults common sense, which is that these are not measures introduced against countries in the region, but against 164 countries that are not EU members – concluded Ljajić.

Dragica Sekulić, Minister of Economy of Montenegro, emphasized that the timing of all these measures is very important, because out of the total number of products that Montenegro exports to Croatia, almost 70 percent are exported precisely at this time of year.

The Montenegrin minister pointed out that Montenegro, as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), also has the right to compensation for damages it will suffer from these measures by Croatia, but that this process is quite slow because the WTO needs to first assess the situation and conduct an analysis to estimate the damage. She added that she hopes it will not come to that.

Minister Šarović stated that in 2016, goods worth 500 million KM from Croatia entered Bosnia and Herzegovina, while only twenty percent of that amount went in the opposite direction.

Šarović also pointed out that Croatia is given seven days to consider withdrawing the measures, but that within those seven days, each country has the right to introduce counter-measures if it deems it necessary.

He added that after today's meeting, he spoke by phone with the Croatian minister and informed him about the adopted conclusions, and that the Croatian minister expressed a desire to sit down and talk in order to find a solution.