PM: We'll protect Croatian interests in trade with US in cooperation with EU

Hina - The government, in cooperation with the EU, will protect Croatian interests in trade with the United States after President Donald Trump imposed import tariffs on goods from the EU, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said at a government session on Thursday.

He reported that over the weekend, the government held consultations with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen regarding the issue of US tariffs.

Plenković said Croatian goods exports to the US amounted to nearly €800 million last year and that the same value applies to total exports, adding that certain products are of particular interest to Croatia in trade with the US. He announced that in further discussions on countermeasures to be adopted at the EU level, special attention would be paid to protecting Croatian interests.

"All our services, including ministries, chambers and other stakeholders, are monitoring the potential consequences of this decision, which will take effect in a week's time. In any case, this is a decision that may have greater global consequences than a significant impact on the Croatian economy, but there is always an element of a chain reaction that becomes apparent in a second phase," Plenković said.

Emphasising that a third of global trade involves trade between the US and EU member states, he said US import tariffs are expected to negatively affect the competitiveness of the economy on both sides of the Atlantic. He added that the Croatian government believes open trade issues should be resolved through dialogue, agreements and even through the World Trade Organization system.

He noted that the EU has the largest network of free trade agreements in the world - 44 agreements with 76 partners.

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