Croatia, Italy to declare exclusive economic zone in Adriatic

The Croatian government on Monday adopted a draft decision to declare an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the Adriatic Sea.

Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic-Radman explained at the government session that Croatia had reached an understanding with Italy and Slovenia, two other European Union (EU) member states with coasts on the Adriatic. He noted that Croatia and Italy will formally declare an EEZ in January 2021, after a trilateral meeting with Slovenia.

In November, the foreign ministers of Croatia and Italy met in Zagreb and agreed on declaring an EEZ in the Adriatic together. The EEZ will remain part of the EU’s common waters and the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) which will continue to set rules for the European fishing fleets.

The Croatian parliament is expected to confirm the government decision this week at an extraordinary session.

As prescribed by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, an EEZ is an area of the sea where a state has special rights regarding the exploration and use of marine resources, including energy production from water and wind.

Back in 2003, Croatia declared an ecological and fisheries protection zone, which is similar to an EEZ.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic has recently stressed that the EEZ brings two new elements: the possibility of building artificial islands and exploiting wind and sea power.

The minister of agriculture Marija Vuckovic said on Monday that the EEZ would improve Croatia’s already excellent cooperation with Italy on the issues of fishing fleets and resources management.