Bilateral relations
The foreign, diplomatic, economic, and political relations between
Croatia
and the
United States
were established on April 7, 1992 following the
dissolution of Yugoslavia
. After Croatia's debut as an independent state in 1996, the U.S. established the country as its most important political connection to
Southeast Europe
. Modern relations are considered to be warm and friendly, with stalwart bilateral collaboration. The
Croatian diaspora in the U.S.
is estimated to be around 500,000 which, in part, informs the
foreign policy of Croatia
. The two nations have strong connectivity through tourism, immigration, foreign aid, and economic mutualism.
Croatia and the U.S. are
close military allies
and share a robust bilateral
military-industrial complex
.
[1]
[2]
Their closeness has led to the U.S. housing regional intelligence agencies, such as the
CIA
and
NSA
, in Croatia.
[3]
Both are members of
NATO
, leveraging Croatia's aerospace and defense manufacturing and U.S. military operations to advance multilateral initiatives. After the
2022 Tu-141 drone crash
in Zagreb, the U.S. dispatched two
F-16 fighter jets
in a show of
military strength
for Croatia. U.S. interests in Croatia are centered on the state's
stabilizing influence
in the region and extending the global reach of jointly-held
Western ideals
.
Both nations are part of the
United Nations
(UN),
Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council
,
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
,
International Monetary Fund
,
World Bank
and
World Trade Organization
. Croatia has an embassy in
Washington, D.C.
, with general consulates in
Chicago
,
Los Angeles
, and
New York City
. The U.S. has an embassy in
Zagreb
.
Embassy
[
edit
]
The official American presence in Zagreb goes back at least to 1920, when the American Consulate in Zagreb,
Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes
, was established. Zagreb was center of province Croatia-Slavonia. The Consulate remained open in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia until World War II began. At that time, the records indicate that American diplomatic personnel departed between May 1 and 14, 1941, in response to the German capture of Zagreb, and subsequent establishment of the
Independent State of Croatia (NDH)
. NDH declared war to U.S. in 1941 but the U.S. never formally recognized a new state.
[4]
The Consulate in Zagreb was reopened after the war on May 9, 1946 and originally housed in small offices near the Botanical Garden.
[5]
The consulate became a consulate general on August 1, 1958.
[6]
Upon the
dissolution of Yugoslavia
, the U.S. recognised Croatia as an independent state on April 7, 1992. The U.S. Consulate General in Zagreb gained the status of an embassy on August 25, 1992. The first U.S. ambassador to Croatia was
Peter W. Galbraith
who served on this position from 1993 to 1998.
[7]
The U.S. embassy in Croatia is located in
Zagreb
, southwest of
Buzin
. This 8,000 m
2
compound was opened on June 2, 2003. According to an article based on
leaked diplomatic cables
published in
The Independent
in 2013, the embassy, namely its fifth floor, is used as a regional base of
CIA
and
NSA
.
[8]
The U.S. embassy in Zagreb is a charter member of the League of Green Embassies and a founding member of the Zagreb Green Building Council. According to this, embassy support recycling, energy and water use reduction programs. The embassy also sponsors American Corners at libraries in
Osijek
,
Rijeka
,
Zadar
, and
Zagreb
.
[6]
[9]
[10]
Since November 2017, the U.S. ambassador to Croatia is
William Robert Kohorst
.
History
[
edit
]
Background
[
edit
]
The
Republic of Ragusa
, a
merchant republic
centered at the Croatian city of
Dubrovnik
, was one of the first foreign countries to
de facto
recognize independence of the United States. Ragusa extended that de facto recognition through the efforts of Francesco Favi, the Ragusan consul in Paris, on July 7, 1783. However, the Republic never recognized the United States in a
de jure
sense.
[11]
[12]
Visits of U.S. Presidents to Croatia
[
edit
]
The first
U.S. President
to visit Croatia was
Richard Nixon
, who came to
Zagreb
on 2 October 1970 during his
state visit
to
Yugoslavia
. The choice to visit Zagreb during political and cultural developments in
Socialist Republic of Croatia
that would culminate in the
Croatian Spring
, along with Nixon's praise for the "spirit of Croatia" and his exclamation "Long live Croatia! Long live Yugoslavia!", has been interpreted as a statement of support for Croatian identity and greater autonomy within the federal framework of Yugoslavia.
[13]
[14]
[15]
The first U.S. president to visit independent Croatia was
Bill Clinton
on 13 January 1996. Clinton spent a few hours on the
Zagreb Airport
while returning from visiting
IFOR
troops in
Tuzla
,
Bosnia and Herzegovina
. During the brief visit, Clinton gave a speech in front of a crowd waving Croatian and American flags, then met with
Croatian President
Franjo Tuđman
.
[16]
[17]
Visit of George W. Bush to Croatia (2008)
[
edit
]
On 4 April 2008, U.S. President
George W. Bush
arrived in
Zagreb
on an official 2-day state visit. The visit immediately followed the
2008 Bucharest summit
of
NATO
countries where Croatia and
Albania
received invitations to join the alliance. Bush met with President of Croatia
Stipe Mesi?
and
Prime Minister
Ivo Sanader
, and gave a speech in
St. Mark's Square
in downtown Zagreb. Peaceful rallies were held during the visit to protest
U.S. foreign policy
and impending Croatian NATO membership.
[17]
[18]
Visit of Hillary Clinton to Croatia (2012)
[
edit
]
U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton
visited Croatia on October 30, 2012. During her visit she met with many Croatian officials including President
Ivo Josipovi?
, Prime Minister
Zoran Milanovi?
and Foreign Minister
Vesna Pusi?
. Main topics of discussions were Croatian role in
NATO
and the
Croatian accession to the European Union
as well as economic relations between the U.S. and Croatia. Secretary Clinton called Croatia "a leader in
Southeast Europe
" that had well educated workforce, established infrastructure, great geopolitical location, adding that it was promising destination but that there was still a necessity for additional reforms, increase of transparency, elimination of bureaucratic barriers, as well as the privatization of the companies that are still owned by the state.
[19]
[20]
[21]
Visit of Joe Biden to Croatia (2015)
[
edit
]
On November 25, 2015 U.S. Vice President
Joe Biden
visited Croatia as a special guest of the Brdo-Brijuni Process Leaders' Summit that brings together heads of state from the countries of
former Yugoslavia
and
Albania
as well as special guests. The summit was co-chaired by Croatian President
Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovi?
and Slovenian President
Borut Pahor
. Discussed topics on the plenary session were integration of south-east Europe into Euro-Atlantic processes,
migrant crisis
, security challenges and the fight against terrorism, conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, as well as energy. Vice President Biden stated: "For the United States and for me personally, but I am speaking on behalf of the President Obama, this region has been of extreme interest for the last 25 years." In addition, Biden praised Brdo-Brijuni initiative as "a good job as it has managed to bring together heads of state for talks for the past five years". Vice President Biden also met with the Croatian Prime Minister
Zoran Milanovi?
and Foreign Minister
Vesna Pusi?
with whom he talked about situation in the Middle East, especially about the
war in Syria
,
migrant crisis
and the security situation in the world after
2015 Paris terrorist attacks
.
[22]
[23]
[24]
Visit of Mike Pompeo to Croatia (2020)
[
edit
]
On October 2, 2020, U.S. secretary of state
Mike Pompeo
visited
Dubrovnik
, where he had a meeting with Croatia's prime minister
Andrej Plenkovi?
and other Croatian government officials. Following the meeting, the Croatian foreign minister,
Gordan Grli?-Radman
, said that Croatia had signed no document whereby it would undertake to refrain from co-operating with
China
on the issues of security with a view to
5G
.
[25]
[26]
Pompeo's visit was foreshadowed by statements made by Croatia's president
Zoran Milanovi?
, who harshly criticised the U.S. top leaders, saying, among other things, that
Donald Trump
had ruined the international reputation of the United States.
[27]
Following Pompeo's visit, Milanovi?, who had not participated in hosting the secretary of state, spoke against the
Three Seas Initiative
, saying it was the
Obama administration
′s initiative that was potentially harmful for Croatia as it was aimed at isolating
Russia
as well as
Germany
, an endeavour he said Croatia ought not to participate in.
[28]
[29]
Military cooperation
[
edit
]
As of January 2020, the
U.S. State Department
′s web site that the
U.S. Department of Defense
had "a robust military-to-military relationship with Croatia" with the U.S. providing military assistance to Croatia in the form of training, equipment, equipment loans, and education in U.S. military schools.
[30]
In April 2014, Croatia took delivery of 30 U.S.
MRAP
vehicles out of the 212 MRAP vehicles that the U.S. government had decided on donating to Croatia.
[31]
On August 5, 2015 Croatia held a military parade, featuring thousands of soldiers, military vehicles and jets, to mark the 20th anniversary of
Operation Storm
, a key offensive in its
independence struggle
. The U.S. sent a delegation composed of its top officials: Commander of the Minnesota National Guard, Gen.
Richard C. Nash
, deputy commander of U.S. forces in Europe, Gen. Randz A. Kee, U.S. Defense Attache Douglas M. Faherty and U.S. Ambassador to Croatia
Kenneth Merten
.
[32]
[33]
The U.S. and Croatia work together in these 11 military programs, funds and initiatives:
[34]
Foreign Military Financing
Croatia received from this program from 2000 until FMF's suspension in 2003 $18.5 million. Once FMF was launched again in 2008 Croatia received addition $14.5 million. Croatia spent this money mostly on purchase of communication systems, simulators and equipment for night surveillance.
Foreign Military Sales
Croatia bought $4.2 billion worth products from this program; flight equipment, communications devices, night vision equipment and software's for Croatia's Main Simulation Centre.
Global Peacekeeping Operations Initiative
Around $5.1 million that Croatia received from this program was spent for equipping two classrooms for foreign language learning in
Knin
and
Na?ice
, buying navigation equipment and equipment for the night flying, as well as for training helicopter pilots for the night flights.
Program - article 1206 - Train and Equip
From this program Croatia received $31 million from 2010 to 2014. With this money Croatia bought
HMMWV
vehicles for training, communication and navigation equipment, equipment for night surveillance, labeling and identification of army vehicles and MILES 2000 adjustment system for Croatian
VHS-D rifle
. In 2015, Croatia received $11 million for purchasing communications equipment and training its special forces.
Program - article 1202 - Enhanced ACSA (Acquisition and Cross Servicing Agreements)
Through this program U.S. lends its allies that are participating in missions in Afghanistan and Iraq military equipment for a period of approximately one year. Croatia received through this program 50
HMMWV
and 12
MRAP
vehicles [which Croatia kept as a gift after the end of missions in Afghanistan and Iraq], ballistic missiles and systems for command, control and communication (
Blue Force Tracking
).
Excess Defense Articles
Through this program Croatia bought 212 used
MRAP
vehicles: 162
M-ATV
, 30
Navistar MaxxPro Plus
, and 20 medical vehicles MRAP HAGA.
Coalition Support Funds
Through this program Croatia received from the U.S. partial refund of its money invested in
ISAF
missions in which Croatia participated from 2011 until 2013. $16.9 million were refunded to Croatia. This money will be used for improving maritime radar Enhanced Peregrine.
International Military Education and Training
Croatia at first participated in this program from 1995 to 2003 when it got banned from participating due to some diplomatic disagreements between U.S. and Croatia. On October 2, 2006
George W. Bush
with his decree abolished the restraining Croatia from participating in IMET program "because of the Croatian importance for U.S. national interests". Croatia through the IMET program implemented over 600 activities with costs estimated at about $9 million.
Cooperative Logistic Support Supply Arrangement
Croatia signed this agreement and became part of the U.S. logistics data base. This agreement enables Croatia to independently buy spare parts for its
HMMWV
vehicles which wouldn't be possible without this agreement because the only authorized buyer of spare parts for
HMMWV
is the U.S. and anyone that wants to buy any spare parts has to ask U.S. for permission.
Man-portable air-defense system
The U.S. donated to Croatia approximately $2 million through this program so Croatia could destroy some of its anti-aircraft systems that are dysfunctional.
The program of demining and the destruction of surplus munitions
The U.S. donated to Croatia approximately $2.5 million through this program for demining and destroying some Croatian surplus munitions.
Economic cooperation
[
edit
]
Economic relations between Croatia and the United States are very strong. In 2013 Croatia exported $327,992.000 worth goods to the U.S. and imported from it $221,794.000 worth goods. The U.S. is the most important Croatian trade partner in
North America
in front of
Cayman Islands
and
Canada
, and eighth
[35]
most important in the world.
[36]
In 2013, 220,043 Americans, who have made 548,727 overnight stays, came to Croatia on a holiday.
[37]
The United States and Croatia have a bilateral investment treaty and investment protection agreement.
Despite Croatia having numerous direct services to the United States when it was part of Yugoslavia prior to the outbreak of the
Yugoslav wars
in the early 1990s, it wasn't until July 2019 that direct services resumed.
[
citation needed
]
American Airlines
flies to
Dubrovnik
from
Philadelphia
seasonally.
[
citation needed
]
In addition, the United States has given more than $27 million since 1998 in humanitarian assistance to Croatia.
[2]
The U.S. also has provided additional financial assistance to Croatia through the Southeastern European Economic Development Program (SEED) to facilitate democratization and restructuring of Croatia's financial sector, largely through programs managed by
USAID
.
Croatian diaspora
[
edit
]
The
Croatian diaspora
in the U.S. is one of the largest in the world with an estimate of more than 1.2 million members. Most of the Croats live in
Chicago
(~150,000),
New York City
,
New Jersey
and
Connecticut
(~80,000),
St. Louis
(~40,000),
San Pedro
(~35,000),
Detroit
(~7,000) and
San Jose
(~5,000). The National Federation of Croatian Americans is the main organization that brings together Croats in the U.S.
[38]
According to the
1990 United States Census
, there were over 544,270 Croatian Americans who identified themselves as being of Croatian descent or being born in Croatia.
[39]
By 2012 this had fallen to 414,714.
[40]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"MVEP ? Upozorenja"
. Mvep.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
a
b
"Croatia | United States European Command"
. Eucom.mil. Archived from
the original
on 2016-03-04
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
Kre?imir ?abec (2013-10-28).
"Tajanstveni peti kat ambasade SAD-a u Buzinu"
. Jutarnji.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
croatia declares war on united states and great britain (WWII)
, retrieved
2023-02-12
- ^
"Croatia"
.
- ^
a
b
"About the Embassy | Zagreb, Croatia - Embassy of the United States"
. Zagreb.usembassy.gov. Archived from
the original
on 2016-03-04
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"Former U.S. Ambassadors to Croatia | Zagreb, Croatia - Embassy of the United States"
. Zagreb.usembassy.gov. 2012-11-27. Archived from
the original
on 2016-04-05
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
Kre?imir ?abec (2013-10-28).
"Tajanstveni peti kat ambasade SAD-a u Buzinu"
. Jutarnji.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
Pi?e: J.C. srijeda, 6.11.2013. 12:55 (2013-11-06).
"Britanski Independent: Ameri?ka ambasada u Zagrebu krije ?pijunsko gnijezdo - Vijesti"
. Index.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
"MVEP ? Veleposlanstvana stranih dr?ava u RH ? Sjedinjene Ameri?ke Dr?ave, Zagreb"
. Mvep.hr. 1992-11-08
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
Favi, Francesco (1977).
Dubrovnik and the American Revolution: Francesco Favi's letters
. Ragusan Press. p. 31.
OCLC
570368628
.
- ^
Mulja?i?, ?arko (1956-06-04).
"Odnosi Dubrovnika i Sjedinjenih Ameri?kih Dr?ava"
.
NA?E MORE: Znanstveni ?asopis za more i pomorstvo
(in Croatian).
3
(1): 65?70.
ISSN
0469-6255
.
- ^
Jakovina, Tvrtko
(1999).
"What Did Nixon's Exclamation "Long Live Croatia" Mean?"
.
Dru?tvena Istra?ivanja Zagreb
.
8
(2?3): 347?371
. Retrieved
2011-12-03
.
- ^
Stankovi?, Slobodan (1970-10-08).
"President Nixon's Successful Visit to Yugoslavia"
.
Radio Free Europe
. Archived from
the original
on 2011-07-28
. Retrieved
2011-12-03
.
- ^
Banac, Ivo
(2011-11-20).
"Kako su Rusi lomili Tita i slomili Hrvatsku"
[How the Russians pressured Tito and broke Croatia].
Ve?ernji list
(in Croatian)
. Retrieved
2011-11-20
.
- ^
"Bill Clinton i Air Force 1 u Zagrebu 1. dio"
[Bill Clinton and Air Force One in Zagreb, Part 1] (in Croatian).
Croatian Radiotelevision
. 1996-01-13
. Retrieved
2011-12-03
.
[
dead YouTube link
]
- ^
a
b
"Bush visits Croatia amid protests"
.
Xinhua News Agency
. 2008-04-05. Archived from
the original
on April 11, 2008
. Retrieved
2011-12-03
.
- ^
"Bush Gets Warm Welcome in Croatia Amid Anti-U.S. Protests"
.
Fox News
.
Associated Press
. 2008-04-04
. Retrieved
2011-12-03
.
- ^
"Clinton posjetila Zagreb - NATO portal - NATO.hr"
. Archived from
the original
on 2013-07-20
. Retrieved
2015-08-05
.
- ^
"Hillary Clinton u Vladi s Milanovi?em i Vesnom Pusi?"
. tportal.hr. 2012-10-31
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"Ivan ?orkalo o posjeti Hillary Clinton Zagrebu | Al Jazeera Balkans"
(in Bosnian). Balkans.aljazeera.net
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"HRT: Summit Brdo - Brijuni"
(in Croatian). Hrt.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"Biden meets Balkan leaders at summit on refugees, threats"
. US News. 2015-11-25
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"Vlada Republike Hrvatske - Predsjednik Vlade Zoran Milanovi? s potpredsjednikom SAD-a Joeom Bidenom"
. Vlada.gov.hr. 2015-11-25
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"Hrvatsko NE Americi, zauzet ?emo stav kao Italija i ne?emo potpisati izjavu protiv Kine! Zagreb ?e zauzeti isti stav kao i Rim koji je poru?io da ?e biti na oprezu kad bude razvijao 5G tehnologiju"
(in Croatian).
Jutarnji list
. 2020-10-02
. Retrieved
2020-10-12
.
- ^
"Grli? Radman otkrio koji veleposlanici ?ekaju dogovor Milanovi?a i Plenkovi?a"
.
N1
. 2020-10-04
. Retrieved
2020-10-12
.
- ^
"Milanovic: Trump is a rabble-rouser who ruined USA's international reputation"
.
N1
. 2020-09-30
. Retrieved
2020-10-12
.
- ^
"Milanovic says Three Seas Initiative unnecessary, potentially harmful"
.
N1
. 2020-10-19
. Retrieved
2021-01-03
.
- ^
"Plenkovi? podr?ava Inicijativu Tri mora, Milanovi? protiv"
(in Serbo-Croatian).
Al Jazeera Balkans
. 2020-10-19
. Retrieved
2021-01-03
.
- ^
"U.S. Relations With Croatia"
.
state.gov
.
United States Department of State
. 2020-01-15.
- ^
"Croatia takes delivery of 30 MRAP MaxxPro armoured donated by the United States Government 1004141 | April 2014 Global Defense Security news UK | Defense Security Global news Industry army 2014"
.
www.armyrecognition.com
. Retrieved
2016-07-06
.
- ^
"Tko je odgovoran za bojkot mimohoda? Beograd iskori?tava razmirice Vlade i predsjednice - Ve?ernji.hr"
. Vecernji.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
Kre?imir ?abec (2015-08-04).
"RUSA NEMA NA PROSLAVI, ALI STI?U KINEZI, POLJACI, LITAVCI... Otkrivamo tko su ameri?ki generali koji ?e nazo?iti mimohodu u Zagrebz"
. Jutarnji.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"?to je Hrvatska do danas zaradila od SAD?"
. Obris.org. 2016-03-19
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"MVEP ? O hrvatskom izvozu"
. Mvep.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
"OEC - Import origins of Croatia (2012)"
. Atlas.media.mit.edu
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
Vjekoslav đaji? (2016-03-18).
"Gospodarski odnosi s SAD-om: Najvi?e uvozimo naftu, a izvozimo revolvere i pi?tolje - Dnevnik.hr"
. M.dnevnik.hr
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
- ^
Fer Projekt, Put Murvice 14, Zadar, Hrvatska, +385 98 212 96 00, www.fer-projekt.com.
"Hrvatsko iseljeni?tvo u SAD-u"
. Hrvatiizvanrh.hr. Archived from
the original
on 2013-06-15
. Retrieved
2016-03-23
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
Elliott Robert Barkan (2013).
Immigrants in American History: Arrival, Adaptation, and Integration
. ABC-CLIO. p. 1294.
ISBN
978-1-59884-220-3
. Retrieved
January 23,
2016
.
- ^
"Table B04006 - PEOPLE REPORTING ANCESTRY. - 2019 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates"
.
US Census Bureau
.
External links
[
edit
]
Media related to
Relations of Croatia and the United States
at Wikimedia Commons
|
---|
Africa
| | |
---|
Americas
| |
---|
Asia
| |
---|
Europe
| |
---|
Oceania
| |
---|
Multilateral
| |
---|
Related topics
| |
---|
|
|
---|
|
---|
Africa
| Central
| |
---|
East
| |
---|
North
| |
---|
Southern
| |
---|
West
| |
---|
|
---|
Americas
| Caribbean
| |
---|
Central
| |
---|
Northern
| |
---|
South
| |
---|
|
---|
Asia
| Central
| |
---|
East
| |
---|
South
| |
---|
Southeast
| |
---|
Western
| |
---|
|
---|
Europe
| Eastern
| |
---|
Northern
| |
---|
Southern
| |
---|
Western
| |
---|
|
---|
Oceania
| Australasia
| |
---|
Melanesia
| |
---|
Micronesia
| |
---|
Polynesia
| |
---|
|
---|
Former states
| |
---|
|
|
|
|