Central European countries are becoming more influential within the EU

The fact that four Central European prime ministers are participating in the discussion, Plenković assessed as the main message of the Bled Forum, which is that the countries of Central Europe are becoming stronger, more resilient, more competitive and more influential within the European Union, but also more assertive and self-confident.

Although these countries are still in the Friends of Cohesion group, he added, many difficult domestic tasks, reforms and structural changes have been completed, and their interconnection is also better.

Speaking about the challenges in the last ten years, which have had the greatest impact on the political landscape, especially in Western countries, the Prime Minister highlighted the migration crisis of 2015, then Brexit, then the Covid pandemic, the Russian aggression against Ukraine and the latest conflict in the Middle East.

All these crises, he warned, in some way burden the functioning of the European Union, therefore he advocated focusing on solidarity while trying to reconcile differences as much as possible.

Demographic Challenges and Energy Cooperation

Prime Minister Plenković cited demography as the primary structural problem that horizontally affects all EU members and stressed that it is important to find a strong joint response to this challenge.

Another important point is energy infrastructure, said the Prime Minister, adding that Croatia wants to use its strategic role as the Adriatic-Mediterranean gateway to Central and Eastern Europe.

Speaking about the decision-making process within the European Union, Prime Minister Plenković stated that there is a lot of mutual respect in the European Council, regardless of whether a country is newer, one of the founding members, richer, smaller, larger, and so on.

The European Council should be more political than bureaucratic

What is relevant is the content of the proposals and the arguments you put forward. So, when there are issues where we differ from others, if they are well argued, people will understand. If they are not very well argued, then of course there is less chance of convincing other partners, he said.

He himself, he added, is a big advocate of a very political European Council, because, he explained, the Council exists because of the fact that those who have democratic legitimacy sit in it and can really steer policies and debate.

Because the more, I would say, sensitive topics are brought before the Council, I think it will be better for our democracies. If the Council is run too administratively and bureaucratically, with all due respect, then I think we will sometimes miss what is politically important for all of us, he said.

Although we need to strengthen European institutions, the EU still has a strong global influence

Finally, he addressed Europe's role as a global leader.

In this context, he particularly highlighted the complementary reports by Mario Draghi, Enrico Letta and Sauli Niinistö, which at their core point to the need for greater European competitiveness, freedom and security.

He believes that global European influence, although under pressure, is still present. Sometimes, he added, especially in recent foreign policy crises such as the Russian aggression in Ukraine and the war in the Middle East, which prefer smaller formats, the problem is that European institutions are less heard than large member states.

This is also explained by the fact that world powers that are not members prefer talks with member states, especially large and economically and militarily stronger ones, directly rather than through multilateral forums. Therefore, he believes it is important to strengthen the institutions of the European Union.

However, Plenković emphasized, when everything is added up, when huge investments in defense, trade, development aid around the world are taken into account, as well as the role of European financial institutions, he believes that the European Union still has a strong global influence.

Plenković and Janša on bilateral relations and current global issues

Prime Minister Plenković also held a bilateral meeting with Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša in Bled today.

They discussed further strengthening of political cooperation between Croatia and Slovenia within the framework of the European Union and NATO and resolving open bilateral issues.

They welcomed the intensification of economic cooperation, with trade reaching 8.4 billion euros.

They also exchanged views on current European and security issues, as well as on the possibilities of further energy cooperation.

Prime Minister Plenković invited Prime Minister Janša to pay an official visit to Croatia.

Strengthening European defense, competitiveness and energy security

In a statement to the media after the Forum, Prime Minister Plenković highlighted the strides made in strengthening European defense, economic competitiveness, energy security and reducing dependence on fossil fuel imports, as key to the survival and functioning of Europe's global role.