PM says Croatia will make good proposal for headquartering EMA

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Thursday that Croatia would prepare a good proposal for headquartering the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which must relocate from London because of Brexit and in which there is a lot of interest among European Union member states.

"We have pointed out a number of times that we are interested in EMA and will try to make a good proposal. However, 21 member states are interested in that," Plenkovic said in Brussels ahead of a summit of EU leaders at which one of the topics will be the headquartering of EMA and the European Banking Authority, which are currently based in London.

The Croatian government has formed a task force for preparing the proposal, led by Health Minister Milan Kujundzic.

The new headquarters are expected to be selected at a summit in October. "Today we will talk about procedures for finding a solution and avoiding a veto situation. That's important for Croatia as we are one of the new member states in which no agency is headquartered," Plenkovic said.

Asked if Croatia might lose some European funds because of Brexit, he said, "I expect Great Britain to fulfil all of its obligations from this financial framework. It is part of a small group of countries which finance 80% of the European budget. In the long term, that will certainly have certain repercussions, and for us it's essential that everything that has been allocated for Croatia in this financial framework should remain and there's no dilemma about that. However, intensive talks will be held for the next financial framework and we will have to see to our interests."

Asked about an arbitration ruling on Croatia's border dispute with Slovenia to be announced next week, Plenkovic reiterated that the proceedings had been irreversibly contaminated and that the ruling would not be binding for Croatia. He said he had conveyed this position to his colleagues at an European People's Party summit prior to the EU summit.

Asked if he expected tensions between the two countries after the ruling, Plenkovic said he did not. "We are serious, neighbouring and friendly countries. We have an outstanding issue. We went into arbitration in good faith but it failed because it was irreversibly contaminated," he said, adding that Croatia remained open for further talks and seeking a solution in another framework.

Plenkovic went on to say that the Croatian government was trying to find a solution regarding distraint and distressed properties. "We will try to find a solution by raising the census of the income that could not be seized."

In cases when a debtor has only one property, "we will try to find a solution in which the state finds alternate accommodation. In any case, we will find a socially sensitive solution," he said.

Text: Hina

 

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