bilateral relationship Bilateralism is the conduct of political, economic, or cultural relations between two sovereign states. It is in contrast to unilateralism or multilateralism, which is activity by a single state or jointly by multiple states, respectively. When ...

exists between

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

and

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. Diplomatic relations between the two countries were established on January 15, 1992, following Croatia's independence from

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yug ...

. Croatia and Austria were part of the same union for almost 400 years: the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...

(1527–1804), the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...

(1804–1867) and the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

(1867–1918), with the Croatian regions of

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian, Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the larges ...

and

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

being under Austrian rule from the 1867 Compromise until the 1918 collapse. Croatia has an embassy in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, and honorary consulates in

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

Linz Linz ( , ; cs, Linec) is the capital of Upper Austria and third-largest city in Austria. In the north of the country, it is on the Danube south of the Czech border. In 2018, the population was 204,846. In 2009, it was a European Capital of ...

St. Pölten ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy ...

, and

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

. Austria has an embassy in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

, a general consulate in

Rijeka Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...

, and a consulate in

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enterta ...

, as well as the Office of the Coordinator for Educational Cooperation, the Austrian Cultural Forum, the Office for Foreign Trade, the Office of the Attaché for Agricultural and Environmental Questions, and the Office of the Police Liaison in Zagreb. There are around 120,000 Croats that live in Austria, out of which 56,785 have Croatian citizenship. The most recognizable Austrian Croats are the

Burgenland Croats Burgenland Croats (, , , ) is the name for ethnic Croats in the Austrian state of Burgenland, along with Croats in neighboring Hungary and Slovakia. Around 320,000 residents of Austria identify as of Croat heritage; 56,785 have, as sole or mu ...

that live in the Austrian state of

Burgenland Burgenland (; hu, Őrvidék; hr, Gradišće; Austro-Bavarian: ''Burgnland;'' Slovene: ''Gradiščanska'') is the easternmost and least populous state of Austria. It consists of two statutory cities and seven rural districts, with a total of ...

. 297 Austrians in Croatia are officially recognized as a minority by the

Croatian Constitution The Constitution of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Ustav Republike Hrvatske) is promulgated by the Croatian Parliament. History While it was part of the socialist Yugoslavia, the Socialist Republic of Croatia had its own Constitution under the ...

and therefore have their own permanent seat in the

Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament ( hr, Hrvatski sabor) or the Sabor is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Croatia. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the people and is vested with legislative power. The Sabor ...

. Both countries are full members of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

. Austria has given full support to Croatia's membership of the

History

After the death of King

Louis II of Hungary Louis II ( cs, Ludvík, hr, Ludovik , hu, Lajos, sk, Ľudovít; 1 July 1506 – 29 August 1526) was King of Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia from 1516 to 1526. He was killed during the Battle of Mohács fighting the Ottomans, whose victory led to ...

at Mohács monarchical crisis in the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...

occurred. The Croatian Parliament met in 1527 in the town of Cetin and chose Ferdinand I of the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

as new ruler of Croatia, under the condition that he provides protection to Croatia against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

in the Croatian–Ottoman War while respecting its political rights, although he later failed to fulfill this promise. Austro-Croatian relations have been close for most of modern history. Several heroes of Croatian history and culture were of Austrian origin and the country was one of the strongest in favor of Croatian recognition in the 1990s when Croatia declared its

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

from SFR Yugoslavia. Austria has also influenced development of

education in Croatia Education in Croatia is a right defended by Article 66 of the Constitution which states that everyone is entitled to free compulsory education under equal conditions and in accordance with their aptitudes. Education is mandatory for children aged ...

. First Gymnasiums in

(1607),

(1627) and

Varaždin ) , image_photo = , image_skyline = , image_flag = Flag of Varaždin.svg , flag_size = , image_seal = , seal_size = , image_shield = Grb_Grad ...

(1636) were founded by the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

from the

Augustineum Training College The Augustineum Secondary School, established in 1866, is among the oldest schools in Namibia. Originally situated in Otjimbingwe, it was relocated to Okahandja in 1890, and finally to Windhoek in 1968. Previously also known as the Augustineum ...

. Many famous

Croat The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, Ge ...

s like

Janko Drašković Janko Drašković ( Hungarian: ''Draskovich János''; 20 October 1770 – 14 January 1856) was a Croatian politician associated with the beginnings of the 19th-century national revival, the Illyrian movement. He studied law and philosophy befor ...

Dimitrije Demeter Dimitrios Dimitriou ( gr, Δημήτριος Δημητρίου, sometimes spelled Dimitrija Demeter or Dimitrije Demeter; 21 July 1811 – 24 June 1872) was a Greek Croatian poet, dramatist, short story writer and literary critic. One of the ...

Ljudevit Gaj Ljudevit Gaj (; born Ludwig Gay; hu, Gáj Lajos; 8 August 1809 – 20 April 1872) was a Croatian Linguistics, linguist, politician, journalist and writer. He was one of the central figures of the pan-Slavist Illyrian movement. Biography Origi ...

Stanko Vraz Stanko Vraz (born Jakob Frass; 30 June 1810 – 20 May 1851) was a Slovenian- Croatian poet. He Slavicized his name to ''Stanko Vraz'' in 1836. Biography Born in the village of Cerovec in Lower Styria, Austrian Empire (today in Slovenia), Vraz ...

Vatroslav Lisinski Vatroslav Lisinski (, 8 July 1819 – 31 May 1854) was a Croatian composer. Lisinski was born Ignatius Fuchs to a German Jewish family. He would later change his name to Vatroslav Lisinski, which is a Croatian calque of his original name. For a ...

Blagoje Bersa Blagoje Bersa (born as Benito Bersa, 21 December 1873 – 1 January 1934) was a Croatian musical composer of substantial influence.

, Božidar Širola,

Jakov Gotovac Jakov Gotovac (11 October 189516 October 1982) was a Croatian composer and conducting, conductor of classical music. His comic opera, ''Ero s onoga svijeta'' (''Ero the Joker''), Croatia's best-known opera, was first performed in Zagreb in 1935. ...

Ivan Zajc Ivan Zajc (also hr, Ivan plemeniti Zajc, it, Giovanni de Zaytz; ; August 3, 1832 – December 16, 1914), was a Croatian composer, conductor, director, and teacher who dominated Croatia's musical culture for over forty years. Through his ar ...

and

Ivan Meštrović Ivan Meštrović (; 15 August 1883 – 16 January 1962) was a Croatian sculptor, architect, and writer. He was the most prominent modern Croatian sculptor and a leading artistic personality in contemporary Zagreb. He studied at Pavle Bilinić's ...

have acquired higher education at the Universities of Vienna and Graz.

Economic Relations

There are more than 700 Austrian companies in Croatia. Austria is also the largest foreign investor in Croatia with more than 7 billion euros invested from 1993 to 2014. Cooperation between Austrian and Croatian entrepreneurs is most often in the field of metal, electrical industry,

wood processing Wood processing is an engineering discipline in the wood industry comprising the production of forest products, such as pulp and paper, construction materials, and tall oil. Paper engineering is a subfield of wood processing. The major wood pro ...

, textile and footwear industry and food industry in the form of healthy food.

Tourism

Croatia and Austria are founders and members of The Alps-Adriatic Working Group. Goals of this organisation are mutual communication, discussion and coordination of the points of interest of the member states, development of cooperation and exchanges in the Alpine-Adriatic region, strengthening of the Central European cultural identity and participation in the processes of the European cooperation and integration. Main areas of cooperation are sports, tourism, environmental protection, connecting cities, preservation of cultural and recreational spaces, culture and science and European integration. Austrian nobility started visiting the Croatian coast in the 1880s.

Opatija Opatija (; it, Abbazia; german: Sankt Jakobi) is a town and a municipality in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County in western Croatia. The traditional seaside resort on the Kvarner Gulf is known for its Mediterranean climate and its historic buildings r ...

became a fashionable destination for the Austrian imperial family and Austrian nobility. Soon many luxury hotels and villas were built. The first luxury hotel – Hotel "Quarnero" (1884) (today "Grand Hotel Kvarner") was built according to the plans by Viennese architect Franz Wilhelm. The hotel Kronprinzessin Stephanie was opened in 1885. Crown princess Stephanie, after whom hotel was named, and her husband

Crown Prince Rudolf en, Rudolph Francis Charles Joseph , caption = Rudolf in 1887 , spouse = , issue = Elisabeth Marie, Princess Otto of Windisch-Graetz , house = Habsburg-Lorraine , father = Franz Joseph I of Austria , mother ...

appeared at the opening. In 1887, Heinrich von Littrow established the "Union Yacht Club Quarnero" in Opatija which was the first sailing club on the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

. In 1889, Austrian government officially declared Opatija as the first climatic seaside resort on the Adriatic. Evan today Austrians are among the most frequent visitors of the Croatian coast, while Croats are frequent visitors of Austrian ski resorts. In 2018, 1.37 million Austrian tourists visited Croatia. They accounted for 7.065 million overnight stays, behind only German and Slovenian tourists in the overall number of overnight stays of foreign visitors.

Croatian (cultural) organizations in Austria

Today there is a significant number of Croatian institutions in Austria. Some of them are: * Croatian Cultural Center * Burgenland Croatian Center * Scientific Institute of the Burgenland Croats * Croatian Cultural Association in Burgenland * Croatian-Burgenland Cultural Association * Croatian Press Association of Eisenstadt - publishes the weekly "Croatian newspaper" (''Hrvatske novine''), an annual calendar as well as books on the Burgenland-Croatian language * Croatian literature * Croatian cultural and Documentation Centre - prints textbooks for the needs of Croatian bilingual schools in Burgenland * Croatian Cultural Society - publishes the newspaper "Croatian media outlet" (''Hrvatsko glasilo'')

have all kind of their own newspapers, radio, news portals (like kroativ.at) and TV programs in the framework of the

ORF ORF or Orf may refer to: * Norfolk International Airport, IATA airport code ORF * Observer Research Foundation, an Indian research institute * One Race Films, a film production company founded by Vin Diesel * Open reading frame, a portion of the ...

. Croatian Catholic Mission in Vienna is also very active religious-cultural organization.

Matica hrvatska Matica hrvatska ( la, Matrix Croatica) is the oldest independent, non-profit and non-governmental Croatian national institution. It was founded on February 2, 1842 by the Croatian Count Janko Drašković and other prominent members of the Illyri ...

has a branch in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Education of Croats in Austria

Classes in the Croatian are being held in some Austrian schools. There is a bilingual primary school in Großwarasdorf and a gymnasium in

Bort Bort, boart, or boort is an umbrella term used in the diamond industry to refer to shards of non-gem-grade/quality diamonds. In the manufacturing and heavy industries, "bort" is used to describe dark, imperfectly formed or crystallized diamonds ...

. Teaching Croatian is carried out in three grammar schools in

Oberpullendorf Oberpullendorf (; hr, Gornja Pulja or ; hu, Felsőpulya) is a town in Burgenland, Austria. It is the administrative center of the district of Oberpullendorf. Geography Oberpullendorf is a municipality in the middle of the Burgenland. It con ...

and

Eisenstadt Eisenstadt (; hu, Kismarton; hr, Željezni grad; ; sl, Železno, Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian: ''Eisnstod'') is a city in Austria, the state capital of Burgenland. It had a recorded population on 29 April 2021 of 15,074. In the Habsburg ...

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

and

have few kindergartens in which young children can learn or improve Croatian.

Other

Austrian Foreign Minister

Sebastian Kurz Sebastian Kurz (; born 27 August 1986) is a former Austrian politician who twice served as chancellor of Austria, initially from December 2017 to May 2019 and then a second time from January 2020 to October 2021. Kurz was born and raised in ...

choose

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

as the first destination that he visited upon his appointment. On 20 December 2013 mr. Kurz met in

with Croatian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs

Vesna Pusić Vesna Pusić (; born 25 March 1953) is a Croatian sociologist and politician who served as First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs in the centre-left cabinet of Zoran Milanović. She was Croatia's second female ...

. In year 1955, Austrian Cultural Forum was founded in

. It is an organization that promotes

Austrian culture Austrian culture has been influenced by its past and present neighbours: Germany, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, and Bohemia. Music Vienna, the capital city of the 2nd Republic of Austria had long been an important centre of musical innov ...

and

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and Official language, official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Ita ...

in Croatia.

Diplomacy

;Republic of Austria *

(Embassy) ;Republic of Croatia *

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

(Embassy)

References

External links

Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: list of bilateral treaties with Croatia (in German only)

Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration: list of bilateral treaties with Austria Croatian embassy in Vienna (in Croatian and German only)

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

Bilateral relations of Croatia {{Bilateralrelations-stub

History

Economic Relations

Tourism

Croatian (cultural) organizations in Austria

Education of Croats in Austria

Other

Diplomacy

See also

References

External links