Croatia–Russia relations
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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
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
established diplomatic relations on 25 May 1992. Croatia has an embassy in Moscow and honorary consulates in
Kaliningrad Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...
, Novosibirsk, and Sochi. Russia has an embassy in
Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...
and honorary consulates in Pula and
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, entertai ...
. While geographically not close, Croatia and Russia are both Slavic countries and thus share distant language heritage. Both countries are full members of the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, pro ...
. Croatia is a popular tourist destination with Russian travelers in spite of a drastic drop in the numbers after 2014 following the
Russo-Ukrainian War The Russo-Ukrainian War; uk, російсько-українська війна, rosiisko-ukrainska viina. has been ongoing between Russia (alongside Russian separatists in Ukraine) and Ukraine since February 2014. Following Ukraine's Rev ...
that caused political tension between Russia and 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 de ...
, to which Croatia had acceded in 2013. At the end of 2016, Russian experts were cited as judging Russian–Croatian relations to be "cold" due to conflicting interests and alliances, primarily due to Croatia aligning itself with
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
, the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, and the European Union in international affairs.Лавров отмахнулся от Балкан: Между Россией и Хорватией возник спор о российской угрозе на Балканах
Gazeta.ru, 13 December 2016.


Background

Cultural and personal ties between Russia and persons from the territory of modern Croatia date far back prior to Croatian independence in 1991, such as a trip to Moscow by Croatian
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
missionary
Juraj Križanić Juraj Križanić (c. 1618 – 12 September 1683), also known as Jurij Križanič or Yuriy Krizhanich (russian: Юрий Крижанич), was a Croatian Catholic missionary who is often regarded as the earliest recorded pan-Slavist. His ideal, of ...
in 1659 who later was exiled to
Tobolsk Tobolsk (russian: Тобо́льск) is a town in Tyumen Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Tobol and Irtysh rivers. Founded in 1590, Tobolsk is the second-oldest Russian settlement east of the Ural Mountains in Asian Russia, an ...
in Siberia where he spent 16 years writing manuscripts that promoted
Pan-Slavism Pan-Slavism, a movement which crystallized in the mid-19th century, is the political ideology concerned with the advancement of integrity and unity for the Slavic people. Its main impact occurred in the Balkans, where non-Slavic empires had rule ...
. Against the backdrop of the
Illyrian movement The Illyrian movement ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Ilirski pokret, Илирски покрет; sl, Ilirsko gibanje) was a pan-South-Slavic cultural and political campaign with roots in the early modern period, and revived by a group of young Croatian inte ...
, a pan- South-Slavist movement, regarded in Croatian historiography as part of the Croatian national revival (''Hrvatski narodni preporod''), some prominent Croats in the 19th century (the lands of modern Croatia then being largely part of 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 ...
, later
Austria-Hungary 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 ...
) sought to develop a stronger relationship with Russia because "they saw in Imperial Russia a world power and brotherly Slavic nation from which they had hoped to gain help during the
Croatian National Revival The Illyrian movement ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Ilirski pokret, Илирски покрет; sl, Ilirsko gibanje) was a pan-South-Slavic cultural and political campaign with roots in the early modern period, and revived by a group of young Croatian inte ...
." Croatian
nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...
Eugen Kvaternik Eugen Kvaternik (31 October 1825 – 11 October 1871) was a Croatian nationalist politician and one of the founders of the Party of Rights, alongside Ante Starčević. Kvaternik was the leader of the 1871 Rakovica Revolt which was an attempt ...
, who was one of the two founders of the Croatian nationalist
Party of Rights The Party of Rights ( hr, Stranka prava) was a Croatian nationalist political party in Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia and later in Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. It was founded in 1861 by Ante Starčević and Eugen Kvaternik, two influenti ...
, traveled, among other countries, to Russia at the end of 1857 and stayed there for most of 1858 hoping to enlist help for the cause of the Croatian independence from 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 ...
( Russo-Austrian relations were poor in the wake of the
Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
), but did not accomplish much. He later came to view Russia as a threat to the cause of the Catholics in the Croatian lands as he believed that Russia sought to enhance its own influence in the
Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
by promoting the Orthodox faith and therefore supported the Orthodox
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
, whom he regarded as "Orthodox Croatians". One of the notable figures of the
Illyrian movement The Illyrian movement ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Ilirski pokret, Илирски покрет; sl, Ilirsko gibanje) was a pan-South-Slavic cultural and political campaign with roots in the early modern period, and revived by a group of young Croatian inte ...
,
Ivan Kukuljević Sakcinski Ivan Kukuljević Sakcinski (29 May 1816 – 1 August 1889) was a Croatian historian, politician and writer, most famous for the first speech delivered in Croatian before the Parliament. Considered a renowned patriot, Kukuljević was a proponent of ...
, maintained contacts with a number of Russian academics, slavists, university professors, his contact person with them being the Russian priest at the Russian Embassy in Vienna, Mihail Fjodorović Rajevski. He wrote to Russian scientist
Alexander Stepanovich Popov Alexander Stepanovich Popov (sometimes spelled Popoff; russian: Алекса́ндр Степа́нович Попо́в; – ) was a Russian physicist, who was one of the first persons to invent a radio receiving device. declassified 8 Janua ...
in 1877: "You in Moscow know very well for how long South Slavs had been waiting for salvation. You also know that the eyes of the Slavs are fixed on you and that our hearts are full with you". While Russia's relations with Serbia, a country popularly viewed as a traditional ally of Russia, deteriorated following the 1878
Congress of Berlin The Congress of Berlin (13 June – 13 July 1878) was a diplomatic conference to reorganise the states in the Balkan Peninsula after the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, which had been won by Russia against the Ottoman Empire. Represented at th ...
(
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
viewed the terms thereof as unfavourable), her influence in the Croatian lands increased: the
Party of Rights The Party of Rights ( hr, Stranka prava) was a Croatian nationalist political party in Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia and later in Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. It was founded in 1861 by Ante Starčević and Eugen Kvaternik, two influenti ...
under
Ante Starčević Ante Starčević (; 23 May 1823 – 28 February 1896) was a Croatian politician and writer. His policies centered around Croatian state law, the integrity of Croatian lands, and the right of his people to self-determination. As an important memb ...
adopted a Russophile orientation, a tactic in their bid to achieve Croatian independence of the Habsburgs. Such aspirations notwithstanding, the visit to
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
by Austrian Emperor
Franz Joseph Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...
and his conference with Nicholas II of Russia in 1897 heralded a secret agreement between the two empires to honour and seek to maintain the '' status quo'' in the Balkans. In 1914–1917, several formations of the
Royal Croatian Home Guard The Royal Croatian Home Guard ( hr, Kraljevsko hrvatsko domobranstvo, Hrvatsko-slavonsko domobranstvo or Kraljevsko hrvatsko-ugarsko domobranstvo, often simply ''Domobranstvo'' or ''Domobran'' in singular, in German: ''Croatisch-Slawonische Landw ...
within the
Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...
, as well as the
Common Army The Common Army (german: Gemeinsame Armee, hu, Közös Hadsereg) as it was officially designated by the Imperial and Royal Military Administration, was the largest part of the Austro-Hungarian land forces from 1867 to 1914, the other two eleme ...
′s ('' K.u.K.'') regiments recruited from the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia (such as the 79th Infantry Regiment from
Otočac Otočac () is a town in Croatia, former bishopric and present Latin Catholic titular see. It lies in the northwestern part of Lika region, in the Gacka river valley. The population of the administrative area of the Town of Otočac was 9,778 in ...
), participated in the WWI campaigns fighting against the Imperial Russian Army in Galicia and Bukovina; they incurred heavy losses in August—September 1914 and especially during the first phase of the Russian offensive in June 1916. During the period between the world wars, in the 1920s–1930s, the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...
, which had incorporated the Croatian lands, hosted a sizable part of the White exiles who fled Soviet Russia during the
Russian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...
. Along with
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
, Croatia accepted thousands of mainly indigent″Препродаја блага у београдској залагаоници: Из тајних архива УДБЕ: РУСКА ЕМИГРАЦИЈА У ЈУГОСЛАВИЈИ 1918–1941.″ // ''
Politika ''Politika'' ( sr-Cyrl, Политика; ''Politics'') is a Serbian daily newspaper, published in Belgrade. Founded in 1904 by Vladislav F. Ribnikar, it is the oldest daily newspaper still in circulation in the Balkans. Publishing and owners ...
'', 6 December 2017, p. 13.
Russian refugees led by General
Pyotr Wrangel Baron Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel (russian: Пётр Никола́евич барон Вра́нгель, translit=Pëtr Nikoláevič Vrángel', p=ˈvranɡʲɪlʲ, german: Freiherr Peter Nikolaus von Wrangel; April 25, 1928), also known by his ni ...
and Metropolitan Anthony Khrapovitsky. Until his death in 1936, Metropolitan Anthony was regarded as a leader of all the Russian refugees in Yugoslavia,″Политика митрополита Антонија: Из тајних архива УДБЕ: РУСКА ЕМИГРАЦИЈА У ЈУГОСЛАВИЈИ 1918–1941.″ // ''
Politika ''Politika'' ( sr-Cyrl, Политика; ''Politics'') is a Serbian daily newspaper, published in Belgrade. Founded in 1904 by Vladislav F. Ribnikar, it is the oldest daily newspaper still in circulation in the Balkans. Publishing and owners ...
'', 16 January 2018, p. 21.
a country whose staunchly anti-Soviet, anti-Communist monarchist regime refused to establish diplomatic relations with the
USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
until June 1940. Zagreb and some other Croatian cities had numerous military, religious, educational and professional Russian establishments, all of which were closed down in May 1945, after the imposition of the Communist regime in Croatia. Most of those few Russians who had failed to leave for the West, were subjected to reprisals and prosecution, or forced to leave for the USSR. During the
German-Soviet War The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of conflict between the European Axis powers against the Soviet Union (USSR), Poland and other Allies, which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltics), and Sout ...
(June 1941–May 1945), the
369th Croatian Reinforced Infantry Regiment The 369th (Croatian) Reinforced Infantry Regiment (, hr, 369. pojačana pješačka pukovnija) was a regiment of the German Army raised to fight on the Eastern Front during World War II. The regiment was formed in July 1941 by Croatian volunt ...
(a unit of
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
′s 100th Jäger Division of the German Army, under Croatian officers Viktor Pavičić and later Marko Mesić) distinguished itself in the Battle of Stalingrad, but surrendered along with the German 6th Army in early February 1943. At the end of the
war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
in Europe, units of the
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...
′s
3rd Ukrainian Front The 3rd Ukrainian Front (Russian: Третий Украинский фронт) was a Front of the Red Army during World War II. It was founded on 20 October 1943, on the basis of a Stavka order of October 16, 1943, by renaming the Southweste ...
fought in some Croat-populated territories, then mostly outside the borders of the pro-
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. It was established in p ...
(the NDH). On the day Germany attacked the Soviet Union, 22 June 1941, the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (CPY) received orders from the Moscow-based Comintern to come to the Soviet Union′s aid and on the same day, Croatian communists set up the 1st Sisak Partisan Detachment, the first armed anti-fascist guerrilla unit formed in occupied Yugoslavia during World War II. From July 1941, Tito's
Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод ...
, supported by the USSR, fought against Germany, the NDH, and allies thereof, as well as Chetniks. In November 1944, during the Battle of Batina (now in Croatia), 1,237 men of the Red Army were killed fighting against the combined
Axis An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to: Mathematics * Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis * Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...
forces. On the other hand, the
1st Cossack Cavalry Division The 1st Cossack Cavalry Division (german: 1. Kosaken-Kavallerie-Division) was a Russian Cossack division of the German Army that served during World War II. It was created on the Eastern Front mostly out of Don Cossacks already serving in the We ...
and the 2nd Cossack Cavalry Division merged into the
XV SS Cossack Cavalry Corps The XV SS Cossack Cavalry Corps was a cavalry corps in the armed forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. Background During the Russian Civil War (1917–1923), Cossack leaders and their governments generally sided with the White movement. A ...
in February 1945 under German command and manned mainly by Cossacks from the USSR, from 1943 conducted successful tactical operations in Croatia against both Communist guerrillas and — from late 1944 — the Red Army. Also fighting on the territory of the NDH from October 1944 — against the Communist partisans and the Soviet troops — were the retreating units of the
Russian Protective Corps The Russian Protective Corps (german: Russisches Schutzkorps, russian: Русский охранный корпус, sr, Руски заштитни корпус / Ruski zaštitni korpus) was an armed force composed of anti-communist White Russi ...
, whose commander, Russian general Boris Shteifon, died in Zagreb on 30 April 1945. The defeat of the NDH in mid-May 1945 was followed by mass killings of Croat prisoners and the establishment later that year of a pro-Soviet ( until mid-1948)
one-party A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government ...
Communist
Federal People's Republic of 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 Yu ...
, the
People's Republic of Croatia The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), or SR Croatia, was a constituent republic and federated state of the Sociali ...
being one of its constituent republics. The USSR maintained a consulate general in Zagreb. Social scientists in 2016 concurred that for most people in Croatia, a constituent republic of Yugoslavia until 1991 where the equality of ethnic
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
and Croats, as constituent nations, was formally recognized in every aspect, the dominant political narrative that tended to determine voting at elections, perpetuated their respective families′ political affiliation during WWII: either with Tito's Communist partisans, or supporters of the
Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
-backed Ustasha regime of the NDH, a schism in Croatia's society that had grown even wider since the consensus-based political goal of acceding to the EU was accomplished in 2013.As its government falls, Croatia is fighting about Communists and fascists again: A Balkan problem child is unable to stop squabbling, even on the football pitch
''
The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...
'', 21 June 2016.
A number of prominent Croats in Socialist Yugoslavia had close ties with the USSR and these people's influence in the government of independent Croatia that emerged in 1991 continued thereafter.


History


1990s

According to the allegations in the Croatian press, in violation of the UN arms embargo imposed on the former
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
, during the Croatian War of Independence, significant amounts of arms were delivered from Russia to Croatia. Russian president
Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...
allegedly approved shipments of weapons by 150 airplanes, which took off from a military base 200 kilometers east of Moscow in the period from 1992 to 1997. There were 150 to 160 flights that transported hundreds of tons of weaponry per year. In 2016, Croatian daily
Večernji List ''Večernji list'' (also known as ''Večernjak''; ) is a Croatian daily newspaper published in Zagreb. History and profile ''Večernji list'' was started in Zagreb in 1959. Its ancestor ''Večernji vjesnik'' ("Evening Courier") appeared for the ...
published an article in which Marin Tomulić, representative of the
Croatian Government The Government of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Hrvatske), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Republike Hrvatske), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government ( hr, hrvatska Vlada), is the main executive branch of government ...
's Office for the Protection of the Constitutional Order in negotiations on weaponry, stated that he received a catalog of all types of ″Russian″ weapons from the
French Government The Government of France (French: ''Gouvernement français''), officially the Government of the French Republic (''Gouvernement de la République française'' ), exercises executive power in France. It is composed of the Prime Minister, who i ...
. In 2017,
Večernji List ''Večernji list'' (also known as ''Večernjak''; ) is a Croatian daily newspaper published in Zagreb. History and profile ''Večernji list'' was started in Zagreb in 1959. Its ancestor ''Večernji vjesnik'' ("Evening Courier") appeared for the ...
published an article in which businessmen Zvonko Zubak, owner of a company that was Croatia's main weapons supplier during the war, claimed that Russian Ambassador to Croatia Anvar Azimov had summoned him to the Russian Embassy asking for an "inventory of all arms that arrived to Croatia via Russia between 1992 and 1997"; the article cited Azimov as allegedly stating that Croatia "should be reminded of who was arming and rescuing it during the embargo". The inventory, that Večernji List has seen, cites 16.000 tonnes of various Russian weapons, including two
MiG 21 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nickna ...
jets, few squadrons of transport and assault helicopters, including
Mil Mi-24 The Mil Mi-24 (russian: Миль Ми-24; NATO reporting name: Hind) is a large helicopter gunship, attack helicopter and low-capacity troop transport with room for eight passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and has been ...
, and anti-aircraft systems, including the
S-300 missile system The S-300 (NATO reporting name SA-10 Grumble) is a series of long range surface-to-air missile systems developed and operated by the former Soviet Union, now fielded by the militaries of Russia and Ukraine as well as several other former Easte ...
. In April 2017, former Croatian president
Ivo Josipović Ivo Josipović (; born 28 August 1957) is a Croatian academic, jurist, and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2010 to 2015. Josipović entered politics as a member of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia (SKJ), and played a key ...
said that "during the war, Russia helped Croatia, not only with weaponry, but also politically". In April 2017,
Russian Foreign Ministry The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation (MFA Russia; russian: Министерство иностранных дел Российской Федерации, МИД РФ) is the central government institution charged with lea ...
officials rejected such allegations as false. On 4 November 1996, Russian President Yeltsin awarded Croatian President Franjo Tuđman with
Medal of Zhukov The Medal of Zhukov (russian: медаль Жукова) is a state award of the Russian Federation initially awarded to veterans of the Great Patriotic War but now awarded to serving members of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. It is ...
. During the 1990s, major fortunes were made in Russia by some Croatian nationals such as Danko Končar, who attributed his business success in Russia, among other things, to his "normal human contact" with the FSB, Russia's successor agency to the USSR's
KGB The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
.


2000—2020

In the 2000s and early 2010s, consecutive presidents of Croatia,
Stjepan Mesić Stjepan "Stipe" Mesić (; born 24 December 1934) is a Croatian lawyer and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2000 to 2010. Before serving two five-year terms as president, he was prime minister of SR Croatia (1990) after the fir ...
and
Ivo Josipović Ivo Josipović (; born 28 August 1957) is a Croatian academic, jurist, and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2010 to 2015. Josipović entered politics as a member of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia (SKJ), and played a key ...
, made multiple official and working visits to Russia.Межгосударственные отношения России и Хорватии. Справка
RIA Novosti, 11 May 2010.
According to former Croatian ambassador to Russia Božo Kovačević, Russia's leadership stopped taking the Croatian government seriously by the end of the 2000s, as they had realised that successive governments of Croatia had been consciously deceiving their Russian counterparts when pledging cooperation on the Druzhba Adria pipeline project, whose eventual rejection by the Croatian side Kovačević puts down primarily to pressure on the part of the U.S. Instead, in order to create a powerful instrument of influence and secure Russian capture of Croatia's political establishment, Russia embarked on its tried-and-tested strategy of weakening the market position of a national oil and gas company, namely INA d.d., whose dominant role in the Croatian gas market had by 2017 been assumed by the Prvo Plinarsko Društvo (PPD) gas trading company, a proxy for importing Gazprom’s gas (PPD is owned by the Energia Naturalis Group). Among other things, by extending a loan, PPD financed the 2014–15 presidential election campaign of
Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović (; born 29 April 1968) is a Croatian politician and diplomat who served as President of Croatia from 2015 to 2020. She was the first woman to be elected to the office since the first multi-party elections in 1990 and ...
, who went on to win the election. In the opinion of Denis Kuljiš, Russia had always sought to exercise control over Croatia′s president as it was understood that Croatia′s government "must take orders from
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
". Additionally, Russian state-controlled oil company
Zarubezhneft JSC Zarubezhneft (russian: Зарубежнефть) is a Russian state-controlled oil company based in Moscow that specializes in exploration, development and operation of oil and gas fields outside Russian territory. Sergei Kudryashov is the c ...
attempted, in the early 2010s, to get hold of INA's oil exploration concessions and to this end set up the Russian-Croatian company, Zarubezhneft Adria, with a minority stake owned by Croatian state-controlled crude oil transportation company JANAF ( Jadranski naftovod). JANAF's consecutive CEOs, Ante Markov and Dragan Kovačević, were reputed to have close ties to Russia and lobby Russia's business interests in Croatia. In February 2015, the Milanović government went ahead with the pre-planned Russian-Croatian Economic Forum held in Moscow, thus defying the publicly made warning against doing so on the part of the U.S.; the Croatian delegation was led by the minister of economy
Ivan Vrdoljak Ivan Vrdoljak (; Ivan Vrdoljak (born 22 June 1972 in Osijek) is a Croatian entrepreneur and former politician. He is the founder and owner of the company ''Livit d.o.o.,'' as well as a private investor. He held a number of high-ranking positions t ...
. At the beginning of 2016, Russian ambassador to Croatia Anvar Azimov complained publicly that none of the ten Croatian ministers invited by him to attend various events in Russia had visited Russia.Veleposlanik Ruske federacije u RH: Hrvatska neće dobro proći kad Rusiji završe sankcije
Večernji list ''Večernji list'' (also known as ''Večernjak''; ) is a Croatian daily newspaper published in Zagreb. History and profile ''Večernji list'' was started in Zagreb in 1959. Its ancestor ''Večernji vjesnik'' ("Evening Courier") appeared for the ...
, 4 September 2016.
At the end of 2016, Russian experts were cited as assessing Russian–Croatian relations as "cold". In September 2016, Jutarnji list reported that Croatia had expelled one Russian diplomat suspected of spying. An unnamed source, described as "a former Croatian diplomat who was well familiar with the situation in Russia", stated that he knew for a fact that "the Russians were very hurt" and that they responded by expelling one Croatian diplomat. An article published in the Foreign Affairs magazine in July 2017 referred to
Andrej Plenković Andrej Plenković ( ; born 8 April 1970) is a Croatian politician who has been serving as the prime minister of Croatia since 19 October 2016. He was previously one of eleven Croatian members of the European Parliament, serving from Croatia's ...
′s government as "currently the West’s strongest ally against Russian expansion in the
Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
." The visit to Russia by Croatia's president
Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović (; born 29 April 1968) is a Croatian politician and diplomat who served as President of Croatia from 2015 to 2020. She was the first woman to be elected to the office since the first multi-party elections in 1990 and ...
in October 2017 was seen by Russian commentators as a sign of tentative warming of relations that had been ″semi-frozen″ on the official level since 2009. President Grabar-Kitarović stressed the prospects of economic cooperation between the countries. On 26 March 2018, Croatia expelled one Russian diplomat as a show of solidarity with the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
which accused Russia of poisoning Sergei and Yulia Skripal. In retaliation, Russia on 30 March banned the chief of staff of the Croatian foreign minister
Marija Pejčinović Burić Marija Pejčinović Burić (; born 9 April 1963) is a Croatian politician of the centre-right Croatian Democratic Union party who served as Minister of Foreign and European Affairs and First Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia from 2017 to 2019. Sh ...
— Rina Eterović Goreta, who had from 2015 until 2017 been Croatia's chargé d'affaires in Moscow, — from entering its territory in an official capacity. Russia's choice of person was judged to be a surprise by experts. According to mass media reports, some Croat businesspeople and politicians, namely Milijan Brkić, during the
2018 Bosnian general election General elections were held in Bosnia and Herzegovina on 7 October 2018. They decided the makeup of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Presidency as well as national, entity, and cantonal governments. Voter turnout was 54%. The elections for the House o ...
campaign in
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
were closely coordinating their activities with Russia's security and intelligence officials, specifically
Nikolai Patrushev Nikolai Platonovich Patrushev (russian: Никола́й Плато́нович Па́трушев; born 11 July 1951) is a Russian politician, security officer and intelligence officer who has served as the secretary of the Security Council of ...
, Secretary of the
Security Council of Russia The Security Council of the Russian Federation (SCRF or Sovbez; russian: Совет безопасности Российской Федерации (СБРФ), Sovet bezopasnosti Rossiyskoy Federatsii (SBRF)) is a constitutional consultative bo ...
and previously Director of the Russian Federal Security Service (in the opinion of the former Minister of the Interior of Croatia, Vlaho Orepić, published in the autumn of 2019, Milijan Brkić, while not holding any position in the government, was the ''de facto'' coordinator of Croatia's secret services; Milijan Brkić was also widely viewed as the kingmaker in the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), one of the country's two major political parties, as well as head of the informal "para-intelligence" grouping within the HDZ that had sought to undermine the Plenković administration, the country's judicial institutions, and individual state officials and had infiltrated Croatia's state institutions such as the
Ministry of the Interior An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministr ...
and the
Military Security and Intelligence Agency The Military Security and Intelligence Agency ( hr, Vojna sigurnosno-obavještajna agencija, VSOA) is the security and intelligence service of the Croatian Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Oružane snage Republik ...
, the activity of the latter having come to resemble, under his influence, that of "a
mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...
-type organisation", according to the agency's employees′ accusations published in early 2021). Following the 2018 Bosnian election, at which the Bosnian Croat candidate and leader of the
Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica Bosne i Hercegovine or HDZ BiH) is a Christian democratic, nationalist political party in Bosnia and Herzegovina, representing the Croats of Bosnia and ...
(HDZ BiH) party,
Dragan Čović Dragan Čović (; born 20 August 1956) is a Bosnian Croat politician who served as the 4th Croat member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2002 to 2005 and from 2014 to 2018. He is the current president of the Croatian Democrat ...
, failed to get elected Croat member of the BiH Presidency, Dragan Čović became a close political ally of the
Bosnian Serb The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sr-Cyrl, Срби у Босни и Херцеговини, Srbi u Bosni i Hercegovini) are one of the three constitutive nations (state-forming nations) of the country, predominantly residing in the politi ...
leader and Member of the Presidency,
Milorad Dodik Milorad Dodik ( sr-cyrl, Милорад Додик, ; born 12 March 1959) is a Bosnian Serb politician serving as the 8th president of Republika Srpska since November 2022. Previously, he served as the 7th Serb member of the Presidency of Bo ...
, who is known to enjoy support of Russia's leadership in his attempts to undermine the BiH statehood. According to Croatian political observer Boris Rašeta, Russia's influence in Croatia had been steadily in the ascendant and, prior to Andrej Plenković's chairmanship of the HDZ, the party's leadership had enjoyed strong support in the Kremlin. Special friendly relationship with Russia's leadership fostered by
Milan Bandić Milan Bandić (22 November 1955 – 28 February 2021) was a Croatian politician and the longest-serving mayor of Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. Bandić was mayor almost continuously from 2000 to 2021, except during the time between his resignati ...
, the
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of
Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...
(2005–2021), given multiple criminal investigations against him in Croatia, prompted Croatian press to speculate in the spring of 2020 that he was in a position to reckon on claiming
political asylum The right of asylum (sometimes called right of political asylum; ) is an ancient juridical concept, under which people persecuted by their own rulers might be protected by another sovereign authority, like a second country or another ent ...
in Russia to avoid subsequent extradition from his patrimonial BiH. In early September 2020, the outgoing Russian Ambassador to Croatia (2015—2020), Anvar Azimov, told a far-right Croatian weekly that his best friends in Croatia had been former president
Stipe Mesić Stipe may refer to: Biological terminology * Stipe (botany) * Stipe (mycology) In mycology, a stipe () is the stem or stalk-like feature supporting the cap of a mushroom. Like all tissues of the mushroom other than the hymenium, the stipe is ...
and mayor Milan Bandić and the three men addressed one another "brother" (''brat''); Azimov also said he had had meetings with Bandić "nearly each week" whereas Mesić, according to Azimov, had been awaiting him inside the Russian embassy the day Azimov arrived in Zagreb. According to Croatian political observers, the relationship between mayor Bandić and the HDZ-led government in the latter half of the 2010s grew into a political " symbiosis" that even survived the 2020 parliamentary election in which Bandić's party fared poorly. Stipe Mesić went on participating actively in Croatia′s official foreign policy into 2021. According to the statistics of the Croatian Ministry of the Interior published in early 2019, in the period from 2000 until 2017, sixty-six Russian nationals had been granted
Croatian citizenship The Croatian nationality law dates back from June 26, 1991, with amendments on May 8, 1992, October 28, 2011, and January 1, 2020, and an interpretation of the Constitutional Court in 1993. It is based upon the Constitution of Croatia (Chapter II ...
in the expedited procedure as provided for by Article 12 of the Law on Croatian Citizenship; some of these persons are believed to be members of
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...
′s inner circle of friends. On 1 April 2019, Russia's
Sberbank PJSC Sberbank (russian: Сбербанк, initially a contraction of russian: сберегательный банк, translit=sberegatelnyy bank, lit=savings bank, link=no) is a Russian majority state-owned banking and financial services compa ...
announced it had formally acquired ownership of ″about 40 per cent of the net assets of
Fortenova Group Fortenova Group is a food producer and retailer based in Zagreb. It has been operating since 1 April 2019. The company was established through the implementation of the Settlement Plan closed between the creditors of Agrokor which had, due to il ...
". The latter was set up as part of the debt-for-equity swap deal agreed upon between the government-appointed extraordinary administration of the demised
Agrokor Agrokor () was a conglomerate, largely centered in agribusiness, with headquarters in Zagreb, Croatia. Founded in 1976 as a flower grower, it became a joint stock company in 1989, with 100 percent ownership held by founder Ivica Todorić. It grea ...
, the biggest privately owned company in the Balkans founded by
Ivica Todorić Ivica Todorić (; born 2 January 1951) is a Croatian businessman. Until June 2017, he was the owner and chairman of the board of Agrokor, the largest privately owned company in Croatia. The operations of Agrokor are focused on two core businesses ...
, and its creditors such as Sberbank and
VTB Bank VTB Bank (; formerly known as ''Vneshtorgbank'', , lit. 'International Trade Bank') is a Russian majority state-owned bank headquartered in various federal districts of Russia; its legal address is registered in St. Petersburg; as of 202 ...
.Sberbank says "committed" to Croatia's former Agrokor group
Reuters, 3 April 2019.
The deal was viewed by experts as having given Vladimir Putin ″indirect leverage on the Croatian economy and on the largest firm in the former Yugoslavia″, Croatia’s Centre for Development Cooperation writing that "Russia ha bought itself a NATO country". Sberbank's pointman for Agrokor had been Maxim Poletaev, whose wife, Yelena, was granted Croatian citizenship in 2015. Maxim Poletaev became chairman of Fortenova's board of directors. By having PPD acquire 6,4 per cent of Fortenova Group in early 2020, Russian business achieved majority control of the company.


Since 2020

Miroslav Škoro Miroslav Škoro (; born 29 July 1962) is a Croatian musician, television host and politician. He is the founder and the first president of the conservative Homeland Movement party, which he established in February 2020 and led until July 2021. As ...
′s political movement (DPMŠ) that emerged at the end of 2010s and was hailed as Croatia's
Third Way The Third Way is a centrist political position that attempts to reconcile right-wing and left-wing politics by advocating a varying synthesis of centre-right economic policies with centre-left social policies. The Third Way was born from ...
party was reported to be financed by and have strong personal connections to, PPD and its owner, Pavao Vujnovac. The DPMŠ-led coalition came in third in the Croatian parliamentary election held in July 2020. Following the valedictory visit that Russian ambassador to Croatia Anvar Azimov paid Croatian minister of defence Mario Banožić in early September 2020, the Croatian ministry of defence published a statement that said, "The minister of defence and the Russian ambassador have agreed that the two countries enjoy good and friendly relations". The Croatian Security and Intelligence Agency′s annual unclassified report for 2019 published a few days later stated that the Croatian ministry of defence, along with other government institutions, had been one of the targets of a series of sophisticated state-sponsored cyber attacks (
advanced persistent threat An advanced persistent threat (APT) is a stealthy threat actor, typically a nation state or state-sponsored group, which gains unauthorized access to a computer network and remains undetected for an extended period. In recent times, the term may ...
s); while the agency did not name the perpetrator, Croatian press cited Russia's intelligence services (FSB and
GRU The Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, rus, Гла́вное управле́ние Генера́льного шта́ба Вооружённых сил Росси́йской Федера́ци ...
) as being the culprits. President Zoran Milanović's verbal attacks on the Plenković government as well as criticism of the U.S.′ policies voiced by him in the autumn of 2020 earned him praise from Russia's pro-government media. Russian foreign minister
Sergey Lavrov Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov (russian: Сергей Викторович Лавров, ; born 21 March 1950) is a Russian diplomat and politician who has served as the Foreign Minister of Russia since 2004. Lavrov served as the Permanent Represe ...
′s visit to Croatia that was to take place in late October 2020 was cancelled without any formal announcement and explanation from the Russia side, whereas his planned visit to Serbia was made longer. Russian media suggested the reason for calling off the previously announced stop in Zagreb within Lavrov's tour of the Balkans was Croatian prime minister Andrej Plenković's refusal to receive the Russian minister. However, the Croatian prime minister's office and the Croatian foreign minister dismissed such allegations saying the visit was postponed at the Russian side's request due to the epidemiological situation at the Russian Embassy in Zagreb. During Lavrov's visit to Zagreb that finally took place in mid-December 2020, Croatian foreign minister Gordan Grlić-Radman praised his Russian counterpart as a poet whose poems had been published shortly prior. Several weeks later, Russian ambassador Andrey Nesterenko in an interview referred to Grlić-Radman as "Lavrov′s friend" The floating
LNG terminal A liquefied natural gas terminal is a facility for managing the import and/or export of liquefied natural gas (LNG). It comprises equipment for loading and unloading of LNG cargo to/from ocean-going tankers, for transfer across the site, liquefac ...
in
Omišalj Omišalj ( it, Castel Muschio; german: Moschau) is a coastal municipality in the north-west of the island of Krk in Croatia. The population of Omišalj itself is 1,868 (2011), while the municipality also includes the nearby village of Njivice, bri ...
that began operations on 1 January 2021 had been hailed as a way for Croatia to ease its dependence on natural gas imported from Russia as well as bring greater gas diversity and competition to Central and Eastern Europe. On 25 January 2022, against the backdrop of a renewed flare-up of confronation between Russia and the West over Ukraine, Croatia′s president
Zoran Milanović Zoran Milanović (; born 30 October 1966) is a Croatian politician serving as President of Croatia since 19 February 2020. Prior to assuming the presidency, he was prime minister from 2011 to 2016 and president of the Social Democratic Party f ...
, whose prior public statements and foreign policy moves Croatian political analyst Davor Gjenero had attributed to Milanović being beholden to Russia′s geopolitical agenda in the region, told the press that the crisis over Ukraine was due to the U.S.′ foreign policy and domestic politics; he also said that an "arrangement to meet Russia′s security interests" ought to be found and that he guaranteed that no Croatian troops would be dispatched in case of an escalation. On the same day, prime minister Plenković reacted to those statements by saying that on hearing those he thought it was being said "by some Russian official"; he also offered apologies to Ukraine and reiterated that Croatia supported Ukraine′s territorial integrity. ''
Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...
'' commented on Milanović′s statements by writing: "In the midst of the Ukraine crisis comes a surprise military maneuver — a Croatian confusion operation." The
foreign ministry of Ukraine The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine ( uk, Міністерство закордонних справ України) is the ministry of the Ukrainian government that oversees the foreign relations of Ukraine. The head of the ministry is th ...
summoned Croatian ambassador Anica Djamić, whereafter the ministry issued a comment that said, " ..Zoran Milanović's statements retransmit Russian propaganda narratives, do not correspond to Croatia's consistent official position in support of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, harm bilateral relations and undermine unity within the EU and NATO in the face of current security threats in Europe. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine demands a public refutation of these insulting statements by the President of Croatia, as well as non-repetition in the future." Following the
Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
, Croatia joined other countries in spring 2022 in declaring a number of Russian diplomats ''Persona non grata''. In March 2022, the Government of the Russian Federation listed Croatia, along with the other EU states, as one of "foreign states and territories that commit unfriendly actions against Russia, its companies, and citizens".


Economic ties

According to
Croatian National Bank The Croatian National Bank ( hr, Hrvatska narodna banka or HNB; ) is the central bank of the Republic of Croatia. HNB was established by the Constitution of Croatia which was passed by the Parliament of Croatia on 21 December 1990. Its main res ...
's data, Russia has invested €390.5 million in Croatia between 1993 and 2016, while Croatia invested €101 million in Russia in the same period. Croatia exports mainly food, drugs, shaving products, flasks for metal foundry and telecommunications equipment, while Russia exports oil, oil and petroleum gases, accounting 90 percent of imports from Russia to Croatia, mineral and chemical fertilizers, aluminum wrought and boilers for steam production. In 2008, according to Croatia's official statistics, trade between the countries totalled at 3.38bln US dollars. Due to mutual sanctions between the European Union and Russia introduced in 2014, the trade between Russia and Croatia declined in 2015 for 40%. According to the
Federal Customs Service of Russia The Federal Customs Service of Russia (russian: Федеральная таможенная служба Российской Федерации, ''Federalnaya tamozhennaya sluzhba Rossiskoy Federatsii''; abbreviated , ''FTS Rossii'') is a Russ ...
, the trade turnover between Croatia and Russia amounted $1.23 billion with Russian exports decreasing by 35%, amounting $988.4 million, and Croatian exports amounting $238 million, decreasing by 43.7%. In 2016, trade between two countries amounted c. $810 million.Межгосударственные отношения России и Хорватии
RIA Novosti, 18 October 2017.
In 2017, trade between two countries amounted $807 million, and in the first half of 2018 rose by 64%. In March 2017, more than a third of the debt incurred by
Agrokor Agrokor () was a conglomerate, largely centered in agribusiness, with headquarters in Zagreb, Croatia. Founded in 1976 as a flower grower, it became a joint stock company in 1989, with 100 percent ownership held by founder Ivica Todorić. It grea ...
, Croatia's largest privately owned company that was put into state-run administration in April, was said to be held by Russia's two biggest banks, the state-owned
Sberbank PJSC Sberbank (russian: Сбербанк, initially a contraction of russian: сберегательный банк, translit=sberegatelnyy bank, lit=savings bank, link=no) is a Russian majority state-owned banking and financial services compa ...
and
VTB Bank VTB Bank (; formerly known as ''Vneshtorgbank'', , lit. 'International Trade Bank') is a Russian majority state-owned bank headquartered in various federal districts of Russia; its legal address is registered in St. Petersburg; as of 202 ...
. The Russian ambassador to Croatia Anvar Azimov's public threat to Agrokor in February 2017 was seen by Croatian and regional analysts as a sign that Agrokor's problems had a geopolitical dimension and were being instrumentalized by Russia to expand its influence and exert pressure.Tycoon’s Balkan Empire Unravels in 60 Days of Market Panic
Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician and m ...
, 23 March 2017.
JESU LI RUSI ZNALI ZA CRNE PROGNOZE O AGROKORU? Već kod kupnje Mercatora tri su slovenska ekonomista upozorila: koncern će za 3 godine doživjeti slom
Jutarnji list, 1 April 2017 ( Borut Šuklje: „Jer, odgovor na to pitanje daje i najbitniji odgovor, zašto se to s Agrokorom dogodilo baš sada i što je stvarni razlog potpuno neobičnog nastupa najviše rangiranog i povezanog ruskog ambasadora Anvara Sarvanoviča Azimova. Govorim o njegovu komentiranju poslovnih ili bankarskih odnosa između banke i klijenta i decidiranom stavu da neće dati nove kredite. Ambasadorov nastup nije bio slučajan, to je bilo dobro pripremljeno i tempirano izlaganje. Poslije tog nastupa, sa svim oznakama države, i na ambasadorovoj uniformi i u prostoriji gdje je održao izlaganje, bankarsko pitanje kreditnih linija postalo je političko pitanje, koje s kreditima kao takvim više nema neke značajne veze. Sada je to postalo više nego privredno ili financijsko pitanje, a to je pitanje geostrateških odnosa u regiji.“)
At an extradition hearing in the London court on 7 November 2017, Agrokor's owner
Ivica Todorić Ivica Todorić (; born 2 January 1951) is a Croatian businessman. Until June 2017, he was the owner and chairman of the board of Agrokor, the largest privately owned company in Croatia. The operations of Agrokor are focused on two core businesses ...
’s lawyer stated that the criminal case against his client was linked to “perceived Russian influence” and ″ar sein part from the involvement of Russian banks and financing.”Agrokor owner fights extradition from UK to Croatia over alleged fraud
Reuters, 7 November 2017.


Tourism

In 2012, over 203,000 Russian citizens visited Croatia. After Croatia joined the EU in 2013, it was forced to introduce visas for Russian, Ukrainian and Turkish nationals, which consequentially led to the decline in arrivals of Russian tourists. In 2016, according to the Russian statistics, the number totaled upward of 55,000 persons.


Resident diplomatic missions

* Croatia has an embassy in
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
. * Russia has an embassy in
Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...
.


See also

*
Russia–European Union relations Russian–European Union relations are the international relations between the European Union (EU) and Russia. Russia borders five EU member states: Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland; the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad is surrounded ...
* Croatia–Ukraine relations


Notes


Sources

*


External links


Documents on the Croatia–Russia relationship from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

List of international treaties and international acts signed between the Republic of Croatia and the Russian Federation

Embassy of Russia in Zagreb

Embassy of Croatia in Moscow


{{DEFAULTSORT:Croatia-Russia relations
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
Bilateral relations of Russia Political history of Croatia