Croatia with CEFTA customs after EU joining? - No production rellocation to Serbia or Bosnia and Herzegovina

Straight after summer break, the EU will, on behalf of Croatia, will initiate negotiations with CEFTA countries, i.e. with Croatian neighbours, on preserving zero or lowest customs prices of Croatian products after it’s joining EU July 1, 2013.

Croatian Vice Prime Minister, Neven Mimica, accountable for internal, external and European affairs, said for Croatian radio-television that all companies, in food industry primarily, which were announcin gproduction relocation to Bosnia and Herzegovina or Serbia, after Croatia joined EU and CEFTA rules ceased to be in force, would not have to do that.

Export of Croatian food producers to the countries region-wide, mostly because of zero or the lowest customs rate within CEFTA, totals 600 million kunas (some 80 million euros) but, according to current rules, it is questionable because of joining EU.

Mimica explained that mandate of the European Commission for Croatia to keep benefits was negotiated with Brussels, even to try to provide more than that.

- Mandate includes commitment for negotiation to end as soon as possible, including thus commitment to agree on temporary appliance as of July1, if all protocols on expansion to be achieved are not ratified until Croatia enters EU, so that Croatian would not suffer lest convenient commercial position for some time – Mimica said.