Croatian Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic, left, presses the button to remove the fence at the Bregana border crossing between Croatia and Slovenia, with his Slovenian counterpart Sanja Ajanovic Hovnik, early Sunday morning.
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Croatian Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic, left, presses the button to remove the fence at the Bregana border crossing between Croatia and Slovenia, with his Slovenian counterpart Sanja Ajanovic Hovnik, early Sunday morning.
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ZAGREB, Croatia — At midnight on Saturday, Croatia switched to a single euro, the euro, and removed dozens of border checkpoints to join the world’s largest passport-free travel zone. gender.
It marks a new beginning for the small Balkan nation of 4 million people that gained international attention three decades ago as the site of a devastating war that has left nearly a quarter of its economy This country is ruined.
Joining Europe’s passport-free Schengen area means Croatians will now be among the nearly 420 million people who will be able to travel freely within the 27 member states without needing a passport to work. or entertainment.
Adopting the euro would also bring Croatia benefits stemming from deeper financial ties with 19 other currency users and with the European Central Bank. It will also make travel and business easier, eliminating the hassle of currency exchange for Croatians going abroad and for the tens of thousands of tourists who visit their country every year. to work or to enjoy the beautiful Adriatic coast.
As revelers from across Croatia took to the streets to welcome the New Year, the country’s Interior Minister, Davor Bozinovic, was at the Bregana border crossing with Slovenia to wish the best of luck to the last travelers. same passport check there.
Slovenia is part of the Schengen area and has been tasked with protecting its external borders since 2007.
This task will now be taken up by Croatia, which will continue to impose strict border controls on its eastern border with its non-EU neighbors Bosnia, Serbia and Montenegro.
“We have opened our doors to Europe without borders. This goes beyond removing border controls, it’s the ultimate affirmation of our European identity,” Bozinovic said after witnessing The ramps at the Bregana border crossing were removed for the last time with Slovenian companions. his counterpart Sanja Ajanovic-Hovnik.
A car driver drives continuously at the Bregana border between Croatia and Slovenia, early on Sunday.
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A car driver drives continuously at the Bregana border between Croatia and Slovenia, early on Sunday.
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Stipica Mandic, a 72-year-old professional driver, shared his feelings and said that being able to move freely without having to wait long at border crossings is his personal dream and the reason why he left the meal. New Year’s Eve party at home and drive 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) to Bregana to see it come true.
“I’ve spent years of my life waiting at border checkpoints, so I came here tonight to witness this moment, the moment I won’t wait any longer,” he said. .
At the same time, shortly after midnight, the finance minister and central bank governor of Croatia walked to an ATM in the capital Zagreb, to withdraw euro banknotes and hand over Croatia’s old national currency, the kuna, history in a symbolic way.
Croatia joined the EU in 2013, but in order to adopt the euro, the country must meet a series of strict economic conditions, including a stable exchange rate, controlled inflation and rational public spending. physical.
The Croatian kuna and the euro will be dual-use for cash payments in just 14 days, but when people shop after the holiday in January, they will only receive euros in change.
The New Year’s Eve developments have been described by many Croatians as proof that their country has completed its difficult journey to the European mainstream 31 years after the war for independence from Serb-dominated Yugoslavia, in 20,000 people died and hundreds of thousands were displaced.
“We’ve dreamed of this and I’m glad we lived to see it happen,” said Zlatko Leko, a resident of the southern port city of Split in the country. “I hope this means we are finally part of Europe.”
Elenmari Pletikos-Solon of Zagreb agrees: “We are already part of Europe, but removing borders and switching to the euro is the ultimate confirmation that we are fully integrated” with the Union Europe.
“I’m really happy. It will make many things in our lives so much easier,” she added.
