Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic Wikimedia Commons – Free for commercial use

ZAGREB, March 5, 2022 – Croatia should “pay great attention” to Gulf countries which are big investors, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said in Dubai on Saturday during a visit to Expo 2022. .

“This part of the world, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, these are all countries that we should pay a lot of attention to,” he said, adding that they are investing a lot “ thanks to their oil fields”.

Plenković is visiting the UAE with Finance Minister Zdravko Marić, Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman and Tourism Minister Nikolina Brnjac. They will try to attract Arab investment during the Dubai-Croatia Business Forum scheduled for Sunday.

Plenković said it was a good opportunity to establish contacts with potential partners to increase exchanges. “I am confident that it will return to the numbers we had before the COVID-19 pandemic, around $95 million, and that cooperation can be strengthened.”

He said fast-growing economies such as the United Arab Emirates, including Dubai as a “centre of sustainable development, tourism and innovation” and Abu Dhabi, where 90% of the country’s oil fields are located, “have their role in the development of economic cooperation with Croatia.”

Plenković met with Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates with whom he visited the Croatian pavilion at Expo 2022, while on Sunday he is due to meet US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.