Chile and Croatia hold political consultations and make progress on several agreements

The undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, Gloria de la Fuente, led today in Zagreb, together with the Secretary of State of the Croatian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Frano Matušić, the X Meeting of Political Consultations between Chile and Croatia, where they reviewed the most important issues of the bilateral relationship, in addition to addressing multilateral and regional issues.

During the meeting, it was announced that a memorandum of understanding in the tourism sector will be signed between the two countries, the goal of which is to continue promoting and developing cooperation in this matter. In addition, significant progress was made on a Working Holiday agreement, which is expected to be signed soon. Other agreements that are in the final stages of negotiation and that reflect the dynamism and excellent momentum of the bilateral relationship were also highlighted.

They also discussed the recent visit of the President of Croatia, Zoran Milanovic, to Chile in last December, and the bilateral meeting he held with the President of the Republic, Gabriel Boric, during which both presidents committed to continue strengthening ties for the benefit of the citizens of both countries.

Regarding the economic and trade aspect, the authorities agreed that the Advanced Framework Agreement, modernization of the Association Agreement between Chile and the European Union, will be significant for generating mechanisms for economic collaboration between the two countries. The undersecretary thanked Croatia for its support to this instrument, whose political closure is scheduled for December 2022.

In addition, the Feminist Foreign Policy promoted by Chile, whose purpose is to reinforce gender equality as a principle and a relevant factor in the formulation and implementation of Chile's international actions, was also discussed. Croatia expressed their interest in learning more about the experience of our country and indicated that they have already made progress in gender equality.

Regarding the environment, they shared initiatives and policies that are being promoted in favor of ocean protection. In this regard, the undersecretary indicated that Chile is seeking to host the secretariat of the agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdictions (BBNJ).

They also discussed Chile's National Lithium Strategy, presented by President Boric last April, with the aim of developing a sustainable industry and adding value to the entire production chain, as well as promoting technological innovation and production chains around this mineral.

In the green hydrogen field, the undersecretary noted that Chile updated its climate commitments and goals, aiming to become a carbon neutral country by 2050. To this end, a National Green Hydrogen Strategy was launched at the end of 2020, defining the first guidelines for the promotion of the industry in the country, establishing the bases and the definition of medium and long term objectives. In this sense, she commented that Chile is interested in generating bilateral alliances to continue advancing in the matter.

At the multilateral level, they discussed Chile's current role as president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (Ecosoc), the work being done in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and committed to continue collaborating collaboratively to carry out joint actions.