
“The realization of the gasification project of the oil refinery in Brod was welcomed and the partners expressed their readiness to continue the cooperation”, it was announced after the meeting of the delegations of Croatia and the Russian Federation. We recall that this project was done under the guise of darkness, without the consent of BiH institutions.
“Croatia is one of the main partners in the European Union for the Russian Federation,” Russian Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev said in Zagreb on Friday.
Speaking at the tenth session of the Croatian-Russian Intergovernmental Commission for Economic and Scientific-Technical Co-operation in Zagreb, Patrushev said the two countries “co-operate mostly in the fields of energy, infrastructure, health and education and have a high potential for cooperation in agriculture”.
“During this year, trade between Russia and Croatia has doubled compared to the previous period, so we can say that we have great potential for further improvement of relations,” said Russian Minister Patrushev.
Tomislav Coric, Croatian Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, said that co-operation between the two countries was discussed at the meeting in Zagreb.
“A number of other areas were also discussed, in the first place for trade cooperation. In this sense, in 2022, in the framework of the celebration of the 30th anniversary of its independence, the Republic of Croatia will organize a major Economic Forum in the Russian Federation, where we will agree on the most concrete steps for trade. “What makes us happy is that today we agreed that there is a good potential for deepening cooperation between our two countries and I believe that we will achieve this in the next period”, said Minister Coric after the meeting of the commission, which was published on the website of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of the Republic of Croatia.
It was also discussed about cooperation in the field of clean and sustainable technologies and renewable energy sources. However, what is particularly interesting for BiH is the part related to the Russian Brod refinery.
Recall that at the end of March this year, under the guise of darkness, Croatian companies, without the consent of the state of BiH, laid pipelines under the Sava river for the Russian refinery in Brod. They were set up by Crodux company, based on an agreement between the Government of the Republic of Croatia and the Government of Republika Srpska for the “gasification” of the Brod Oil Refinery, most of which is owned by the Russian Zarubrezhneft. The state authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina have never given their consent to the construction of this pipeline.
“The Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina takes care of the execution of international agreements through the competent institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and entities,” reads the Law on the procedure for concluding and executing international agreements.
According to the same law, all international agreements and contracts must be ratified by the BiH Parliament and Presidency. In the present case, none of this has been done. The Croatian company installed gas pipelines across the border, but BiH border police did not stop them. The pipes were laid at dawn on March 25th. On the same day, the Republika Srpska Energy Regulatory Commission issued a permit to the Brod Oil Refinery to conduct “natural gas trade and supply” activities. The state of BiH is completely excluded from this interstate project. The protocol for the gasification of the Russian refinery in Brod was signed in November 2017 by the then Minister of Environmental Protection and Energy of the Republic of Croatia and the Minister of Energy and Mining of the Republic of Serbia, Petar Djokic.
“The carrier of the project on the Croatian side will be the company Crodux, and on BiH side the oil refinery Brod. This investment is worth about three million euros. It is important for this region and shows the focus of our governments on the cooperation that is very much needed in the region “, said the then Minister of the RS Government Petar Đokić.
Crodux is a company that until January this year was owned by a Croatian General, Ivan Cermak. The main owner of the Brod oil refinery is Russia’s Zarubrezhneft.
“Today, the area for gasification of the Brod oil refinery is opened. From the perspective of the Republic of Croatia, the possibility is open to finally resolve the issue of air quality in the area of Slavonski Brod. The two governments have opened the door to co-operation for the two private companies. This is a win-win situation for both sides”, said Minister Coric in November 2017.
Today, Coric is the Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of the Republic of Croatia.