Croatia

• Mediterranean and continental;
• continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold winters;
• mild winters, dry summers along coast

• air pollution (from metallurgical plants) and resulting acid rain is damaging the forests;
• coastal pollution from industrial and domestic waste;
• widespread casualties and destruction of infrastructure in border areas affected by civil strife

party to:

Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification

0-14 years:

18% (male 396,484; female 376,267)

15-64 years:

67% (male 1,445,101; female 1,420,159)

65 years and over:

15% (male 238,853; female 405,352) (2000 est.)

at birth:

1.07 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.02 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.59 male(s)/female

total population:

0.94 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

noun:

Croat(s)

adjective:

Croatian

conventional long form:

Republic of Croatia

conventional short form:

Croatia

local long form:

Republika Hrvatska

local short form:

Hrvatska

chief of state:

President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)

head of government:

• Prime Minister Ivica RACAN (since 27 January 2000);
• Deputy Prime Ministers Goran GRANIC (since NA February 2000), Zeljka ANTUNOVIC (since NA February 2000), Slavko LINIC (since NA February 2000)

cabinet:

Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and approved by the president and the House of Representatives

elections:

• president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
• election last held 7 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2005);
• prime minister appointed by the president

election results:

Stjepan MESIC elected president; percent of vote - Stjepan MESIC (HNS) 56%, Drazen BUDISA (HSLS) 44%

note: government coalition - SDP, HSLS, HSS, LP, HNS, IDS

• Supreme Court, judges appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the House of Representatives;
• Constitutional Court, judges appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the House of Representatives

• Action of the Social Democrats of Croatia or ASH [Silvije DEGEN];
• Alliance of Croatian Coast and Mountains Department or PGS [Luciano SUSANJ];
• Croatian Christian Democratic Union or HKDU [Marko VESELICA, president];
• Croatian Democratic Independents or HND [Josip MANOLIC, president];
• Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Vladimir SEKS, acting president];
• Croatian Party of Rights or HSP [Anto DJAPIC];
• Croatian Party of Rights 1861 or HSP 1861 [Dobrislav PARAGA];
• Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Zlatko TOMCIC];
• Croatian People's Party or HNS [Radimir CACIC, president];
• Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Drazen BUDISA, president];
• Independent Democratic Serb Party or SDSS [Vojislav STANIMIROVIC];
• Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC];
• Liberal Party or LP [Vlado GOTOVAC, president];
• Party of Democratic Action or SDA [Semso TANKOVIC];
• Primorje Gorski Kotar Alliance [leader NA];
• Serbian National Party or SNS [Milan DJUKIC];
• Slanvonsko-Baranja Croatian Party or SBHS [Damir JURIC];
• Social Democratic Party of Croatia or SDP [Ivica RACAN]

note: the Social Democratic Party or SDP and the Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS formed a coalition as did the HSS, HNS, LP, and IDS, which together defeated the Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ in the 2000 lower house parliamentary election

chief of mission:

Ambassador Miomir ZUZUL

chancery:

2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 588-5899

FAX:

[1] (202) 588-8936

consulate(s) general:

Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador William D. MONTGOMERY

embassy:

Andrije Hebranga 2, Zagreb

mailing address:

use street address

telephone:

[385] (1) 455-55-00

FAX:

[385] (1) 455-85-85

lowest 10%:

NA%

highest 10%:

NA%

domestic:

• reconstruction plan calls for replacement of all analog circuits with digital and enlarging the network;
• a backup will be included in the plan for the main trunk

international:

• digital international service is provided through the main switch in Zagreb;
• Croatia participates in the TEL project which consists of two fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik;
• Croatia is also investing in ADRIA 1, a joint fiber-optic project with Germany, Albania, and Greece (2000)

total:

2,296 km

standard gauge:

2,296 km 1.435-m gauge (983 km electrified)

note: some lines remain inoperative or not in use; disrupted by territorial dispute (1997)

total:

27,840 km

paved:

23,497 km (including 330 km of expressways)

unpaved:

4,343 km (1998 est.)

• crude oil 670 km;
• petroleum products 20 km;
• natural gas 310 km (1992);
• note - under repair following territorial dispute

total:

65 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 818,887 GRT/1,232,803 DWT

ships by type:

bulk 15, cargo 25, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 5, container 5, liquified gas 1, multi-functional large load carrier 3, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off 4, short-sea passenger 3 (1999 est.)

• Eastern Slavonia, which was held by ethnic Serbs during the ethnic conflict between the Croats and the Serbs, was returned to Croatian control by the UN Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia on 15 January 1998;
• Croatia and Italy made progress toward resolving a bilateral issue dating from World War II over property and ethnic minority rights;
• significant progress has been made with Slovenia toward resolving a maritime border dispute over direct access to the sea in the Adriatic;
• Serbia and Montenegro is disputing Croatia's claim to the Prevlaka Peninsula in southern Croatia because it controls the entrance to Boka Kotorska in Montenegro;
• Prevlaka is currently under observation by the UN Military Observer Mission in Prevlaka (UNMOP)

• transit point along the Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe;
• a minor transit point for maritime shipments of South American cocaine bound for Western Europe [Country Listing] [ The World Factbook Home]