Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia ), is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe. Its coast lies entirely on the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro to the southeast, and shares a maritime border with Italy to the west and southwest. Its capital and largest city, Zagreb, forms one of the country's primary subdivisions, with twenty counties. The country spans 56,594 square kilometres, and has a population of nearly 3.9 million.
The economy of Croatia is a high-income, service-based social market economy with the tertiary sector accounting for 70% of total gross domestic product (GDP). Croatia has a fully integrated and globalized economy. Croatia's road to globalization started as soon as the country gained independence, with tourism as one of the country's core industries dependent on the global market. Croatia joined the World Trade Organization in 2000, NATO in 2009, has been a member of the European Union since 1 July 2013, and it finally joined the Eurozone and the Schengen Area on 1 January 2023. Croatia is also negotiating membership of OECD organization, which it hopes to join by 2025. Further integration into the EU structures will continue in the coming years, including participation in ESA, CERN as well as EEA membership in the next 24 months.
The kuna was the currency of Croatia from 30 May 1994 until 31 December 2022. It was replaced by the euro in 2023. The kuna was subdivided into 100 lipa. It was issued by the Croatian National Bank and the coins were minted by the Croatian Mint.
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football matches. It is governed by the Croatian Football Federation (HNS), the governing body for football in Croatia. It is a member of UEFA in Europe and FIFA in global competitions. The team's colours reference two national symbols: the Croatian checkerboard and the country's tricolour. They are colloquially referred to as the Vatreni ('Blazers') and Kockasti.
Jadrolinija is a Croatian sea shipping company. It is a state-owned company and its main mission is connecting Croatian islands to the mainland by operating regular passenger and cargo transport services. The company mainly operates car ferries on domestic routes along the Croatian coast, as well as international routes across the Adriatic Sea to Italy.
The A1 motorway is the longest motorway in Croatia, spanning 476.3 kilometers (296.0 mi). As it connects the nation's capital Zagreb to the second largest city Split, the motorway represents a major north–south transportation corridor in Croatia and a significant part of the Adriatic–Ionian motorway. Apart from Zagreb and Split, the A1 motorway runs near a number of major Croatian cities, provides access to several national parks or nature parks, world heritage sites, and numerous resorts, especially along the Adriatic Coast. National significance of the motorway is reflected through its positive economic impact on the cities and towns it connects as well as its importance to tourism in Croatia.
The A3 motorway is a major motorway in Croatia spanning 306.5 kilometres (190.5 mi). The motorway connects Zagreb, the nation's capital, to the Slavonia region and a number of cities along the Sava River. It represents a major east–west transportation corridor in Croatia and a significant part of the Pan-European Corridor X, serving as a transit route between the European Union states and the Balkans. Apart from Zagreb, where the A3 motorway comprises a considerable part of the Zagreb bypass, the motorway runs near a number of significant Croatian cities.
The A5 motorway is a motorway in Croatia spanning 83.6 kilometres (51.9 mi). It connects Osijek, the largest city in Slavonia region, to the Croatian motorway network at the Sredanci interchange of the A3 motorway. The A5 represents a significant north–south transportation corridor in Croatia and is a part of the European route E73. The A5 motorway route also follows Pan-European corridor Vc. In addition to Osijek, the A5 motorway also passes near Đakovo and Beli Manastir.
The Croatian World Games are an Olympics-style amateur multi-sport competition pitting autochthonous Croat communities in Croatia and neighbouring nations against each other and Croatian diaspora communities, representing countries they live in. The event is organized by the Croatian Olympic Committee and the Croatian World Congress. It is also known under the unofficial name Crolympics, with the motto "Olympic games with Croatian sign".
Highways in Croatia are the main transport network in Croatia. The Croatian classification includes several classes of highways:
Croatia and Iran established diplomatic relations on April 18, 1992 when Iran became the 7th world-, 1st Asian- and 1st Muslim dominated- country to recognize the newly independent Croatia. Croatia has an embassy in Tehran while Iran has an embassy and a cultural center in Zagreb. Relations among two countries are described as good and friendly.
The D12 is a partially built state road in central Croatia that is intended to connect the Vrbovec 2 interchange with Bjelovar, Virovitica and end at the border crossing Terezino Polje. Its planned length is 86.5 kilometres (53.7 mi).
Energy in Croatia describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Croatia.
The Port of Split is a port in the central Dalmatian city of Split, Croatia. The port was originally a trading post originally established by Greek settlers from the island of Vis and subsequently taken over by the Romans. The port thrived through the Middle Ages, but it suffered a decline in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when the Port of Rijeka took over as the primary trading and shipping outlet of the region. The decline was also attributed to the decline of the Ottoman Empire, a traditional market for the Port of Split, and the growing domination of Austrian Empire.
Ivica Todorić is a Croatian businessman. Until June 2017, he was the owner and chairman of the board of Agrokor, the largest privately owned company in Croatia. The operations of Agrokor are focused on two core businesses: manufacturing of food and drinks, and retail.
Croatia has a universal health care system, whose roots can be traced back to the Hungarian-Croatian Parliament Act of 1891, providing a form of mandatory insurance of all factory workers and craftsmen. The population is covered by a basic health insurance plan provided by statute and optional insurance and administered by the Croatian Health Insurance Fund. In 2012, annual compulsory healthcare related expenditures reached 21.0 billion kuna.
Veljko Mršić is a Croatian professional basketball coach and former player, who is currently the head coach of the Río Breogán of the Spanish Liga ACB.
The Key of Croatia is a populist political party in Croatia, formed out of an anti-eviction group of the same name. The party changed its name on 21 May 2022 from its then name Human Shield the group opposes foreclosures by occupying property and forming a "human shield", hence the name. The party was founded on 2 June 2011.
The Croatian euro coins are a set of euro coins currently being minted by the Croatian Mint since July 2022. They are the official euro coins with the national motif of Croatia.
€3.2 billion (2022) [1] 