Republic of Croatia
Brazil recognized Croatia's independence on January 24, 1992, and diplomatic relations were formally established on December 23 of the same year. Croatia has had an Embassy in Brasilia since 1997, and Brazil opened an Embassy in Zagreb in 2006.
Croatia and Brazil have coordinated positions on issues of the multilateral agenda, supporting each other on several occasions. Croatia has expressed its support for Brazil's aspiration for a permanent seat on a reformed UN Security Council.
Croatian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mate Granić and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Vesna Kurelec visited Brazil in 1997 and 2001, respectively. In 2003, the Minister of Culture, Gilberto Gil, visited Zagreb and the Honorary Consulate of Croatia was established in São Paulo – the city where most of the Croatian community in Brazil lives.
Brazil and Croatia have held four bilateral political consultation meetings, namely, two in Rio de Janeiro and Brasília, in 2005 and 2010; and two in Zagreb, in 2007 and 2013. Croatian authorities also attended the 1st Open Government Partnership Conference and the Rio + 20 Conference in 2012. In 2013, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio de Aguiar Patriota paid an official visit to Zagreb. In 2010 Brazil and Croatia created, through a memorandum of understanding, a bilateral mechanism for political consultations. The first meeting of the mechanism took place in Rio de Janeiro, on May 29, 2010. The most recent political consultation meeting was held in Zagreb in 2013.
The then Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota visited Zagreb on July 1, 2013. This was the first visit of a foreign dignitary to Croatia after its accession to the European Union. It was also the first visit of a Brazilian Foreign Minister to Croatia. Minister Patriota was received by the then President of the Republic, Ivo Josipović, and met with his Croatian counterpart, Vesna Pusić, and the Minister of Economy, Ivan Vrdoljak. The meetings underscored the excellence of relations between the two countries, both at bilateral and multilateral levels, and stimulated both economic cooperation, especially in the areas of energy and shipbuilding, and an exchange of views on the global political agenda.
In February 2015, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Vesna Pusić made an official visit to Brasília. On the occasion, she was received by the acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and by the then Minister of Defense, Jaques Wagner.
An important component of the bilateral relationship is the Croatia-Brazil Friendship Group of the Croatian Parliament and its counterpart in the Brazilian Congress. The Brazilian side sent two parliamentary delegations to Zagreb (in 2004 and 2008).
In the scope of bilateral trade, there was a flow of $ 110 million in 2019, with a surplus for Brazil of $ 70.1 million. Brazil main exports to Croatia are sugar, coffee, and tobacco, while its main imports are boilers, valves, and medicines.
Chronology of bilateral relations
2013 The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio de Aguiar Patriota, visits Zagreb (July 1-2)
2006 Opening of the resident Embassy of Brazil in Zagreb
2003 Opening of the Honorary Consulate of Croatia in São Paulo
1997 Opening of the resident Embassy of Croatia in Brasília
1997 The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mate Granić, visits Brazil
1992 Brazil recognizes Croatia’s independence and establishes diplomatic relations