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DE RUEHVB #0109/01 0581437
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 271437Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY ZAGREB
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9036
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RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ZAGREB 000109 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR EUR/SCE, EUR/PPD, EUR/RPM AND EUR/ERA 
OSD FOR POPOVICH 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV HR ECON
SUBJECT: ZAGREB WEEKLY ACTIVITY REPORT - FEBRUARY 27, 2009 
 
¶1.  AMBASSADOR'S SPEECH ON NEW ADMINISTRATION DRAWS LARGE 
AUDIENCE AT AMCHAM: 
Ambassador Bradtke delivered a speech entitled "New 
Directions in the Obama Administration" at the American 
Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hotel Esplanade in 
Zagreb. Speaking to over 150 members of the business 
community, the Croatian government, the diplomatic corps and 
the media, the Ambassador highlighted the foreign and 
economic policies of the Obama administration, placing them 
within the context of Croatian-American relations.  Our 
partners at the American Chamber of Commerce characterized 
the event as their most successful luncheon ever.  The event 
generated broad coverage in the Croatian press. (KWetzel) 
 
¶2.  (U) GoC ISSUES ANTI-RECESSION MEASURES: 
The GoC presented a program of anti-recession measures on 
Thursday.  The government intends to battle the recession by, 
among other things, renegotiating the budget (by the end of 
March), subsidizing loans for housing purchases, 
strengthening tourism, shortening the issuance of permits to 
potential foreign investors to 45 days and maintaining the 
standard of living for those most at risk.  Ministers will 
meet on Friday to consider what each respective Ministry can 
do to save money.  PM Sanader said "the goal of the 
government is to maintain economic activity, jobs and 
citizens' standard of living."  He also stated that now is 
not the time for raising interest rates nor is it time for 
certain groups to try to use the crisis to increase their own 
wealth, rather a time for responsibility and solidarity. 
(DMatijas) 
 
¶3.  (U) TRAINING EVENT FOR JOINT OMLT SCHEDULED TO DEPLOY TO 
AFGHANISTAN IN MARCH: 
February 16-20, the Djakovo training area saw an out-of-cycle 
event on ISAF Lessons Learned for the joint 
Croatian/Minnesota National Guard OMLT.  All feedback was 
very positive, on everything from theater-level 
organizational structure down to individual tasks that can 
make the difference between life and death.  The trainers, 
themselves from the Minnesota National Guard, were able to 
use a question and answer format with slides and photos to 
steer the discussion.  Croatian veterans of previous OMLT and 
other ISAF rotations added to the value of the event in 
preparing the OMLT to deploy in late March.  (CDavis) 
 
¶4.  (U) DCM SPEAKS ABOUT WOMEN IN DIPLOMACY: 
Deputy Chief of Mission engaged members of the Center for 
Women's Studies in a dynamic presentation on the history and 
role of women in diplomacy.  After a discussion of examples 
from the United States and the State Department, conversation 
widened to include the experiences of other countries and 
Croatia.  Members of the audience included representatives of 
the diplomatic corps, the Croatian Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs and European Integration, NGO's, students, an 
actress, and a web portal journalist.  The lecture provided 
the audience with valuable experience from the U.S., 
encouraging women in Croatia to take a greater role in 
political and social life in Croatia.  (MCrnjakovic, KWetzel) 
 
¶5.  (U) CROATIA'S TRADE DEFICIT GREW TO HRK 81.2 
BILLION($16.6 BILLION) IN 2008: 
Official figures show Croatia's trade deficit grew from HRK 
72.1 billion ($13.5 billion) in 2007 to HRK 81.2 billion 
($16.6 billion) in 2008, a 12.6 percent increase in kuna 
terms. Coverage of imports by exports fell from 47.9 percent 
in 2007 to 45.9 percent in 2008. Monthly levels of imports 
and exports rose and fell throughout much of the year, until 
the final four months when both fell, imports more sharply 
than exports. The economic crisis presumably influenced this 
end-of-year drop. However, the fact that monthly levels 
followed a similar pattern in 2007, including a drop in the 
fourth quarter, indicates a cyclical component as well. 
(SLitke) 
 
¶6.  (U) PLUNGE IN REAL ESTATE MARKET WORRISOME SIGNAL FOR 
ECONOMY: 
Sales in January were down 70 to 80 percent over January 
2008, according to the Real Estate Association, due to 
shortage of credit and worries over rising interest rates. 
The dismal numbers are a bad sign for the construction 
industry.  (Note: we have noticed an unusually high number of 
bidders for a few small-scale construction projects the 
embassy has tendered - another sign perhaps of the poor state 
of the construction sector.) (DWestfall) 
 
¶7.  (U)  MILITARY-T0-MILITARY PLANNING CONFERENCE USED AS A 
REGIONAL MODEL: 
The Bilateral Affairs Office of the Office of Defense 
 
ZAGREB 00000109  002 OF 002 
 
 
Cooperation - Croatia held the annual Military-to-Military 
Planning Conference February 9-13, 2009.  Representatives 
from USAREUR, USAFE, EUCOM J5, Minnesota National Guard 
joined the GoC in planning for Fiscal Year 2010. 
Twenty-three event proposals were discussed and ranked based 
upon support assets and scope of the Mil 2 Mil program with 
the top fifteen expected to be funded by EUCOM in 2010.  The 
conference was a great success and EUCOM is using it as a 
teaching tool to others in the region.  (CDavis) 
 
¶8.  Public Affairs Promotes Educational Exchange: 
APAO and an educational advisor from the Institute for the 
Development of Education spoke to 80 high school students at 
the Karlovac Library about university study in the United 
States.  The majority of the students indicated they would go 
to the U.S. if they were able to study abroad.  The institute 
gave an overview of applying to U.S. colleges and 
universities while the APAO presented his own experience, 
offering practical information about various aspects of 
college life in the United States.  APAO gave a short 
interview for local television encouraging Croatian students 
to explore the possibilities of studying in the United 
States.  (KWetzel) 
BRADTKE