ZAGREB, June 6 -- President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker started his first official visit to Croatia on Thursday in Dubrovnik where he was received by Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic.
Plenkovic, along with the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs and the Minister of Regional Development and EU funds, welcomed Juncker at Dubrovnik Airport that is under reconstruction.
Co-funded by the European Union, the reconstruction project is one of the biggest construction sites in the country, and the hosts presented the progress of the work to Junker.
Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said that the project will significantly increase traffic capacities in Dubrovnik City and its county, and thereby raise the quality of tourism in the southernmost part of Croatia.
Plenkovic also informed Juncker about the construction of the EU-funded Peljesac Bridge, telling Juncker that project contracted by a Chinese company is making great progress.
Peljesac Bridge is less than one hour away from Dubrovnik. Once finished, it will connect the Croatian mainland with the southern part of the country and bypass a short strip of neighboring Bosnian coast that interrupt the continuity of Croatian territory.
The project is worth over 400 million euros (485 million U.S. dollars), with the EU funding 85 percent of the total cost. A Chinese consortium led by China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) won the bid for the construction of the first phase of the bridge and its access road early last year.
After Dubrovnik, Juncker is going to the Croatian capital Zagreb on Friday and meet again with Plenkovic. The Croatian Prime Minister announced that he and Juncker would talk about the upcoming meeting of the European Council, Croatian presidency of the EU and enlargement policy of the EU.
Juncker will also meet with Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic in Zagreb before wrapping up his two-day visit.