The agreement was reached in the Chinese city of Hangzhou on Thursday during a meeting between Istria County head Valter Flego and leaders of Zhejiang province. Flego said he was impressed by everything he had seen there. "They are obviously the fastest-growing economy. It's up to us to adapt to such a trend, simplify our procedures and become more attractive," he said.
Flego said that Istria would make extra effort to attract more Chinese tourists. "We have to take a major step, both we as the public sector and the private sector, because there is obviously unfathomable potential here. We need capital and investors, and again we should make a first step by preparing projects. I'm sure that Chinese investors will be motivated to come to Croatia," he said.
Flego announced that he would make initial moves as early as next week when he would meet for talks with the Tourism Council and chief executives of all hotel companies in Istria. "We need more training in order to become better hosts to Chinese tourists," he added.
Pula mayor Boris Miletic said that Croatia needed investments and new jobs, while on the other hand China wanted to expand its business operations and invest in Europe. "Now it's up to us to make the most of it. We can see how open they are towards Central and Eastern Europe, which is a great chance for Croatia," he stressed.
Miletic said that Pula had several tourism development projects and expressed his confidence that the state would have understanding for such investments. "We have a disused military airfield and a possibility for the construction of a large logistics centre. All that would lift up the economy and provide employment for our people," the mayor of Pula said.
Zhejiang province in southeast China is one of the country's richest regions, its leading industries being the electromechanical, textile, chemical, food and construction industries. The province's governor, Li Quiang, expressed an interest in investing in Istria, requesting specific proposals in which sectors Chinese companies could invest.