The leaders of Europe's green parties and members of the European Parliament are holding a three-day conference in Zagreb, discussing the challenges in Europe and presenting solutions and visions for a more just Europe. The meeting of the EGP Council is the biggest conference of a European party in Zagreb. It brought together over 300 participants and is hosted by the Sustainable Development of Croatia party (ORAH).
MEP Rebecca Harms said democracy and solidarity had been trampled in Greece because of strict austerity measures in exchange for international financial aid, and the people's right to self-determination had been trampled in Ukraine.
She said the death of every African immigrant in the Mediterranean testified to the dying of European values.
EGP vice president Reinhard Buetikofer said the party's main strategic priority was transforming European economy through a sustainable development strategy and the creation of well-paid green jobs.
The EGP is showing its unity with the meeting in Zagreb as well as the need not to ignore any region because of problems in other parts of Europe, he said.
This region greatly contributes to whether we will achieve our visions or not, he said, alluding to the Croatian government's plans to exploit oil and gas in the Adriatic Sea.
Earlier today, he said the risks of drilling for oil in the Adriatic were ecologically and economically huge and that insisting on fossil fuels was a financial risk.
Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, a guest at the meeting, said Croatia was well-preserved but that it could not stay a nature park.
We need development and for that we need energy, she said, adding that Croatia was about to ensure its energy independence through gas and oil as well as renewables.
By encouraging renewables, it is possible to launch a new economic cycle and the green sector could create 80,000 jobs, Grabar-Kitarovic said.
ORAH president Mirela Holy said Croatia had good foundations for sustainable development but that, like the other counties in Southeast Europe, it fought against inefficient and corrupt public administration and individuals in power.
The EGP believes that the European Union can greatly benefit from the green economy and that if it remains the world's green leader, the EU can earn another EUR 25 billion from exports annually and reduce energy costs by EUR 350 million annually and dependence on energy imports by 2050.