The request was signed by Justice Minister Ana Lovrin on Wednesday and was sent to the Austrian Ministry of Justice, the Croatian Ministry of Justice said in a statement.
A decision on extradition will be made by Vienna State Court investigating judge Claudia Forsner, who granted Zagorec release last Thursday after he paid EUR 1 million bail.
Zagorec, who has been living in Vienna for the past seven years, is opposed to extradition, believing that the investigation against him is politically motivated. Media speculate that owing to his opposition and the possibility of him applying for asylum, proceedings before Austrian courts might take a while to complete.
Zagorec served as an assistant defence minister in charge of arms procurement from 1993 to 2000. He is suspected of abuse of office, namely that in 2000 he took from a Defence Ministry safe diamonds he had received from a German arms dealer in 1993 as collateral for five million US dollars from the Croatian Defence Ministry intended for the purchase of weapons for Croatia's defence.