Ruling HDZ party whip Branko Bacic said on Wednesday that Croatia would not significantly benefit financially from declaring an Exclusive Economic Zone in the Adriatic because most of its elements were already incorporated in the existing Ecological and Fisheries Protection Zone (EFPZ).

“The Exclusive Economic Zone will be declared very soon but it will not bring billions of kuna, as claimed by opposition lawmakers,” Bacic told reporters in the parliament.

He explained that the common fisheries policy was implemented in every EU zone, that Croatian fishermen must comply with EU rules and that the Exclusive Economic Zone would bring no major financial benefit.

In relation to the existing EFPZ, the proclamation of a Protected Economic Zone provides Croatia only with two additional possibilities – to build artificial islands and use wind and sea energy in that zone, he said.

The Exclusive Economic Zone is a small element that will build on the EFPZ, he said.