Wednesday marks 33 years since Croatia became an internationally recognised state on 15 January 1992, and 27 years since the peaceful reintegration of the Croatian Danube region into the country's constitutional and legal order, which was completed on the same day in 1998.

The international recognition of Croatia on 15 January 1992 was a decisive moment in securing Croatia’s status as a sovereign state. On that day, all 12 member countries of the then European Community recognised Croatia. Alongside the Vatican, Germany played a key role in the recognition process and subsequently established diplomatic relations with Croatia.

By the end of January 1992, 44 states had recognised Croatia

On the same day, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, Hungary, Malta, Norway, Poland and Switzerland also recognised Croatia. Slovenia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Latvia, Iceland, Estonia, the Holy See and San Marino had already recognised Croatia. By the end of January 1992, 44 states had recognised Croatia, and the number continued to rise in the following months.

This recognition followed Croatia’s declaration of independence on 25 June 1991, when Slovenia also declared its independence. Lithuania was the first country to recognise Croatia on 30 July 1991, although it was not yet internationally recognised itself. Iceland was the first internationally recognised state to recognise Croatia’s independence on 19 December 1991. On the same day, Germany announced that its recognition would come into force on 15 January 1992 in agreement with other EU members.

The Vatican announced its recognition on 20 December 1991 and formalised it on 13 January 1992. Vatican diplomacy was at the forefront of efforts to gain international support for Croatian independence. Historians often emphasise the role of the Vatican and Iceland as crucial to the recognition.

At the time of international recognition, Croatia was in the midst of a Homeland war and almost a third of its territory was occupied by the Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA) and Serbian paramilitaries. It was not until 1998 that Croatia regained its recognised borders through the peaceful reintegration of Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Srijem.

Peaceful reintegration of the Croatian Danube region

Recognition enabled Croatia to join numerous international organisations in the course of 1992 and to consolidate its sovereignty. Important milestones were admission to the United Nations on 22 May 1992, accession to NATO in 2009 and to the European Union in 2013, which strengthened the country’s international position and promoted economic and political development.

On 15 January 1998, the peaceful reintegration of Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Srijem was completed, bringing the last occupied part of Croatian territory back under the country’s constitutional and legal order. This process was based on the Erdut Agreement signed on 12 November 1995, which initiated a two-year mandate of the UN Transitional Administration (UNTAES).

Under the leadership of interim administrator Jacques Paul Klein, reintegration included the withdrawal of Serbian paramilitary forces, the establishment of an interim police force and the return of displaced persons.

In September and October 1996, the remains of 200 victims, Croatian defenders and civilians who had been abducted from the Vukovar hospital and executed in Ovcara by the JNA and Serb paramilitaries after the fall of the town, were exhumed from a mass grave on this former farm near Vukovar. On All Saints’ Day this year, thousands of displaced Croatians visited the cemeteries in the Croatian Danube region for the first time since 1991 under the supervision of UNTAES.

Economic reintegration followed in 1997 with the return of the INA-operated oil fields in Djeletovci and the restoration of legal authority through local elections in April of the same year. With the introduction of the Croatian kuna as the official currency on 19 May 1997, the region was further integrated into the Croatian legal and economic system.

Efforts to facilitate the return of displaced persons included the establishment of six offices for refugees and the founding of the National Committee for Building Trust in October 1997, chaired by Vesna Skare-Ozbolt, Deputy Head of the President’s Office.

The role and legacy of President Franjo Tudjman

President Franjo Tudjman played a central role in the reintegration efforts and visited the Croatian Danube region several times. On 8 June 1997, he travelled on board the “Train of Peace” to Vukovar, the symbol of national unity and the region’s recovery. Tudjman welcomed the peaceful reintegration as the culmination of the Croatian struggle for independence and territorial integrity.

The UN Security Council confirmed the conclusion of the UNTAES mandate on 19 December 1997. The reintegration was celebrated on 15 January 1998 with ceremonies in Borovo Naselje and Zagreb.

The special envoy Bernard Miyet praised the successful mission, while the interim administrator William Walker emphasised the achievement of peace and the recognition of Croatian authority in the region.

President Tudjman declared: “The handover of the Croatian Danube region to state authorities marks the end of the aggression against Croatia and the occupation of its territory. The Croatian nation thus confirms its victory in the imposed war.”

The reintegration, which was preceded by the military operations “Flash” and “Storm” in 1995, contributed significantly to the restoration of peace and the unity of the Croatian state.