Lawmakers from Croatia’s green-left party Možemo! warned on Friday that the country must not retreat from its climate commitments or reshape its environmental policy in line with the approach of U.S. President Donald Trump, calling instead for an immediate withdrawal from the Energy Charter Treaty, reports HRT
Speaking in Parliament, Marin Živković, a member of Možemo!, said Croatia should urgently exit the Energy Charter Treaty, noting that both the European Union and Euratom have already withdrawn. European institutions, he said, concluded that the treaty is no longer compatible with the bloc’s climate objectives or the Paris Agreement, particularly because it continues to protect investments in fossil fuels.
Živković sharply criticized what he described as signals from the Croatian government suggesting a weakening of climate ambition, questioning whether officials believe Croatia can avoid the consequences of climate change by ignoring them.
“Do Minister Šušnjar and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković really think that the damage climate change causes to human health and the environment will somehow bypass Croatia if they ignore it because Donald Trump says so?” Živković asked.
He pointed to increasingly frequent floods, wildfires, heat waves, rising sea levels and extreme weather events, stressing that Croatia is already experiencing their effects and that the cost of inaction will continue to rise year after year.
Živković also warned that the price of adapting to climate change will grow significantly, while the consequences will become more severe, because Croatia failed to achieve carbon neutrality in time. Without decisive action, he said, the burden on public finances, infrastructure and public health will only intensify.
The remarks come as climate policy faces renewed political pressure globally, with governments reassessing environmental commitments amid economic uncertainty and shifting geopolitical priorities. In Croatia, however, Možemo! lawmakers argue that retreating from climate goals would carry long-term costs that far outweigh short-term political calculations.