Croatian President Stjepan Mesić and New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters agreed that in order to advance bilateral relations, it is necessary to liberalise the visa regime.
The two officials said the regime should be liberalised particularly in order to strengthen economic relations. President Mesić was hopeful that Peters's visit would contribute to the strengthening of bilateral relations of two countries, which are geographically distant, but strongly connected by the Croat emigrant community in New Zealand.
Minister Peters said New Zealand owed part of its development to Croatian emigrants, adding that they are appreciated there and have part-ownership in the local fishing and winemaking industries.
President Mesić informed New Zealand's minister about the situation in this region and Croatia's European Union membership negotiations. Croatian President accepted Minister Peters's invitation to visit New Zealand.