InFocus Germany 2018

Germany 2018

GERMANY & CROATIA

VERY STRONG BILATERAL COOPERATION H.E. DR. ROBERT KLINKE

German Ambassador to Croatia

RALF BLOMBERG

SVEN THORSTEN POTTHOFF

President of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce

Director of the GermanCroatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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THE LAND OF SAVINGS The world's oldest savings bank was established in Oldenburg (Lower Saxony) in 1786.

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THE (ROYAL) TANNENBAUMS The Christmas tree (Tannenbaum) tradition came from Germany. In England, they came with Prince Albert, and in Croatia, from Austria.

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BERLIN IS HUGE, HUGE

Believe it or not, Berlin is 9 times bigger than Paris (by its surface) and geographically the same size as Bangkok.

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COLOGNE IS NOT JUST WATER

Cologne Cathedral was the highest building of the world from 1880 to 1889 (or until 1884 if one counts the Washington Monument, which is an obelisk, not a proper building). The city was a home to the first perfume too, hence the “Cologne water”.

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THE LAND OF CASTLES

There are over 2100 castles in Germany. Arguably the most famous is Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, which served as an ispiration for Disney.

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SEVEN CAPITALS

The following cities have all at one time or another been capitals of Germany: Aachen, Regensburg, Frankfurt-am-Main, Nuremberg, Berlin, Weimar, Bonn (and East Berlin), and, since 1990, Berlin again.

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FOOD, FOOD...

FOOD?

There are over 300 different kinds of bread and over 1,000 kinds of sausages in Germany.

Another type of food: beer is considered as a food in Bavaria officially.

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THE HOME OF THE MAGAZINES The first magazine ever seen was launched in 1663 in Germany. No wonder, since the printing press was invented by a German.

GERMANY 2018

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Germany

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VERY STRONG BILATERAL COOPERATION H.E. Dr. Robert Klinke

German Ambassador to Croatia

PARTNERS 08 LONG-TERM Ralf Blomberg

President of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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WE GREW TOGETHER

Sven Thorsten Potthoff

BOBAN SPASOJEVIĆ EXECUTIVE EDITOR boban@diplomacyandcommerce.hr

TANJA BANKOVIĆ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF office@diplomacyandcommerce.hr

ILIJA PETROVIĆ INDIGOCHILD

Director of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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GERMAN MODEL - A RECIPE FOR THE WORLD Economy

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ART DIRECTOR indigochild.ilija@gmail.com

SVEN DARRER ADVERTISING MANAGER sven@diplomacyandcommerce.hr

RUŽA RISTANOVIĆ MAGAZINE DIRECTOR

ROBERT ČOBAN

15 YEARS OF AHK IN CROATIA

German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (AHK)

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CONSTANT GROWTH FOR BEST RELATIONS

Anita Stipić

DIRECTOR PHOTOS

GETTY IMAGES TOMISLAV SMOLJANOVIĆ TRANSLATION

SNEŽANA BJELOTOMIĆ PRINT

ZLATNA KNJIGA JAGODINA, BAGRDANSKI PUT BB

Senior Expert Associate at the International and EU Affairs Sector at the CCE

20 THE ELECTRONIC 24 REVOLUTION 26 LUTHER'S LEGACY BERLIN - THE CAPITAL OF 28 EUROPE, ONCE AGAIN

NOT AS EXPECTED Economic cooperation

Culture

Spirit

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Tourism

INTERVIEW

VERY STRONG BILATERAL COOPERATION There are a number of excellent examples of successful business activities in Croatia which benefit both Croatia and Germany

H.E. DR. ROBERT KLINKE German Ambassador to Croatia 6

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n his interview for the jubilee issue of Diplomacy&Commerce magazine and the special supplement, InFocus Germany, the newly appointed Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Croatia, H.E. Dr. Robert Klinke talks about the relations between the two countries, their advancement and joint plans under the auspices of the initiatives that the both countries are members of.

How would you describe the overall relationship between Germany and Croatia?

— In the course of the past 26 years, our two countries have established very strong bilateral cooperation at political, economic and cultural level. Germany is a friend of Croatia. Here in Croatia we have the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce, German political foundations, the Goethe-Institut and several German organisations working in the field of education and science. About 50 Croatian schools are taking part in a cooperation project sponsored by the German Government with a focus on learning the German language and promoting the image of modern Germany. German-Croatian relations are characterised by dialogue and interaction between people.

How would you describe the German-Croatian cooperation in the area

of economy?

— Our economic cooperation is a success story. Our trade exchange reached a historic peak of 5.2 billion euros in 2017.

The Chamber of Industry and Commerce has around 400 member companies which provide around 80,000 jobs in Croatia. There are a number of excellent examples of successful business activities in Croatia which benefit both Croatia and Germany. However, I think that there is still room for improvement in areas such as the investment climate and implementation of the existing legal framework.

What would you like to achieve during your time in Zagreb?

— There are a number of topics on which I would like to concentrate: EU, modernisation, regional cooperation are certainly among them.

The EU is our common future. That being the case, we, Germans and Croats, share responsibility for shaping this future. It is of the utmost importance that we all constructively contribute to this, while being ambitious and realistic at the same time. This is a task not only for politicians, but even more for society as a whole. The EU means all of us here. Our discussions should be driven by European values and contribute to identifying long-term solutions to

THE CHAMBER OF INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE HAS AROUND 400 MEMBER COMPANIES WHICH PROVIDE AROUND 80,000 JOBS IN CROATIA

the challenges we face in Europe. This also applies to 2020, when Croatia will take over the EU presidency in the first half of the year, followed by Germany.

Secondly, intensifying our economic cooperation has the goal of modernising both our economies. Vocational education and training is a good example – it can offer future prospects especially for young and skilled people here in Croatia, not to mention its positive impact on demographic development.

And as to regional cooperation: Croatia as an EU member with its expertise and experience has an important role to play. It can be instrumental in helping to bring the region closer to the EU. You might call this another added value of Croatia as our partner.

During the meeting of Federal Chancellor Merkel with Prime Minister Plenković in August 2018 a 10-pointaction plan was mentioned. Could you tell us more about it?

— In this meeting it was agreed to set up a joint action plan. It includes a number of fields of common interest such as foreign and European policy, the economy, agriculture, education, security, energy and environment, defence policy, tourism and health. We are now in the process of filling this framework with project proposals. I expect the plan to be signed by our foreign ministers in the months to come.

Schengen is one of the key issues for Croatia. What is the German standpoint to this? When do you expect Croatia to become a member of Schengen?

— Federal Chancellor Merkel said at her meeting with Prime Minister Plenković that Germany has a positive attitude towards Croatia’s Schengen membership. There is a clear procedure, criteria have to be met. We have to wait for the decision of the European Commission.

HEADLINE

ABOUT 50 CROATIAN SCHOOLS ARE TAKING PART IN A COOPERATION PROJECT SPONSORED BY THE GERMAN GOVERNMENT GERMANY 2018

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LONG-TERM PARTNERS

The business community is not satisfied with the pace of the reforms in Croatia, and it is necessary to expedite them reforms at all levels

INTERVIEW

RALF BLOMBERG

President of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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or years, Germany has been Croatia's most important foreign trade partner and officially the fourth biggest foreign investor in Croatia after the Netherlands, Austria and Italy, with a total of 3.2 billion EUR in direct investments since 1993, reminds Ralf Blomberg, President of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

A while ago, at the time when reforms in Croatia were moving at a slow pace, you sent to the Croatian government a strategic document that you drafted together with the embassies of Germany, Austria and Switzerland, business organizations and the Croatian Chamber of Economy. How many of these initiatives have been adopted and which ones are still awaiting implementation?

— There have been some improvements

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as well as discernible efforts to improve the business climate in the country, one cannot deny this, such as the tax reform, some new e-business services, changes to the law on investment promotion or the new law on the promotion of research and development. But given not only the general public sentiment, but also the hard facts, the key reforms are still missing. How else would one account for the fact that there has been a big percentage decline of companies willing to reinvest in Croatia, from around 80 per cent in the past several years to 68 per cent in the last economic survey my Chamber conducted? Why is it that when companies in Croatia are talking detriments to doing business they are always talking tax burden, tax system, bureaucracy, legal security or public administration?

Is there any need for a new document of this type, or are Croatia's reforms going at a rate and in a direction that

THIS COUNTRY HAS EXCELLENT PREREQUISITES TO BE AN ATTRACTIVE BUSINESS LOCATION AND HAVE A PROSPEROUS ECONOMY, BUT SO DO MANY OTHER COUNTRIES

you consider good for the economy?

— As indicated in the previous question, we are not, the business community is not satisfied with the pace of the reforms in Croatia. I am not certain whether there is truly a need for another document of this type. Perhaps there is.

Perhaps what we and the other chambers active in Croatia have been incessantly repeating over the years needs to be said again. The Chamber indeed does provide huge support and a plethora of services that can make an entry into Croatian market seem like a walk in the park. But we can by no stretch of the imagination convince a company to invest here if it percieves the environment for doing business in this country as complicated, instable and riddled with pointless and sluggish bureaucratic procedures. It is simply less likely to opt for Croatia as a business location if it estimates that the outcome of its operations is rather uncertain or doomed to failure because, for instance, it will be discriminated against when participating in a public tender. Things are pretty simple here – this country has excellent prerequisites to be an attractive business location and a prosperous economy, but so do many other countries, and if Croatia fails to attract investments, they will go elsewhere. And Croatia could miss a really important boat here.

How much did the consequences of the financial crisis, which have been strongly felt in Croatia, affect the Chamber's work and do you see any visible progress now in the volume of work of the companies here and in the arrival of new ones?

— Well, we have always been a very busy and active chamber, regardless

of the economic circumstances, so the crisis accordingly didn’t have that much of an impact on our work. The interest of German companies in the Croatian market has been growing continuously and the crisis was no exception. It was always a challenge for my Chamber to provide services and information to this ever rising number of businesses seeking to enter the Croatian market, especially after Croatia's accession to the European Union. It is also interesting that during the recession most of the companies which participated in our yearly economic survey evaluated their own business operations as succesful and that, just until last year, eight out of ten of them were ready to reinvest in Croatia – despite the crisis! In the last two years there has been a big increase of German companies' activities in several sectors, we're talking here some twenty to fifty per cent export growth of motor vehicles and their parts, machines, food and feed as well as chemical products. Since my Chamber was founded in 2003 the number of its member companies has been rising each year and today, at the end of 2018 we are bigger than ever and are still the biggest bilateral economic organization in Croatia with 415 members.

The only exception was a slight drop in the number of members at the beginning of 2012, but this had been immediately preceeded by Croatia's repeated slip back into recession in the last quarter of 2011. But then at the beginning of 2013 we then registered a big increase in new members.

Given the strong technological development of German companies, are you able to find partners in Croatia, or new interesting investment areas to coincide with the needs of the digital revolution?

— Certainly. German road vehicle manufacturers, agricultural machinery manufacturers or construction machinery

and equipment manufacturers have been present here for years. They make up the bulk of Croatia’s imports from Germany. And, of course, they cooperate here with their local partners, representatives, importers, retailers, wholesalers and so on. EU funds and projects have played an important role for some of the cooperations. For example, our member Siemens has just recently signed an agreement with the Croatian Transmission System Operator, the HOPS, within a smart grid investment project of European importance in the territory of Slovenia and Croatia. Many German producers of cooling and heating technology like our members Viessmann and Bosch have been, among others, supplying the Croatian tourism sector with products and solutions required for increasing the energy efficiency of buildings. A very interesting, important and big investment area in Croatia which is also inseparable from the digital revolution are without a doubt the so called smart cities. There will be a big demand for 21st century technology in the near future if Croatian cities and municipalities are to implement electromobility, smart waste management and communal services or smart grids and other aspects of smart urban development. One also shouldn’t forget that Croatia has an interesting and vibrant start-up scene.

Look at Rimac or the logistics and mobility start-ups Gideon Brothers and Orqa.

FPV. My Chamber sent the latter two to a big international start-up competition in Germany last month and they dominated their category winning 1st and 2nd place, respectively. We have recognized this potential and have introduced new event formats to promote start-ups, give them some form of boost and connect them with established companies.

In what areas do you think German companies have made a special contribution to the development of the

WITH THEIR INVESTMENTS, GERMAN COMPANIES HAVE MADE A NOTABLE CONTRIBUTION TO CROATIA'S INDUSTRY AND PRODUCTION

Croatian economy? In which way are you present in the green energy and energy efficiency segments?

— It is known that Germany has for years been Croatia's most important foreign trade partner and officially the fourth biggest foreign investor in Croatia behind the Netherlands, Austria and Italy, with a total of 3.2 billion EUR in direct investments since 1993. Here we must also note that Germany is in reality possibly the number one foreign investor in Croatia, because many large German companies have their headquarters in the Netherlands. This is unfortunately not visible in the official statistics.

German companies have with their investments made notable contributions to Croatia's industry and production. Croatia's economy is still highly dependent on imports, and German road vehicles, machines, food and drinks, feed or chemical products play an important role in supplying the domestic demand Croatia is unable to cover because of insufficient production capacities.

As for the green energy and energy efficiency, we are here most notably a partner of two respective initiatives of the German government. The first one is mainly intended for small and medium-sized enterprises offering energy solutions in the fields of renewable energy, energy efficiency, smart grids and storage technologies. We thus help companies enter the Croatian market with the aim to spread German energy technologies. We offer them matchmaking services and consultancy on export and project financing. The second one is about environmental technologies in areas related related to public services, such as water supply and wastewater and waste management. In this context we also support the projects of German businesses and institutions with the goal of disseminating environmental knowledge, awareness and technical knowhow in Croatia.

MANUFACTURERS

GERMAN MANUFACTURERS OF ROAD VEHICLES, AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY OR CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY AND EQUIPMENT HAVE BEEN PRESENT HERE FOR YEARS GERMANY 2018

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INTERVIEW

SVEN THORSTEN POTTHOFF

Director of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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In the past 15 years, not only have Germany’s exports to Croatia almost doubled but Croatia’s exports to Germany rose from 0.7 billion euro in 2002 to over 1.7 billion in 2017. Nevertheless, we think that there is still a lot of potential that needs to be unlocked. We are looking forward to working on these opportunities

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his year, the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce celebrates 15 years of operations. The history behind these endeavours is certainly successful, but the road was sometimes a bit rocky. We spoke with Sven Thorsten Potthoff, Director of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce, about the work of his predecessors and his own, in making the Chamber strong, successful and ever evolving.

Three goals were singled out following the establishment of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce in 2003. Could you tell us to what extent have these goals been accomplished in the last 15 years, and how many German business people in Croatia are linked via the Chamber?

— A German chamber of commerce abroad has three main functions, or goals, at its location. It is an official representation of the German economy, a membership organization and a provider of services for companies. Since 2003, the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce has assisted hundreds of German businesses in entering the Croatian market, or expanding their already existing business relationships.

But it is important to note that we have also acted conversely – we have promoted and still promote Germany as a business location and help Croatian companies to gain a foothold, or expand their existing businesses there. Our network of member companies is today bigger than it has ever been, and comprises of 415 members. This also makes us the biggest bilateral economic association in Croatia. This is a unique network that facilitates a quick market access and sustainable and reliable business relations.

As providers of services to companies we have, in the past decade and a half, assisted many companies in expanding and

maximizing their activities in Croatia and Germany. I would thus conclude that all of these goals have been accomplished.

How many German companies do business in Croatia compared to the time when the Chamber was established? How much do they contribute to Croatia's economy in terms of export, GDP share and employment?

— Well, it is pretty difficult to speak in exact numbers here, since many companies are technically more international than German per se, although they may be of German origin or are considered German. But I think it is safe to say that the number of German companies doing business in Croatia has without a doubt increased significantly in the past decade and a half. According to our estimates, there are around 150 „German“ companies active in Croatia today, but, as already indicated, this number may vary depending on how one defines what a German company is. The two countries have always had close cul-

THERE ARE NUMEROUS PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN GERMAN AND CROATIAN COMPANIES, NOT ONLY AMONG OUR MEMBERS

tural and economic ties, and many big companies have been here for many years. Croatia’s accession to the EU led to a huge increase of the German companies’ interest in the Croatian market, to the extent that our Chamber had a tough time satisfying their information requirements. German companies play a crucial role in the bilateral trade between Croatia and Germany, which reached a new record high in 2017, standing at around 5 billion euro. It is worth noting that not only have Germany’s exports to Croatia almost doubled in the past 15 years, but also that Croatia’s exports to Germany rose from 0.7 billion euro in 2002 to over 1.7 billion in 2017. Since the founding of our Chamber in 2003, German firms and individuals have directly invested roughly 1.5 billion euro in Croatia. As I have already indicated, we do not know exactly how many people „German“ companies in Croatia employ – but we know that the members of the Chamber provide work for approximately 80,000 people in this country.

EU ACCESSION

CROATIA’S ACCESSION TO THE EU HAS RESULTED IN A BIG INCREASE OF THE GERMAN COMPANIES’ INTEREST IN ITS MARKET GERMANY 2018

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How satisfied are you today with the level of cooperation with the Croatian businesses? How good is this cooperation? To what extent are German and Croatian companies linked through value chains and partnerships?

— We are indeed more than satisfied. After all, more than half of our members are Croatian companies.

Germany has in part benefited from the increased domestic demand in Croatia and the fact that Croatia is still eminently dependant on imports to supply the demands of its tourism sector, for instance. There are numerous partnerships between German and Croatian companies, not only among our members. Nevertheless, we think that there is still a lot of potential that needs to be unlocked. Croatia, for example, could produce much more than it currently does. We do promote German economic interests and German companies’ market entry, but a prosperous Croatian economy and society, and thriving Croatian companies are in our best interest as well.

How much did the Chamber's internal work organization change? How much did the volume and scope of work grow?

— As I have mentioned before, Croatia’s accession to the EU has resulted in a big increase of the German companies’ interest in its market and our employees did a great job providing all of them with, most importantly, services related to market entry, as well as valuable information. This has probably set the bar a bit higher, and it seems to me that this bar still remains at the same height. Furthermore, over the years, the Chamber has included other topics in its portfolio - for instance, the important topics like sustainable energy solutions and environmental technologies. More specifically, this means that we promote and support the market entry of German small and medium enterprises specialized in renewable energy systems and energy efficiency solutions, and companies specialized in technologies for protecting the environment and the climate. We have also launched a project which aim is to introduce the German model of dual vocational training in Croatian schools, which is strongly backed by the Croatian Government, as well as the companies involved. The German dual education model combines theoretical education at vocational schools with on-the-job training in companies.

We have an agile and energetic team of 14 people who cover all these topics

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and have experiences in Croatia and Germany, which has accordingly grown over the years.

What is the next challenge for you, as the Chamber's director, in terms of its development?

— I consider the EU Council Presidency, which Croatia will assume in the first half of 2020 for the first time ever, and the German Presidency that immediately follows in the second half of the same year, as a big opportunity. We would be very pleased if Croatia would use the presidency to further strengthen the ties between the member states on the common internal market and to drive forward the development of both small and medium enterprises and big companies. There will be abundant opportunities in the energy sector, first and foremost, which is a field that our Chamber has specialized in over the

WE WOULD BE PLEASED IF CROATIA WOULD USE ITS EU COUNCIL PRESIDENCY IN 2020 TO FURTHER STRENGTHEN THE TIES BETWEEN THE MEMBER STATES ON THE COMMON INTERNAL MARKET

years. Expanding our member network, which is one of the foundations of every German chamber of commerce abroad, and working towards their business success, has always been of great importance to us and this will remain unchanged. That being said, I also hope for an early and comprehensive implementation of reforms to improve the business and investment climate in Croatia.

By this I mean reducing unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles to doing business, making the public procurement system more impartial and effective, in order to ensure non-discriminatory legal protection of all participants in public procurement procedures, and last but not least, responsible and predictable provision of public services, such as approval procedures. I am confident that these measures will create a better framework for trade, investment and economic growth in Croatia.

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GERMANY 2018

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ECONOMY

GERMAN MODEL - A RECIPE FOR THE WORLD Why look elsewhere for the answer when you have it already?

W

hy did the German economic model, combining social consciousness, capitalist-free enterprise, family spirit of entrepreneurship, and family run companies which shape and propel the German economy, turn out to be so resilient that it eventually became a winning combination for a robust economic system?

Should everyone emulate it?

THE IDEAL BALANCE? The Deutsche Welle has an explanation for us. They say that the German economy is regulated by the principle of "social market economy". This means that, on one hand, it is based on market

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TRADE UNIONS AND EMPLOYERS HAVE THE FREEDOM TO DETERMINE THEIR OWN SALARIES - WITHOUT GETTING THE STATE INVOLVED

competition, and on the other, the state still has enough room for an intervention. The German economy has been doing well in the last fifty years. In recent years, while the rest of Europe has been shaken by the financial and economic crisis, the German economy has been stable. A lot of Germany's success is explained by a combination of social and market components.

The roots of this system date back to the 19th century. Bismarck, the so-called Iron Chancellor, laid the groundwork for social legislation by establishing pension and health insurance - explains Werner Schreiber, the former Social Affairs Minister of Saxony-Anhalt. At the time, expenditures were divided, that is, half was paid by the worker and half by the

employer. This is still the central principle of today's social regulation, which after the Second World War, has been extended to family policy, social assistance and many other aspects – the Deutsche Welle writes.

Salary autonomy is also a part of the German system. "In other words, trade unions and employers have the freedom to determine their own salaries - without getting the state involved", Schreiber said in an interview for the Deutsche Welle.

Due to such a relationship between trade unions and employers, workers in Germany are less likely to go on strike, which is an economic advantage.

Some of the success is due to the socalled “wide social consensus” which is similar to their politics where Christian

SOME OF THE SUCCESS IS DUE TO THE SO-CALLED “WIDE SOCIAL CONSENSUS” WHERE ONE PART OF THE POPULATION IS NOT TRYING TO OUTVOTE THE OTHER Democrats and Social Democrats frequently make “grand coalitions” to rule in everybody’s favour, when the election results clearly show that the electorate did not believe anyone enough to give them the power to rule alone.

Can you imagine such thing happening in America? A government made by Trump’s and Hillary’s ministers, working together? With a ceremonial president at the country’s helm? Well, that might be one of the reasons why Germany is doing the best in the world. Even their passport is always the first or the second best in the world in terms of vi-

sa-free travel. Germany as an economically strong country, accepting workers from all over the world, and a force of peace? Finally, all has fallen into place for a leader!

KNOW THYSELF, LOVE THYSELF LOCALLY (AND YOU WILL WIN GLOBALLY) Another thing that is making the German economy so resilient is the federal and fractional spirit of the Germans which, contrary to the popular

19th century belief that it produces a fragmented, weak state, resulted in a decentralised country with strong local spirit and loyalty. It has also prevented centralisation which has damaged other countries like Croatia, Greece, and Hungary. Instead, this strong loyalty (originating from the Middle Ages) to local brands has produced robust, equally distributed wealth. But the rest of the world is still facing a great challenge, both for states and economies, and that is centralisation. Thus, the intelligently conceived German state after the World War II prevented any kind of amassing of wealth in one or two big cities. Today, Berlin is the capital of culture, Frankfurt is the banking hub, Rurh is industrial, Hamburg is a port town, while Munich is a combination of several aforementioned things. Also, nobody is willing to abandon their own local customs. Why should they?!

INNOVATIONS!

Yes, once again, they are of crucial importance even in this case. Germany does not have enough natural resources, so it has to find new solutions. A network of publicly funded research institutes, such as Max-Planck and Frauenhofer, exist all over the country and are cooperating with industrial enterprises on trying to discover things that will not immediately make a profit. That is one more thing to have – patience. So un-American again!

PROFIT

A NETWORK OF PUBLICLY FUNDED RESEARCH INSTITUTES ARE COOPERATING WITH INDUSTRIAL ENTERPRISES ON TRYING TO DISCOVER THINGS THAT WILL NOT IMMEDIATELY MAKE A PROFIT GERMANY 2018

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GERMAN-CROATIAN CHAMBER OF INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE (AHK)

15 YEARS OF AHK IN CROATIA

The German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (AHK) has more than 400 members today, making it the largest bilateral economic organization in Croatia

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he German-Croatian Chamber of Industry Commerce and Industry is part of a system of 140 foreign trade chambers and delegations representing the German economy at 92 locations around the world. It was founded 15 years ago, at the time when Croatia was starting to constitute its position as an independent state while going through an economic transition and working towards the European Union membership. In that period, as well as today, the Chamber was not only a representative of German economic interests but also an important instrument and a reliable partner in advancement of economic, political, social and cultural ties between Croatia and Germany.

Along with the ever growing membership, the number of events, seminars, meetings, conferences and discussions organized by the Chamber grew too. Through these activities, conducted in the last 15 years, the Chamber has made an important contribution to the development and advancing of the contacts between German and Croatian business people.

Croatia's accession to the European Union has resulted in the growing interest of German companies for the Croatian market, both large companies and SMEs that make the core of the German economy. Apart from member companies, which come in all sizes, physical persons are also members of the Chamber.

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The number of services that Chamber provides to its members has also been increasing, just like its membership. As a platform for fostering cooperation, the Chamber provides support at every stage of their business operations; from dispensing advice regarding new business deals to networking and establishing contacts, as well as in exchanging information.

As part of its operations, the Chamber also provides its members with the opportunity of joint appearance in front of the state authorities and institutions, on top of active participation in bilateral meetings at the highest political level, in which the Chamber often takes part either as a host or a partner.

The German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce is one of the most active economic organizations in the country and regularly organizes various networking events for its members, such as monthly Jour Fixe meetings, summer selebrations, Oktoberfest, football tournaments, delegation trips, Christmas receptions, professional conferences and many other forms of networking and establishing connections between members and other companies operating in the Croatian market.

SERVICE PROVIDER FOR COMPANIES The Chamber's team possesses a wealth of experience in terms of iden-

WE ARE TRULY COMMITTED TO THE MADE IN GERMANY BRAND AND OUR PROFESSIONALISM AND THE QUALITY AND RELIABILITY OF OUR SERVICES ARE PARAMOUNT TO US

tifying business opportunities in both countries and if needed, it can rely on the experiences and the resources of the global network of German foreign trade chambers.

Our professionalism, quality and reliability of our services are paramount in our work. The Chamber uses its knowhow and contacts with experts inside its chamber network to ensure that its members are always one step ahead of competition.

In addition to the aforementioned services, the Chamber offers a range of educational services in its portfolio.

Small business owners, managers and employees use these opportunities to improve their know-how by attending seminars and workshops.

We play a significant role in the process of implementing the dual education system based on the German model in Croatian vocational schools.

The Chamber's daughter company, DKIHK Poslovne Usluge d. o. o. provides services both to members and non-members under the brand Deinternational, and handles several hundred inquiries annually.

GERMANY 2018

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CONSTANT GROWTH FOR BEST RELATIONS

Trade value exceeded 5 billion euros in 2017, and the numbers in the first seven months of 2018, show almost 15% growth in exports

INTERVIEW

ANITA STIPIĆ

Senior Expert Associate at the International and EU Affairs Sector at the CCE

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ermany is a key export market for a significant number of Croatian companies.It is indicative that the higher presence of Croatian brands is the most common in regions where more people with Croatian origin live, as they like to use and buy products from their homeland, says Anita Stipić, Senior Expert Associate at the International and EU Affairs Sector at the CCE.

with the exchange of services, where Croatia has a significant surplus, primarily in the areas of tourism, processing services, construction, information technology and technical services. For example, only in the first half of this year, we generated a revenue of 1.1 billion euros through the provision of services, while expenditures amounted to 231 million euro, which is in consistency with the results achieved in 2017.

Are you satisfied with the volume of economic cooperation with Germany in 2018?

— Germany is one of the most important Croatian foreign trade partners, and from 2009 to date, we have seen a steady growth of Croatian exports to Germany, so we can be satisfied with the scope of our economic cooperation to a certain extent. However, there is still room for improvement as Croatian exports to Germany in 2017 had an only 0.2% share in the total German imports. This shows us that we still need to actively promote Croatian products and high quality domestic companies which the Croatian Chamber of Economy (CCE) does through a series of activities carried out on the German market.

On the other hand, we are satisfied

What challenges are Croatian companies that export to Germany usually facing and how strong is their presence in the German market?

— Croatian companies from various branches – construction, assembling, technical services, food sector, telecommunications and IT - are recognized in the German market as top quality enterprises that are reliable and price-competitive. This does not mean that access to the German market is easy. In terms of commodity exchange, there are no major difficulties because there is the common EU market and a free flow of goods. Although, in principle, all manufacturers get equal treatment, the fact remains that Croatian companies, especially from the food and agriculture sector, have difficulty accessing distribution chains, and there are still not enough Croatian prod-

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ONLY IN 2018, THE CCE ORGANIZED AND CO-FINANCED THE JOINT EXHIBITIONS AT 27 TRADE FAIRS IN GERMANY

ucts on the shelves of German stores.

In order to increase the visibility of Croatian products, not only produced by the food industry, but also by other sectors, the CCE regularly organizes and co-finances joint exhibitions at the most important trade fairs and continuously promotes Croatian products.

On the other hand, cross-border provision of services has its challenges due to complex regulatory and administrative procedures. Although Germany abolished restrictions regarding labour market and free service provision in 2015, it is crucial that Croatian companies are given concrete assistance and information in order to comply with the regulation. Therefore, as an institution, we organize diverse education on this topic where we regularly have an excellent response from Croatian companies.

How high are German investments in Croatia and can we be satisfied with that number? Where do you see room for improvement?

— From 1993 to the first half of 2018, German investors invested 3.2 billion euros, and 235 million euros in 2017 alone. Germany is the fourth biggest direct foreign investor in Croatia, and the following German companies are considered one of the largest investors

in Croatia - Deutsche Telekom, Siemens, Bayer, ThyssenKrupp, Schott, König Metall and others. Of course, there is room for improvement.

Although it is extremely important to encourage investments in strategic segments like energy, tourism and industry, it is it is important to underline the relatively modest investments of German small and medium enterprises to Croatia, which means that it is necessary to continue working on improving the investment climate and conditions for doing business in order to attract small investors in private projects and to make Croatia attractive to the German SME’s as an investment market. Bearing in mind the potential of German companies for doing business in Croatia, it is crucial to attract new investments in the manufacturing sector, as they generally result in an increase in exports and economic growth.

How many suppliers from Croatia are included in German production chains and how much does the CCE help in this?

— The Croatian economy has a strong connection to the German one which is obvious when you analyse the structure of the commodity exchange – the export of parts, constructions and elements that are built into the finished products.

However, this is a rather complex topic because the type of involvement in the supply chain is also important – there is a big difference when a company's activity is based only on assembling the finished imported parts, or if an additional know-how and the company's own innovative solutions are included, thereby adding value to the product.

According to the analysis conducted by the Croatian National Bank, Germany and Italy have showed the biggest final demand for Croatian products and services which are, after all, our key export markets. Furthermore, Croatia carries

out its global business activities mostly through Germany, the same as a number of countries in the region, like the Visegrad Group countries, Austria and Slovenia.

Through its activities, the CCE tries to promote the importance of participation in the global chains which we accomplish through organization of business meetings and economic forums, networking with potential partners and establishing cooperation with the relevant institutions and partners in the EU, as well as on third markets. The previously mentioned opening of the CCE's representative office is certainly another step in that direction. Croatia's advantage in this segment is our geographic position, since, despite the development of transport connections and communication, proximity is often the crucial factor.

In early December, the CCE will hold a big conference dedicated to export and investments, with the main topics being the importance of global value chains and their significance for national economies. This is a topic that not only we need to talk about more, but also proactively work on while providing companies with institutional support too.

THE MAIN PURPOSE OF THE CCE OPENING ITS REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE IN GERMANY NEXT YEAR IS TO PROVIDE SUPPORT TO BUSINESS PEOPLE ON THE SPOT

How would you assess your cooperation with the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (AHK)? What are your most important topics?

— This year, the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (AHK) is celebrating 15 year of operations in Croatia. During that period, we have cooperated on a number of activities – from organizing visits of high officials to organizing many business meetings. In late October this year, we organized a seminar about Germany as an export market, which was exceptionally well-received. The business operations of Croatian companies in Germany and German business people in Croatia, the implementation of the dual education system as well as the support to potential investors are all common topics. As a representative of German companies, AHK is a good example of providing institutional support to internationalization of business and is a successful model that can to a large extent be applied to the internationalization of the Croatian economy.

INVESTMENTS

IT IS CRUCIAL TO ATTRACT NEW INVESTMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR, AS THEY GENERALLY RESULT IN AN INCREASE IN EXPORTS AND ECONOMIC GROWTH GERMANY 2018

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ECONOMIC COOPERATION

NOT AS EXPECTED Could it be better in these circumstances?

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C

roatian Prime Minister, Andrej Plenkovic recently stated that he wanted to boost economic co-operation between Germany and Croatia, since we all know that too little had been done in that respect.

Croatia has a serious problem. Although Germany is Croatia’s number one economic partner, followed by Italy and soon China, Germany is not even close being number one in terms of desired investments in the Croatian economy.

Economic analyst, Damir Novotny recently said that there were no serious investments in the Croatian industrial sector and that that was worrying. Also, the alarminginly high number of people,

including young people, who are leaving Croatia (oftentimes for Germany), are an indicator that something is not right.

ARE WE THE SECOND-RATE EAST? The relations that Croatia have with Germany are much better than with some other countries, but this is not sufficient, or rather the level of cooperation between the two countries, although pretty high, is not good enough. Novotny says:“Germany is one of the most important trading partners of Croatia, after Italy, Slovenia and neighbouring countries of Southeast Europe. At the trade level, things are not that bad. Germany

IT REMAINS TO BE SEEN IN 2019 IF THE GERMANS WILL USE THE GEOPOLITICAL AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY OFFERED TO THEM

buys Croatian products and services and our companies are well integrated into the supply chains of German industry." One of the fundamental systemic problems is somewhat different, since in Croatia, unlike in other countries in Eastern Europe such as Poland, Hungary, Slovakia or the Czech Republic, Germany did not invest to the same extent, that is, German companies did not invest in small and medium enterprises as much as in large ones.

German companies prefer to invest in companies in other countries of the eastern part of the European Union, despite Croatia being an EU member for five and a half years now, because German entrepreneurs consider Croatia

SUMMIT

NEXT YEAR, CROATIA WILL HOST THE SUMMIT OF CHINA AND 16 CENTRAL EUROPEAN COUNTRIES, AND IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2020, IT WILL PRESIDE OVER THE EU GERMANY 2018

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and its market, as well as its business people more complex. Telekom, Drogerie Markt or Muller are exemptions to this rule. There are many other German companies that should be present in the Croatian market, which, truth be told, did not absorb a sufficient amount of German investments, or at least not the amount it had expected. On the other hand, Germany, which is now the dominant EU state after the UK left the Union and with Italy lagging behind, has a fairly strong monopoly not only in the

market but also when it comes to some other indicators. Germany's interests and the interests of other major European exporters dictate Croatia’s longterm monetary policy that favoured them in the first place, instead of Croatian producers.

CROATIA’S IMPORTANCE AND A LITTLE BIT OF OPTIMISM Croatia has other options, which could worry Germany a little bit. Next year,

GERMAN COMPANIES PREFER TO INVEST IN COMPANIES IN OTHER COUNTRIES OF THE EASTERN PART OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, BUT NOT IN CROATIA 22

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Croatia will host the summit of China and 16 Central European countries, and in the first half of 2020, it will preside over the EU. Another good thing is that Croatia’s entry into the Schengen Area is pretty certain now, and will contribute to the integration of the Croatian economy with the German and a wider European one. In Mainz, the gathered business people and investors confirmed the positive economic cooperation between Croatia and Germany. The Ambassador of the Republic of Croatia in Germany, H.E. Dr. Gordan Grlić Radman underlined that Croatia, as a destination for doing business, was growing in popularity and that German companies had made a significant contribution to it.

"Croatia is worth every challenge, accept it! No institution or company can work alone, and they can be successful only as much as they are shaped by people. There are a lot of entrepreneurs who are willing to accept the risk and challenge, and I believe that some are also among you tonight. I invite you to visit Croatia, not only as a possible investment location, but also to get to know all the attractions that the country has," he said.

It remains to be seen in 2019 if the Germans will use the geopolitical and economic opportunity offered to them.

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CULTURE

THE ELECTRONIC REVOLUTION How German DJ culture reshaped popular music

W

e know that Germany has irreversibly changed some of the best and the most influential pop music writers of the 20th century, but we are not going to talk about that again. The new story goes one step further and this is basically the continuation of the last year's article on how Hamburg and Berlin influenced Nick Cave, The Beatles, Bowie and Depeche Mode, and how Kraftwerk and Krautrock influenced Electronica.

This time around, we’ll start by reminding our readers that the first parties in the era when electronic music producers and DJs were the superstars, took place in Germany in the1990s.

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THE REAL MAIN STAGE

Germany was the real Main Stage that triggered the whole dominant Dance Arena culture, which subsequently spread all over the world, particularly in Europe. Most of the then DJs came from Germany and its neighbouring countries. The first DJ to be nominated for an award was the German DJ Marusha in the late 1990s.

An avalanche of protests ensued! How can a DJ, a person who basically only programs music on the computer, then mixes, remixes and produces it, and doesn’t even play a synthesizer or knows how to sing, can receive an award for the Best Female Artist?!

Reading the articles back then, I

TODAY, THE WHOLE WORLD HAS BECOME BERLIN AND GERMANY FROM THE 1990S

became aware that we were witnessing a revolution. And once again, the revolution originated from Germany.

But it did not stop in Germany! Just have a look at David Guetta – the guru of today’s Dance Arenas all over the world. The best artists now, alas, to my complete disappointment, are not bands, but producers. Like Martin Garrix from the Netherlands, Max Martin from Sweden, Dr. Luke from the USA, Calvin Harris from Scotland or Nina Kraviz from Siberia. Electronic music is everywhere today. Sometimes, these DJs get singers to sing the vocal part of their hits, and in this way, they resemble more classic pop. Then, for instance, you go over to EXIT’s Dance Arena, you

listen to DJs while waiting for the vocal part to start….. And you wait, and wait some more! Today, the whole world has become Berlin and Germany from the 1990s, while Dance Arena is, practically, the real Main Stage at the EXIT Festival, which has been invariably moving towards electronic sound.

THE FOUNDING FATHERS Actually, it all started a long time ago!

One of the main events in Belgrade, a few weeks ago, was the performance of a band, elegantly dubbed ‘The Founding Fathers of Electronica’. They are German, of course, from Düsseldorf, and they are called Kraftwerk. Although they did not come to Belgrade in their original four-member setup, they performed everything we have ever dreamed of – it was a real audio-visual show. It was also deeply German - robotic, deliberately cold, megalopolis-influenced, technical, immaculate, and very precise. Back in the day, in the 1970s, they used analogue synthesizers that sounded so digital. But now, some 40+ years later, we can see the sheer brilliance of their vision. They sang in many languages back then - German, English, French, Spanish, and Russian. They did not like Europe divided in hate. They wanted us all to be different, but to love and accept each other. They were one of the first examples of a European Union and they were a kind of a cultural Proto-Schengen. They were not, like their American counterparts, afraid of robots and machines, always depicting some sort of dystopian future with the inevitable war between the man and the machine.

They liked the machines. They loved the idea that one day we would all be mixed.

And, of course, they did it first in their music. Kraftwerk was the first to utterly ignore the American rock’n’roll heritage, namely that everything had to be “live” and played by “living people”. They

coined the idea that the Man-Machine can be a person of the future, and that the music of the future would be partly played/sung and partly programmed.

They saw Europe as their playground, with all nations respecting each other, learning each other languages.

MARUSHA’S CHILDREN AND KRAFTWERK’S THE MAN-MACHINE HAS WON GRANDCHILDREN TOOK OVER. Today, it really doesn’t matter to GERMANY WINS people dancing at 7am in Dance Arena if Nina Kraviz plays or sings any instru- AGAIN IN MUSIC!

ments. The thousands of people, who

have stayed awake until morning, are ecstatic. Nobody cares! These are the new generations who believe in the “Mensch-Maschine”. In 2016, at the Sea Dance Festival, one of my dance-arena-orientated friends commented on the band Hurts and said: “Hurts are DJing it very good!” “No, mate, they are actually playing, not deejaying”, I retorted. The new upcoming generation has forgotten the verb “playing”.

Marusha’s children and Kraftwerk’s grandchildren took over. Germany wins again in music!

LIVE

KRAFTWERK WAS THE FIRST TO UTTERLY IGNORE THE AMERICAN ROCK’N’ROLL HERITAGE, NAMELY THAT EVERYTHING HAD TO BE “LIVE” AND PLAYED BY “LIVING PEOPLE” GERMANY 2018

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SPIRIT

LUTHER'S LEGACY

How Luther's vision and Protestantism changed Germany and the world

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he birth of Martin Luther's Protestantism was celebrated all over the world last year, which marked the 500th anniversary of the historical moment when this priest “protested� against the Catholic practices in Germany and elsewhere. In Croatia, the celebration was more subdued and mostly went unnoticed. But Luther's legacy is one of those things that has changed our world the most.

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THE IDEA Martin Luther was a priest who adored Christianity and dreamt about Rome and service in the almighty church. But, when he saw the state of the church at the time, he was appalled. In 1516, Johann Tetzel, a Dominican friar and papal commissioner for indulgences, was sent to Germany by the Roman Catholic Church to sell indulgences to raise money in order to rebuild St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. On 31st October 1517, Luther wrote to his bishop,

Albrecht von Brandenburg, protesting the sale of indulgences. He enclosed in his letter a copy of his "Disputation of Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences", which came to be known as the Ninety-five Theses. Hans Hillerbrand writes that Luther had no intention of confronting the church, but saw his disputation as a scholarly objection to church practices. But in Thesis 86, Luther asks: "Why does the Pope, whose wealth today is greater than the wealth of the richest

Crassus, build the basilica of St. Peter with the money of poor believers rather than with his own money?” – This was a clear sign of modesty that would become prevalent in Protestantism later on.

H OW IT ALL WENT WRONG...

AND FINALLY RIGHT But the Catholic Church did not take that lightly, and subsequently expelled Luther who got increasingly defiant. In the period of great dissatisfaction of masses, nobility and clergy, he successfully started a new church, and the rest just fell into the place - different versions of Protestantism, including Zwingli, Jean Calvin and many other congregations, especially in southern Germany, Switzerland, England, Scotland and later, America, mushroomed. The Catholics have lost the North of our continent.

Today, the northermost Catholic countries in Europe are Lithuania and Poland.

But other nations, which adopted Protestantism, also changed rapidly. Look at the Viking lands Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway! During the Pagan times, they were fierce Viking warriors, during the Catholicism they became

humble. Only Protestantism, with its absence of riches, ornamentations and icons could ever satisty their Northern souls who were appalled by the Italian Renaissance and the opulence. Silence, internal prayers, no mysticism, the Bible in their own languages, priests talking about everyday life... Instead of the vertical line of communication with God, protestants understood that horizontal solidarity is more important - it was a backbone and the founding stone for all the Protestant countries, even the aristocratic ones like England. There is a lot of truth it in - help you neighbour, clean your house, mow the lawn, paint the fence, make yourself decent and clean, and you will be the best servant of God. If everyone does the same, there is hope!

When everyone did the same, “perfect” egalitarian societies emerged with majority of them being in Protestant countries; from Canada to Australia, Finland and Germany to Scotland and Norway.

LUTHER'S REVOLUTION, NAMELY QUESTIONING THE DOGMA, THINKING FOR YOURSELF, WANTING TO UNDERSTAND AND DEFERRING FROM SIN, HAS CHANGED OUR WORLD THE PROTESTANT ETHICS AND LIKE NO OTHER THE SPIRIT OF CAPITALISM REVOLUTION

Of course, we have to mention Max Weber and his idea that the Protestant

ethics is the basic of capitalism. Capitalism was founded in the South, in the mercantilistic Italy and Greece which are populated by people who like to enjoy life. The basic point is moderation in pleasure, even restriction from pleasure, or rather the combination of “I have to work hard in the Glory of Gord” and “I must not live lavishly because it is a sin” combined with massive amount of wealth and discipline in the Protestant countries. Scrooge McDuck could be the symbol of such spirit, which brings us to Wall Street and the perversity of today's capitalism, all derived not from the thrifty spirit of the old rich, but the individual entrepreneurship that also characterised Protestantism. It took on many forms - from egalitarian supersocieties like Sweden, to wild capitalism in the UK during the Industrial Revolution and venture capitalism of America today.

From God-fearing Bible reading Nigerians to modest Vojvodinian kulen-loving Slovaks. But, Luther's revolution, namely questioning the dogma, thinking for yourself, wanting to understand and deferring from sin, has changed our world like no other revolution, including the French one!

SATISFY

ONLY PROTESTANTISM, WITH ITS ABSENCE OF RICHES, ORNAMENTATIONS AND ICONS COULD EVER SATISFY THEIR NORTHERN SOULS WHO WERE APPALLED BY THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE AND THE OPULENCE GERMANY 2018

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TOURISM

BERLIN - THE CAPITAL OF EUROPE, ONCE AGAIN Everyone is again rushing to see Berlin! The city has become the artistic and financial centre of Europe, as well as a tourist superpower.

B

ecause of Brexit, London is drifting apart from Europe, with the UK citizens now needing visas to visit certain countries. Berlin is positioning itself as the tourist capital of Europe.

THE NEW GOLDEN AGE The time has come for Germany to shine again! This time around, there are

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no clouds on the horizon, and the European superpower has become attractive to many. Some people come only as tourists, some come to work and then stay, some go to Germany to pursue their artistic careers. The vast majority of the latter end up in Berlin, which is a new hub of art, music, creativity and nightlife. They say that Berlin and Budapest are the two most exciting Europan cities for nightlife. The German old /new capital is a city

with “two souls”, since it re-emerged as a unified city only after 1990. The differences between East and West Berlin are quite visible in architecture, to say the least. Approximately at the same time as the unification, Wim Wenders used the city as an iconic playground and backdrop for his film “Der Himmel über Berlin” or strangely translated into English as “Wings of Desire”, which lured thousands of people to see this place that had been divided for decades. However, the era of the Berlin Wall is now behind us, even if though there are some parts of the Wall that have been preserved as a tourist attraction. Did you know that the period after the fall of the Berlin Wall is actually now longer than the period during which the Wall existed? This is a new Berlin, reminiscent of the time when the city was the capital of Europe's jazz scene, art and music, prior to 1933. This is the new Golden Age for Berlin!

BERLIN IS 365/24 Do you know how is this bustling city promoting itself? The campaign to promote Berlin was launched under the title “Berlin is 365/24”. Berlin is 365/24 – always exciting 365 days a year, alive 24 hours, seven days a week. So, you don’t have make detailed plans for your trip here – when you get here, the city becomes your inspiration, they say. Berlin is known for its numerous cultural institutions, many of which have been enjoying international reputation. The diversity and the vivacity of this metropolis gave birth to a trendsetting atmosphere. An innovative music, dance and art scene has emerged in the 21st century. Young

people, international artists and entrepreneurs continued to come to live in the city and thus made Berlin a popular global entertainment hub. There is no place in Europe that changes at such a quick pace as Berlin, apart from, say, Tbilisi or Moscow. The cultural life, promoted in many museums (not only on the Museum Island), is further boosted by the fact that, in 2005, Berlin was declared as "The City of Design" by UNESCO. Since 2011, Berlin has been home to 138 museums and over 400 art galleries. What can we say about its nightlife?! Clubs are not required to close their doors at a certain hour during weekends, and many parties last well

WIM WENDERS USED THE CITY AS AN ICONIC PLAYGROUND AND BACKDROP FOR HIS FILM “DER HIMMEL ÜBER BERLIN”

into the morning, or even all weekend.

In the 1990s, people in their 20s, from all over the world particularly those from Western and Central Europe, made Berlin's club scene a premier nightlife venue.

Since a lot of buildings in East Berlin were unoccupied, squatters moved in and made them attractive nightlife venues.

The rest is history!

MORE CLASSICAL FACTS As many as 180 km of canals stretch all over Berlin, more than in Amsterdam.

Another fun fact! With 1,700 bridges, Berlin has more bridges than Venice.

Because of its post-war division, the

SCENE

FROM THE SPIRIT OF BOWIE AND WENDERS TO DDR, THE UNDERGROUND SCENE, NEAT PARKS AND THE CHARLOTTENBURG CASTLES, BERLIN HAS IT ALL, 365/24!

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city has two centres and 18 universities. It is enormous, spanning 900 km2.

Cruising down the Spree River is one of the best ways to explore Berlin, and some of the most beautiful cafes and restaurants are located on the canals.

This is also one of the greenest cities in Europe. As much as 30 percent of the city's total area is covered in parks, forests and lakes. The difference in spirit is visible at first sight – there is the rebellious underground East, full of art and graffiti, and neat and peaceful West, somehow intertwined by a strange charm. After the WWII, the city was so badly damaged by bombs, the fighting and the destructive spirit of the fallen ideology, that it had to be reinvented.

It was reinvented differently in the West, with the undergound scene and Western consumerism, and differently in the East, as a model Socialist city.

When the Wall fell, someting magical, unusual, and constantly evolving was created. From the spirit of Bowie and Wenders to DDR, the underground scene, neat parks and the Charlottenburg castles, Berlin has it all, 365/24!

SOCIALISM

BERLIN WAS REINVENTED DIFFERENTLY IN THE WEST, WITH THE UNDERGOUND SCENE AND WESTERN CONSUMERISM, AND DIFFERENTLY IN THE EAST, AS A MODEL SOCIALIST CITY 30

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THE DIVERSITY AND THE VIVACITY OF THIS METROPOLIS GAVE BIRTH TO A TRENDSETTING ATMOSPHERE

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