Croatia

Croatia (Croatian: Hr̀vātskā), officially the Republic of Croatia (Republika Hrvatska), is a country in Southeastern Europe, at the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean Sea. Its capital (and largest city) is Zagreb. Croatia borders Slovenia and Hungary to the north, Serbia to the northeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, and it has a sea border with Italy to the southwest

The Croats arrived in the seventh century in what is Croatia today. They organized the state into two dukedoms. The first king, Tomislav I was crowned in AD 925 and Croatia was elevated into Kingdom. The Kingdom of Croatia retained its sovereignty for almost two centuries, reaching its peak during the rule of Kings Petar Krešimir IV and Zvonimir. Via "Pacta conventa", Croatia entered a personal union with Hungary in 1102. In 1526, the Croatian Parliament elected Ferdinand from the House of Habsburg to the Croatian throne. In 1918 Croatia declared independence from Austria-Hungary and joined the Kingdom of Yugoslavia as co-founder. During World War II, Nazis occupied Croatian territory and with the aid of Ustaše created the Independent State of Croatia. After the war Croatia became a founding member of Second Yugoslavia. On 25 June 1991 Croatia declared independence and became a sovereign state.

Croatia is a member of the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, NATO, the World Trade Organization, the Council of Europe, and CEFTA. The country is also a candidate for membership of the European Union. Additionally, Croatia is also a founding member of the Union for the Mediterranean upon its establishment in 2008.