Croatia becomes a fully integrated member of the EU

(Image credit: Ales Beno/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

published 1 January 2023

On Sunday, Croatia adopted the euro and removed dozens of border checkpoints to become the 27th nation to join Europe's passport-free Schengen zone.

Though Croatia joined the EU 10 years ago, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković helped urge along the economic management reforms needed for the Balkan nation of 4 million to officially join the eurozone, Politico reports. Speaking during the celebrations, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the new euro coin imprinted with a pine marten, from which Croatia's former currency, the kuna, derives its name, as "a symbol of the successful union between your national identity and your European destiny" and said the euro "brings macroeconomic stability and credibility."

Some, however, are critical of the nation's switch: "We will cry for our kuna, prices will soar," one pensioner in Zagreb told Al Jazeera.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.