1.

and

2.

European Central Bank (ECB)

(hereinafter the ‘Parties’)

(1)

The European Council in its Resolution of 16 June 1997 (hereinafter the ‘Resolution’) agreed to set up an exchange rate mechanism (hereinafter ‘ERM II’) when the third stage of Economic and Monetary Union began on 1 January 1999.

(2)

Under the terms of the Resolution, ERM II is designed to help ensure that non-euro area Member States participating in ERM II orient their policies to stability, foster convergence and thereby help the non-euro area Member States in their efforts to adopt the euro.

(3)

Croatia, as a Member State with a derogation, has participated in ERM II since 2020. Hrvatska narodna banka is a party to the Agreement of 16 March 2006 between the European Central Bank and the national central banks of the Member States outside the euro area laying down the operating procedures for an exchange rate mechanism in stage three of Economic and Monetary Union (1), as amended by the Agreement of 21 December 2006 (2), by the Agreement of 14 December 2007 (3), by the Agreement of 8 December 2008 (4), by the Agreement of 13 December 2010 (5), by the Agreement of 21 June 2013, (6) by the Agreement of 6 December 2013 (7), by the Agreement of 13 November 2014 (8) and by the Agreement of 22 January 2020 (9) (hereinafter the ‘ERM II Central Bank Agreement’).

(4)

Pursuant to Article 1 of Council Decision (EU) 2022/1211 of 12 July 2022 on the adoption by Croatia of the euro on 1 January 2023 (10) the derogation in favour of Croatia referred to in Article 5 of the 2012 Act of Accession (11) is abrogated with effect from 1 January 2023. The euro will be Croatia’s currency from 1 January 2023 and Hrvatska narodna banka should no longer be party to the ERM II Central Bank Agreement from that date.

(5)

It is therefore necessary to amend the ERM II Central Bank Agreement to take account of the abrogation of the derogation in favour of Croatia,