Thirty-one police officers from nine countries have arrived in Split to support Croatian colleagues in assisting tourists across the Split-Dalmatia County during the summer season, as part of the long-running “Safe Tourist Destination” programme, now in its 19th year.

The officers, deployed in cooperation with the Croatian Police, will be stationed at seven police stations and will work in their national uniforms, with some also carrying sidearms.

They come from Italy, Poland, Slovakia, Germany, Czechia, Bavaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and South Korea, whose officers are expected to join later this month.

Their first major assignment will be the Ultra Europe Festival.

In addition to assisting foreign visitors, they will also support crime prevention efforts.

Deployments include Split Airport, Trogir, the maritime police station, and police stations in Split and Omis.

Petar Vidulin, a Split-born officer serving with the Slovak police, has arrived for his second summer season under the programme.

He said today that Croatia is recognised as a safe tourist destination and that cooperation between police forces contributes to visitor safety.

He recalled that last year’s most difficult intervention involved a Slovak tourist who became lost in the mountains, but the situation ended safely.

“We most often deal with parking issues or lost documents. In addition to Slovak citizens, we also assist visitors from Czechia and Poland. It’s nice here, everyone says “take it slow”, but as police we can’t take it slow” we always have to be ready. The mentality of the local people is very good”, Vidulin said.