The objective of political cooperation of the Region of Istria with international organizations is to promote economic, cultural, scientific and other forms of cooperation. The cooperation with international organizations leads to acquiring experience and new knowledge in different areas of regional development. The objective of getting involved and participating in the  work of such thematic partnership networks is to improve a specific sector, to deepen the knowledge about European regulations and good practices, to form partnerships with other regions and finally to make and implement joint development projects.
In terms of its activities in the work of international organizations, primarily of those at the regional level of authority, the Region of Istria is one of their members and its representatives cooperate with various international organizations, initiatives and networks. Surely among the most important ones are the Assembly of European Regions (AER), the largest independent network of regional authorities in wider Europe that gathers 35 countries with 15 interregional organizations in which the Region of Istria has been a member since 1994, the Institute of the Regions of Europe (IRE) - seated in Salzburg and the Region of Istria was one of its founders in 2005, and the Adriatic-Ionian Euroregion (AIE), an organization established in Pula in 2006. Until 2001, its president was Ivan Jakovčić, the former President of the Region of Istria.

Other significant organizations that cooperate with the Region of Istria are the Alps-Adriatic Alliance, European Association for Local Democracy (ALDA), Assembly of European Wine Regions (AREV), Mediterranean Model Forest Network (MMFN), Network of European Region for a Sustainable and Competitive Tourism (NECSTouR) and R20 - Regions of Climate action. The Region of Istria has also realized cooperation with the Congress of Regional and Local Authorities of the Council of Europe and the Committee of the Regions of the European Union.