Croatian President Zoran Milanović and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković exchanged sharp criticism over Zagreb’s position on the war in Ukraine and the participation of Croatian servicemen in international missions.
Plenković raised the issue on November 10 in the Croatian parliament while presenting the results of the European Council meeting. He said that Croatia had missed the opportunity to participate in missions to train and support the Ukrainian army, blaming Milanović’s policies and the left-wing opposition that supported him.
“We missed that train,” the prime minister said. According to him, the Croatian army is not participating in the European Union’s EUMAM Ukraine mission or NATO’s NSATU mission, even though the activities are being carried out outside Ukraine. Plenković pointed out that more than 100,000 Ukrainian servicemen had been trained במסגרת EUMAM Ukraine.
The prime minister described Croatia’s non-participation as a “serious deficit” and said that the country was not gaining experience from direct military cooperation with Ukraine. He also said that the Ukrainian armed forces are among the best-trained and most adaptable in Europe.
Milanović: Plenković is humiliating the Croatian army
On November 11, Milanović responded with sharp criticism of the prime minister. The president accused Plenković of humiliating his own army while praising Ukraine’s, and of failing to defend Croatian interests.
“Instead of defending peace, he is defending the war and dragging Croatia into a foreign conflict. Croatia does not need this,” Milanović said.
The president rejected the claim that participation in international missions would automatically mean sending Croatian soldiers to Ukraine. He pointed out that not a single Croatian serviceman had been sent to the joint NATO-Ukraine centre JATEC in Poland, even though, according to him, he had supported such participation around eight months earlier.
Milanović also said that on October 12 he had sent Plenković a letter about problems concerning the material condition and readiness of the Croatian armed forces. He had also proposed convening a meeting of the Defence Council.
The dispute between the president and the prime minister continues against the backdrop of their differences over Croatia’s role in NATO, military support for Ukraine and the limits of the country’s involvement in the war.
Sources: vijesti.hrt.hr, tportal.hr, novilist.hr