Milanović, Photo: Screenshot/Youtube
Croatian President Zoran Milanović stated today that Croatia should look after its own interests and “not push itself into a coalition of the willing.”
“In these moments of confusion in Europe and a drama that is still awaiting catharsis in Ukraine, where thousands of soldiers have died, we can only hope that there will be more reason. I do not want Croatian politicians and leaders to be among the guilty and among the responsible because there is no need for that,” Milanović said at the celebration of the 34th anniversary of the Croatian Military Academy “Dr. Franjo Tuđman” in Zagreb.
He added that “we should mind our own business and our own interests, not push ourselves into any coalitions of the willing, because then what is NATO for?”
Milanović warned that “Europe has changed dramatically” and warned that the situation in NATO has also changed due to the positions of the United States of America (USA), his cabinet announced.
“We hear about the sources of the threat, not only in the words of the NATO Secretary General, but also several heads of state and government of the largest European countries. We hear that it is a matter of days before there will be a conflict with Russia. People hear it and they are not indifferent. They are afraid, they are afraid, is it true and is it possible? I don’t think it is and I think it is beyond reason,” Milanović assessed.
He welcomed the Parliament’s decision to reinstate mandatory military service next year, which will last two months, saying that Croatia “is short of about four thousand people for formation replenishment.”
“We in Croatia have opted for this, I welcome it and I think it is a good decision, to reintroduce the possibility of serving military service, which is not mandatory,” said the president, who had previously questioned the possibility of returning military service.
He warned that despite this, there will be a shortage of soldiers and assessed that “the fear psychosis that is being created is contributing to people being somewhat reserved and ambivalent.”
“In the meantime, we need to build capabilities, knowledge and arm ourselves, but also, in approaching negotiations and agreements on armaments, we should not get carried away by some kind of holograms of strategic allies who then sell the same goods to your neighbor, who is not in NATO, and more modern goods and who knows what else,” said Milanović.
He assessed that this, however, “will not cost Croatia its security, because these are small countries.”
“It won’t cost us as much as it did in 1991, even in the worst-case scenario, which I believe will never happen. But this whole episode is about states, I won’t name them, looking only at their own interests and will sell out to anyone who offers money in order to earn and gain strategic influence. The only state that doesn’t behave like that is the US,” Milanović said.
He concluded that “these lessons should be learned slowly, not carried away, be loyal and well-intentioned, but also observe things and see what the relationships are like.”
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