It is uncertain whether there will even be a session of the Defense and Security Council today due to the dispute between the heads of state Jakov Milatović and the Prime Minister Milojko Spajić about the presence of the Minister of Defense and the Chief of the General Staff at it, "Vijesti" learns.
After Milatović confirmed to journalists yesterday that he did not invite Dragan Krapović i Zoran Lazarevic to the session of the supreme command at 10 a.m. in Villa Gorica, and assessed that the minister "by his actions disqualified himself from further invitations from my side to attend the sessions", Spajić's cabinet informed the Council that he was inviting them.
According to "Vijesti" information, the head of the cabinet Branko Krvavac he informed the secretary of the Council, colonel Velibor Bakrač that the prime minister to resume the session, which was paused on October 11, except for his advisor Todor Goranović, invites both Krapović and Lazarević.
Milatović allegedly refused, and last night, in a statement from the Spajić cabinet, he said that in that case the session "will not make sense".
That he did not invite the minister and the chief of the general staff, Milatović confirmed to journalists after the ceremony on the occasion of the Day of the Municipality of Danilovgrad, saying that "it is difficult to change attitudes".
"The Council consists of the Presidents of the State, the Assembly and the Government. Somewhere earlier, I said that the Minister of Defense, by his actions, disqualified himself from further invitations from my side to attend Council sessions. The government is represented by the Prime Minister", said the head of state and added that at the session they will ask to make a decision ordering Krapović to return full powers to Lazarević, "as the Defense and Security Council appointed him".
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As he added, Montenegro has a Chief of General Staff until June next year and he must represent the Army of Montenegro in the country and abroad. Krapović forbade Lazarević to do so by order.
"I have repeated many times, the Minister of Defense cannot assume the role of the Council. Things are very clear and I expect the other two members to act in accordance with the law and the Constitution," said Milatović.
Krapović previously said at the press conference yesterday morning that he did not receive an invitation, and that it is up to the president to assess who should attend.
"I did not receive an invitation, and I express my concern about how they will make the decisions that were proposed, because there will be no one to explain them," he pointed out.
He did not answer why he was not invited and said that he did not wish to attend, but said that as a responsible man he will do his job and attend where he thinks he should.
The Prime Minister's Cabinet announced last night that the Council should continue in the same format "in order to make the best and most professional decisions".
"On the agenda... there are certain proposals related to the status in the service of officers of the Croatian Army, for which we consider it necessary that the members of the Council receive a detailed explanation from the Minister of Defense, which is why we proposed his continued presence during the same session of the Council that was paused last times", the statement says, adding that Spajić proposed the presence of Lazarevic "whose expert opinion would be of key importance for making informed and responsible decisions".
The Cabinet states that "according to the available information" Milatović does not agree with their presence, "thereby endangering the basic principle of transparency and quality decision-making in the Council.
"We are convinced that (their) presence is of essential importance for the decision-making of all members of the Council, including the President of the State. If there is no willingness to facilitate these conditions, just holding the session... will not make sense due to the lack of information from the two most invited to give detailed explanations on the given topics..."
According to the Rules of Procedure of the Council, the Ministers of Defense, Foreign and Internal Affairs, the Chief of the General Staff of the Army, the Director of the Police Directorate and the Director of the National Security Agency, as well as other persons, may attend the session of that body, without decision-making rights, upon invitation.
After the announcement by the Prime Minister's office, the head of state's office told "Vijesti" that neither the minister nor the chief of the general staff were invited to the session, because "Spajić does not have the right to invite anyone, but according to the rules of procedure, the Council convenes" the president.
"If Council members could invite whomever they want, it would be anarchy. Spajić knows that he cannot do that, because earlier when he wanted his defense adviser to attend the session, he duly addressed the Council. He knew then that he could not call. Therefore, neither the minister nor the head of the GŠ were invited," an interlocutor from Milatović's office told the newspaper.
The session of the Council began on October 11, and the main topic to be discussed is Lazarevic's letter to the members of the Supreme Command, in which he accuses the Minister of Defense of actions that harm the Army of Montenegro (ACG). Meanwhile, the agenda was supplemented by the proposal of the Ministry of Defense for the participation of Montenegro in the NATO mission to establish security assistance and training for Ukraine, and the proposal of the Ministries of Education and Health to enable the presence of the police in schools and health institutions.
On August 28, Krapović submitted to the Council a proposal on the dismissal of Lazarević due to "the assessment that a generational change and rejuvenation of the officer cadre in the Army is needed", but Milatović was against it and Spajić and the head of the parliament Andrija Mandic for. The Council makes decisions by consensus. After that, Krapović submitted it to the Supreme State Prosecutor Milorad Marković information about the alleged illegal actions of Lazarevic.
According to the "Vijesti" source, Milatović asked at the session "to drop the ball" and demanded from Krapović to lift the ban on Lazarević's activities abroad. Krapović allegedly refused, saying that these were his responsibilities and that he would not deviate from them.
At the same time as the request for Lazarevic's dismissal, Krapović submitted a proposal for the appointment of a colonel at the end of August Miodrag Vuksanović for the new Chief of the General Staff, but the Supreme Command did not consider the issue.
War with announcements: Who is interfering in whose jurisdiction and who is endangering the state
Krapović said yesterday that the Council does not have the authority to issue any orders to the Minister of Defense, nor to interfere in the operational issues of the Army, and Milatović's advisor Dejan Vukšić accused him of "jeopardizing the functioning of the system for whose progress and reform he is supposedly advocating."
"As the Minister of Defense, I am responsible to the Government, that is, to the Prime Minister who nominated me and to the Parliament that elected me. President Milatović, attempts to abuse the Defense and Security Council in order to 'discipline' ministers who politically do not respond to you are not only legally unfounded, but also dangerous for democratic processes in our country", stated Krapović in response to Milatović's statement, asserting that by no means he did not leave the legal framework of his powers without the fact that the reform of the Army is a complex process that requires determination and professionalism, not political manipulation.
"Don't run away from making key decisions and stop obstructing the necessary reforms in the Army and the security sector. "Don't keep the party cadres of the former regime," Krapović told Milatović.
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Vukšić replied that in this particular case "it was the Minister of Defense who interfered in the competence of the Council, and not the other way around", because the Constitution stipulates that the Council makes decisions on the command of the Army as well as decisions on undertaking appropriate measures, and the Law on the Army clearly defines that the Minister of Defense ensures the execution of decisions on commanding the Army.
"The exclusive constitutional competence of the Council is to appoint the Chief of the General Staff, and that in full capacity, and the same minister limited his duties in Montenegro and forbade him to represent the VCG abroad, which is contrary to the Council's decision... The army must not be anyone's party prey ", Vukšić said, assessing that Krapović's reaction was "dangerous for the country".
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