Head of State Jakov Milatovic He allegedly said at yesterday's meeting of the Supreme Command that the session of that body would not continue until the Ministry of Defense reinstates the commander of the Navy of the Army of Montenegro (VCG), who had been suspended earlier that day. Darko Vuković, claims one of the participants in the session. However, Milatović's security and defense advisor Dejan Vuksic denies this, stating that it is untrue that the president said he would block the continuation of the session.
"... Because he has never in any way questioned the functioning of the Defense and Security Council, as the supreme body in the field of defense and security, which he heads, unlike those decision-makers whose irresponsible behavior leads to such situations, and who, instead of implementing the Council's decisions, act in the opposite way, thereby jeopardizing the integrity of the Armed Forces of Montenegro," Vukšić told the editorial staff.
The other two participants in yesterday's session, who were contacted by "Vijesti", neither confirmed nor denied that Milatović announced that the session would not continue until Vuković was reinstated.
The Council session, which had several important issues on its agenda, was adjourned without an official explanation. A source from MIlatović's office said that the session "has been postponed and a new one will be scheduled, with the same agenda, if nothing changes in the meantime."
However, the background to the events, which should have been discussed at the session, is quite clear - a new conflict between President Milatović and the Minister of Defense. Dragan Krapović.
Ahead of the session, early yesterday morning, the Ministry of Defense removed Vuković from his post and initiated disciplinary proceedings against him. This was preceded, as "Vijesti" reported, by a letter from the head of the Navy to the head of state, in which he complained that Krapović was mobbing him, that is, that his rank was not respected when entering the ministry building and the seating arrangement at meetings.
One of the participants in the session told the newspaper that no decision was made on the adoption of its agenda. Milatović allegedly rejected the prime minister's proposal. Milojko Spajić to discuss the Vuković case and the controversial appointment of the president Milan Bigović for the acting head of the military intelligence service is discussed under the item "miscellaneous", after which a controversy about Vuković followed.
Third member of the supreme command (apart from the president and prime minister), head of parliament Andrija Mandic, did not, the source claims, comment on the proposed agenda "in any particular way."
The session was attended by both Vuković and the man who proposed his suspension - the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Montenegro. Miodrag Vuksanović.
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According to unofficial information from "Vijesti", Milatović asked Krapović during the discussion whether Vuković's removal from office and the initiation of disciplinary proceedings were illegal, to which the minister replied that he could not say whether it was or was not, but that there were courts that could assess this once the disciplinary proceedings against Vuković were concluded.
The editorial source claims that Vuković said at the session that he had not sent the letter to Milatović, but that, after it was pointed out to him that the president had proposed that the issue of the letter be the fourth item on the agenda, he stated that he had sent the same letter to Vuksanović, and that he had informed the head of state of its contents.
Krapović, according to the same source, then asked Vuković if he had ever approached him about a problem he was having with the ministry, to which he received a negative answer. Milatović allegedly stated that the Minister of Defense was an “administrative person,” to which Krapović replied that he was a politician who answered to the Prime Minister and the Parliament that elected him.
Who defends honor, who humiliates the army
Milatović's cabinet called the decision to suspend Vuković illegal, saying that it was "a continuation of Krapović's retaliation and arrogant behavior."
"The attempt to subordinate the Armed Forces of Montenegro to political interests is dangerous and unacceptable. The military must remain above politics," they wrote on the Iks website.
"Vijesti" asked the Ministry yesterday whether Krapović believes that his conflict with Milatović is undermining the integrity of the Army, and what consequences it will have for it, to which Vuksanović responded, saying that Vuković was removed from duty solely at his proposal and in accordance with the law.
He claims that this decision was not made at anyone's behest, under anyone's pressure, or as a result of any personal or institutional disagreements.
"Therefore, I most strongly and without any reservation deny the claims that this decision is a consequence of the alleged conflict. That is untrue. Because if that were true, then it would mean that the Chief of General Staff is acting according to political demands, and not according to the Constitution, the law and professional conscience," Vuksanović stated.
He stated that the Army is not anyone's political outpost, nor a space for pressure, blackmail, and construction, adding that it is an "institution of honor, hierarchy, and law."
"The decisions I make - I make them with a cool head, a clear conscience and with full awareness of the responsibility that the uniform I wear carries. Whoever tries to present this lawful decision as a personal showdown or a political act is not attacking me - they are attacking the principle of civil-military balance, the professional autonomy of the Army and the state itself. I will not agree to that. Never," Vuksanović underlined.
He stated in a statement yesterday that Vuković's actions recently represented a flagrant violation of the principles of subordination and single-seniority in command and the duty to execute orders, which is the reason for initiating the procedure to determine disciplinary responsibility.
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According to him, Vuković carried out a series of actions aimed at directly attempting to undermine the authority of the Chief of General Staff.
"I believe that the constant resistance and attempt to impose Vuković as another man in the Army just because of his personal rank and the creation of parallel structures within the Army of Montenegro must not go without a response from the system," said Vuksanović, adding that the violation of the principle of subordination and single-command "by any member, especially those who hold high ranks and should be a role model and example in everything, must have a clear, timely and precise response from the system, which will not "adapt to the individual, but vice versa."
On the other hand, Milatović's office told "Vijesti" that decision-makers in the defense department humiliated the Army yesterday.
"... Because the Commander of the Navy of the Armed Forces of Montenegro, Vuković, was ambushed, and he was unlawfully removed from duty and stopped on the street by the Military Police and forced to leave his official vehicle," said Dejan Vukšić.
He claims that this was an attempt to prevent Vuković from performing his official duties and attending the Council session, at Milatović's invitation.
"An officer-general with 30 years of honorable service to his homeland found himself on the street, in a Montenegrin army uniform, trying to secure transportation to the venue of the Council session. This event best shows who humiliates the Army and threatens its integrity," Vukšić assessed.
According to "Vijesti", yesterday morning, the military police changed the locks on the door of the Navy Commander's office in Bar and handed Vuković a suspension order.
What is Vuković complaining about?
In June, the Defense Council appointed Vuksanović as Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Montenegro, and Vuković as Commander of the Navy of the Armed Forces of Montenegro. This was the solution, after months of conflict between Milatović and Krapović over who should be the first man in the Army. Milatović publicly announced that he preferred Vuković as Commander-in-Chief, while Krapović insisted that it should be Vuksanović, in which he was supported by Spajić and Mandić.
Since all decisions of the Council must be made unanimously, it was agreed that Vuksanović and Vuković, at the proposal of the Minister, would be appointed to their current positions. Vuksanović was simultaneously promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, and Vuković to the naval rank of general - commodore.
However, shortly after Vuković took office in September, problems began. “Vijesti” reported yesterday, citing claims from an interlocutor in Milatović’s cabinet, that Vuković stated in a letter to the president that “the minister is mobbing him” because, among other things, he is not allowed to enter the Ministry of Defense building in Podgorica through the main entrance, where some officers with a lower rank than him also enter, but through the official entrance on the other side, where all visitors are “searched” by military police.
Vuković ignored the building's entry regime several times and "ran around" the main reception desk, and allegedly refused to attend meetings on several occasions because of this and returned to Bar, the headquarters of the Navy of the Armed Forces of Montenegro.
The decision on the regime for entering the building was made by Krapović, upon assuming the ministerial position.
Vuković also complained to Milatović that his rank was not respected at meetings he attended at the Ministry, as he was made to sit “in the third or fourth row”, with lower-ranking officers in front of him. The Navy Commander stated in the letter that he believed that this treatment had “infringed on his officer’s honor and professional authority”.
"Vijesti" sources claim that Vuksanović asked Krapović to reconsider his decision on the regime of entry into the building, but that the minister refused. The interlocutor from the Ministry explained that this was Krapović's earlier decision, that the main criterion for entering the building and seating arrangements at meetings is the function in the Armed Forces of Montenegro and not rank, and that all employees enter through the official entrance, except for the minister, the Chief of the General Staff, and the directors of directorates in the Ministry - who enter through the main one.
The first conflict between Milatović and Krapović began after the minister, at the end of August last year, submitted a request to the Supreme Command for the dismissal of the then Chief of the General Staff. Zoran Lazarevic due to the assessment that "a generational change and rejuvenation of the officer cadre" is needed.
The council rejected it because there was no consensus among its members on the matter. Milatović opposed Krapović's proposal, saying that he would support the dismissal of Lazarević when he was told what the brigadier general had not done properly, or what he had done wrong. Spajić and Mandić supported Krapović's request.
The Minister of Defense subsequently annulled the decision by which Lazarević, who at that time met the conditions for retirement, had his term of service extended until June of this year in 2023, noting that the Chief of General Staff met the conditions for termination of service, i.e. that he had over 40 years of insurance service and was 55 years old.
However, Krapović's decision was overturned by the Government's Appeals Commission. In the end, the Council dismissed Lazarević, because his term of office had expired, and a compromise was reached, as mentioned, on the appointment of Vuksanović and Vuković.
Who is asked about what in the Army?
According to the Constitution (Article 130), the Council makes decisions on commanding the Army, analyzes and assesses the security situation in the country, appoints, promotes and dismisses army officers, proposes to the parliament the declaration of a state of war and emergency, as well as the use of the army in international forces, and performs other tasks stipulated by the Constitution or law.
According to the Law on the Army, the army is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff, while the minister ensures the implementation of the decision on commanding the army.
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