The President of Croatia, Zoran Milanović, did not give his consent to the proposed government decision on the participation of members of the Croatian army in the mission to support Ukraine, it was announced today in Zagreb.
"Croatia cannot significantly influence the war in Ukraine in any way, nor can it stop it. But, with a well-thought-out and responsible policy of the state authorities, it can prevent the spread of the war towards the Croatian borders and ensure peace and security for all Croatian citizens. That's why I refused to give prior consent to the decision on the participation of the Croatian army in the mission to support Ukraine," explained Milanović, his press service reported in a statement.
The Government of Croatia, through the Minister of Defense, asked the President and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces for prior consent to the proposed decision on the participation of Croatian soldiers in the missions, operations and activities of NATO, the European Union and the United Nations.
According to the Croatian Constitution, all proposed decisions are made by the Croatian Parliament by a majority vote of all deputies, if the President of the State gives prior consent to the decisions.
If the president withholds his consent, the Croatian Parliament can make such decisions only with a two-thirds majority of all deputies.
As stated in the announcement, the government sought approval for 13 decisions, among which are the continued participation of military personnel in NATO operations KFOR and SEA GUARDIAN, as well as in the mission in Iraq.
"The President did not give prior consent only to the decision on the participation of members of the Croatian Army in NATO activities for security and training support to Ukraine (NSATU)," the announcement states.
Milanović assessed that this mission can "potentially have a harmful effect on the national interests of the Republic of Croatia".
"According to the Constitution, the Government can ask the Croatian Parliament to vote on the proposed decision, and if the Government's proposed decision receives the support of two-thirds of the deputies, the decision will enter into force and the President will respect it," the announcement states.
Milanović reminded that the government's proposal is based on the decision of NATO from the meeting in July this year in Washington, in which he also participated, but that he did not oppose that decision at the NATO level, because the member states themselves decide whether and which way to participate in that activity.
"It is important to know that the president was not consulted in any way about the positions that the Republic of Croatia advocated in the preparation of the aforementioned decision. Violating, again, its constitutional obligation, which requires the government to cooperate with the president in the field of foreign policy and defense, the government not only undertook the obligation on behalf of Croatia and already prepared the aforementioned decision on sending members of the armed forces without consulting the president," the announcement states.
It is also recalled that the President of Croatia "very clearly communicated his position that he is against the participation of members of the armed forces in such missions".
"Russian aggression against Ukraine is inadmissible and represents a violation of international law that we must all condemn. The president has repeated on several occasions and stands by the position that Ukraine is a victim of aggression and that Croatia should also provide it with all possible humanitarian aid," the statement said.
Despite the military aid that Ukraine receives, the end of the war is not in sight, but, as the president states, there is a danger that the war will spread beyond the borders of Ukraine.
"The task of the president of the state, and in his opinion also the task of all Croatian state institutions, is to protect Croatia from war and to take all measures to keep Croatia out of war conflicts. This is precisely why the president did not give prior consent," the statement added.
It is emphasized that Croatia, as a full member, has an obligation and duty towards its allies in NATO and the president "doesn't question that in any way".
Milanović emphasized that the war in Ukraine is a consequence of Russian aggression, but that it does not represent an attack on one of the NATO members and Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty cannot be activated, so there is no international legal obligation for Croatia to participate in activities that would bind it. with that war.
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