On the occasion of the 33rd anniversary of the shelling of the government building, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and former Prime Minister Franjo Greguric laid a laurel wreath on the memorial plaque on the building on Monday and emphasised the importance of unity in the founding of the Croatian state.

At that time, the office of the first Croatian president, Franjo Tudjman, was located in the building on St Mark’s Square in the centre of Zagreb, where he met with Ante Markovic, the president of the Federal Executive Council of the former Yugoslavia.

“The key was that the JNA (Yugoslav army), which at that time acted as part of the Greater Serbian aggression against Croatia, aimed to eliminate the Croatian political leadership and bring about the collapse of the Croatian defence in the most difficult moments of the Homeland War,” Plenkovic said.

Fortunately, everyone survived and continued an even more determined and stronger fight for the defence of Croatia, the liberation of the occupied territories and the attainment of international recognition and independence, he added.

He recalled that the Croatian Parliament declared Croatia’s independence the day after the shelling, thus cutting all ties with the former Yugoslavia and paving the way for Croatia’s international recognition.

“Once again, we remember the Croatian defenders who gave the most for Croatia, especially those who are no longer with us, as well as all civilian victims of the Homeland War,” said Plenkovic.

Greguric said that at the time of the shelling he was in the parliament building, where both the parliament and government offices were located. He added that this day cannot be forgotten and emphasised the importance of the unity that existed at that time.

“Times were different, but I must say that today it is just as difficult for those who run the country as it was during the war. Back then we were united, which is no longer the case today But the good thing is that we have what we wanted, what many died for. I am satisfied,” he said.

The wreath-laying ceremony was also attended by the then Deputy Speaker of Parliament Vladimir Seks, the then Deputy Prime Minister Mate Granic and Zdravka Busic, one of President Tudjman’s closest associates.