Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic commented on Friday on President Zoran Milanovic's statements about the presidential elections and the use of military means and declared that the HDZ candidate, Dragan Primorac, will win the presidential elections.

“We have not heard anything from the badly beaten constitution-breaker for a long time, who he swept off the political stage after he staged a coup before the parliamentary election, and now that autumn is approaching and he has been travelling around using military means, he is trying to shift the blame onto someone else. That I am travelling by plane from Gorica to Dugo Selo is a blatant lie,” Plenkovic said in response to Milanovic’s statements made earlier in the day.

“There is no need to use military helicopters”

Regarding the accusations that he flies with military helicopters, Milanovic said that he flew all summer with a Russian-made helicopter, not a Black Hawk, and that “Plenkovic flies from Gorica to Dugo Selo with his party friends in an aircraft that is ten times more expensive.”

The government aircraft is used transparently, it can be tracked on radar, every flight is made public, the aircraft is only used for official purposes and very rarely for travelling within Croatia, Plenkovic said.

“Those who say that it is normal to use military means for transporting protected persons when they are not on duty and that helicopters have to fly anyway are trying to take Croats for fools. There is no need to use military helicopters at all. Is an Audi A8 not good enough? That’s sheer arrogance,” he said.

“This disgrace should be removed from Pantovcak”

Commenting on Milanovic’s statement that he was an obstacle for the HDZ, Plenkovic said that the situation was the other way round and that his HDZ party was an obstacle for arrogance and primitivism.

“This disgrace should be removed from Pantovcak (presidential residence) so that the institutions can finally function normally. The upcoming elections (the presidential elections in December) should serve so that we can finally restore normality in Croatia, elect sensible, serious people who will work in the interests of Croatia (to) remove the person who holds pro-Russian views in the biggest global crisis,” Plenkovic said, calling Milanovic a fraud.

On the reintroduction of compulsory military service

Milanovic called for a meeting of the Defence Council to be convened on Wednesday to discuss the reintroduction of compulsory military service. He emphasised that the government could not reintroduce conscription without his consent and without discussion with him, whereupon Plenkovic said that there were other ways to communicate with him on this issue.

“The proposal for eight-week military training is being drafted by experts in the Ministry of Defence, and when it is ready, it will be sent to him. It’s not about anyone doing something just because they feel like it or want to override procedure. It is not realistic to take part in meetings with someone who calls your party a Nazi party,” said Plenkovic.