Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic described President Zoran Milanovic’s decision not to authorise the participation of Croatian soldiers in a NATO support mission for Ukraine as manipulation and denied that Croatia would be dragged into the conflict as a result.

Milanovic issued a statement and a video message on Tuesday in which he explained why he did not authorise the participation of members of the Croatian armed forces in the NATO mission “Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine” (NSATU).

NSATU is a mission that was decided at a summit in Washington in July. It will involve around 700 soldiers from NATO member states and their partner countries, who will be coordinated in Wiesbaden, Germany.

Plenkovic: Milanovic undermines Croatia’s international position

Plenkovic described Milanovic’s refusal as “perfidious manipulation” and said the president was “undermining Croatia’s international position” He rejected the claim that it was about preventing Croatia from being dragged into the conflict with Russia and said Milanovic had only “prevented five officers from going to Wiesbaden”.

The Prime Minister emphasised that no soldiers from the NSATU mission would go to Ukraine, especially not Croatian soldiers. He criticised Milanovic, who represented Croatia at the NATO summit in Washington, for not raising his hand and speaking out against the decision at the time.

Milanovic said he was “not against the adoption of such a decision at NATO level, because after the decision, the member states will decide individually whether and how they will participate in the mission.”

He had previously spoken out against the participation of Croatian soldiers in the EU training mission for Ukrainian soldiers, which was later also rejected by Parliament, meaning that Croatia did not take part in this mission either.

Despite the president’s opposition, the government can still ask parliament to authorise Croatia’s participation in NSATU with a two-thirds majority.

Ukraine was one of the first three countries to recognise Croatia’s independence

Plenkovic said he would talk to the parliamentary groups to see if they support the decision. He added that he “will not bother the people” if it is clear that there is no two-thirds majority.

“This is about nothing other than a continuous undermining of the Croatian government’s foreign policy stance that Russia is the aggressor and Ukraine is the victim and that we, as a country that was a victim of Milosevic’s Greater Serbian aggression in the early 1990s, have a natural reflex to help the victim,” he said, recalling that Ukraine was among the first three countries to recognise Croatia’s independence.

In his speech, Milanovic condemned the Russian aggression, calling it “unacceptable” and “a violation of international law.” Ukraine is a victim and should receive all necessary humanitarian aid, which Croatia will continue to provide, but “without the involvement of armed forces,” he said.

Plenkovic also said that Milanovic had refused to give his consent “because he knows” that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will soon be coming to a summit of south-east European countries and Ukraine, which will take place in Dubrovnik.