Croatia will offer assistance to Ukraine in demining and in prosecuting war crimes, two segments in which Croatia has "an unfortunate experience" from the 1991-1995 Homeland War, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said in Dubrovnik on Saturday.

Addressing the 16th edition of the forum in this seaside resort, PM Plenkovic said that Croatia could help Ukraine in several ways, particularly when it comes to the clearance of landmines and the prosecution of war crimes, in which Croatia had “an unfortunate experience” being a victim of the military aggression in the 1990s.

We plan to complete the clearance of mines, left over from the war, by 2026. We talk about 35 years of mine clearance activities in one territory considerably smaller than the territory of Ukraine, Plenkovic said at the “Navigating the Global Reshuffle” panel within the two-day Dubrovnik Forum.

The panel brought together the European Union’s High Representative Josep Borrell, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, as well as ministers from several southeastern European countries, the secretary-general of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejcinovic Buric, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic and some other distinguished guests.

Plenkovic recalled that Croatia’s experience in prosecuting war crimes could also help the efforts to strengthen international justice and help secure accountability for war crimes.

Pejcinovic Buric said that the Council of Europe had strongly and unequivocally responded to Russia’s war of aggression and that Russia was therefore expelled from the CoE membership.

For “viable and just peace” to be attained in Ukraine, it is necessary to hold to account those responsible for war crimes, she said.

Addressing the panel via a video link, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba reiterated that it was important for Ukraine to get “a clear signal” at the forthcoming NATO summit in Vilnius that the country will be able to join the alliance when the necessary requirements are met.

Kuleba thanked Croatia for holding this important forum.

EU enlargement, illegal migrations

The panel also revolved around the enlargement of the European Union to the Western Balkans and irregular migrations.

Plenkovic said that for years, Croatia had talked to partners in the EU that the Union had not been sufficiently involved in southeastern European region, and that other actors would take advantage of that situation.

Things changed in 2018 when Bulgaria was the chair of the Council of the EU, said he.

Plenkovic added Croatia would use its experience to prioritise this topic.

Regarding illegal migrations he described it as one of the basic issues than made some EU members reserved towards the Union’s expansion.

“We must take this issue very, very seriously.”

Plenkovic praised the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for a job well done in the protection of the Greek border and thus the protection of the EU’s external border.

Minister Tajani said that the Italian government treats the Western Balkans as a priority and that it is essential to support full EU membership of Ukraine and Western Balkan countries.

Italy finds it important to halt the inflow of illegal migrants through the Mediterranean and western Balkan routes, and Tajani called for concerted action in countering the smuggling of migrants.

We must act together against illegal migrations. We must stop smugglers. That cannot be done by Italy or Croatia on their own, the Italian FM said.

EU High Rep: Union is neither military alliance nor an NGO

Borrell commented on the EU as a geopolitical actor, underscoring that the EU was not a military alliance, neither is a nongovernmental organisation that only preaches decent behaviour and the rule of law.

In the present-day world many do not care for the rules and are ready to resort to force, as evident in Ukraine as the latest example, Borrell said.

He called for reducing the EU’s dependence on China in some key areas, and in parallel to avoid the division of the world into two eco-systems.

Sabor Speaker Jandrokovic called for putting the focus on the protection of democracy.

We need to protect our values, our democracy and to explain to people that it took much effort to build our societies based on those values: peace, freedom, democracy, the rule of law and the protection of human rights, said Jandrokovic.

This should not be taken for granted, he warned.

Jandrokovic said that fake news, hybrid and cyber threats and extremism from the left and the right can undermine democracy.

“We can see irresponsible politicians who offer superficial policies and not arguments. They offer unrealistic solutions to the general public,” he warned.