Croatian President Zoran Milanovic said on Wednesday in the northern town of Varazdin that Serbia had no right to issue indictments against the wartime Croatian commanders.

The topic of indictments issued in Belgrade against four Croatian pilots is one more reason for convening the National Security Council, said the president explaining that at the meeting the state leadership should adjust the position on how to respond to the moves in Belgrade.

“We have instruments to respond.”

“Belgrade, President (Aleksandar) Vucic and his aides have decided that it is now an opportune time for them to raise the indictment against four Croatian wartime commanders. I personally know two of those pilots and I can absolutely guarantee that they are not nationalists and that they are not responsible,” Milanovic said.

As for the timing of the topic, Milanovic said Belgrade has raised this issue to divert the attention from some problems it is facing now.

“Serbia is taking liberties with holding trials for all that had happened in the area of former Yugoslavia no matter where it happened and when it happened. Croatia does not do such things, although it is in a much stronger political and general position than Serbia. We therefore try to play fair.”

Croatia can tomorrow raise an indictment against the current Serbian president for him having gone on the rampage on Croatia’s territory in 1995, Milanovic said.

In relation to Serbia’s indictment alleging that some of the victims in a refugee column at the Petrovac road were reportedly children, President Milanovic said he was sorry, however, the Croatian commanders from the Homeland War should not answer for that.

“I do not resort to those utterly pathetic statements to mention Croatian children as war victims. There are children, people, citizens, there are Croatian children. However, when you hear someone mentioning ‘Serb children’ in the political discourse, you should be aware that they are crooks and dangerous crooks,” said Milanovic.

He also expressed dissatisfaction with the response of the Andrej Plenkovic cabinet to the the matter of the indictment and wondered what the government is going to undertake to protect those pilots as well as other commanders who may also face the charges from Serbia, including General Pavao Miljavac and Admiral Davor Domazet-Loso.

The president assessed that Serbia’s conduct in this case also adversely affects the “rather fair” relations between the Croats and the Serbs in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This also definitely further worsens already bad relations between Croatia and Serbia,  he said.