Politics

ZAGREB, 5 August, 2022 - President and Commander-in-Chief Zoran Milanović on Thursday called for speaking against oblivion and downplaying of the Homeland War, noting that Croatia's path to independence was a right one and that it does not have to apologise to anyone. Milanović was speaking in Knin at a reception for Croatia's wartime commanders, held on the occasion of Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and War Veterans Day and the 27th anniversary of Operation Storm, a combined military and police operation that ended a Serb armed insurgency in August 1995 and restored Croatian sovereignty over occupied central and southern parts of the…

ZAGREB, 4 August, 2022 - Current regional leaderships extensively politically exploit the 1990s wars, former Croatian foreign minister Vesna Pusić has said, noting that it is "shameful" that 27 years after Operation Storm, that Croatian military operation is still a challenge in Croatia-Serbia relations. In an interview with the Belgrade-based "Danas" newspaper, published on Thursday, Pusić says that she does not see anything strange in the fact that people in Croatia were happy to see that the war was ending and that the country's territory would be whole, which "in no way means that one celebrates the fact that the war ended with between 150,000…

ZAGREB, 4 August, 2022 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Thursday issued a message for Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day, marking the 27th anniversary of Operation Storm that ended the four years of Serb occupation of central and southern parts of Croatia. On 5 August, "we commemorate the moments of national pride, glory and unity and remember the courage and determination of the Croatian defenders. We are immensely grateful to them because without their sacrifice there would not be a free and democratic Croatia," Plenković said. "It is therefore our lasting obligation and responsibility to ensure a dignified status for the…

ZAGREB, 4 August, 2022 - Croatia must help strengthen energy security by upgrading its gas pipeline, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in an interview with the Jutarnji List daily, published on Thursday. Energy and the issue of secure and reliable energy supply in the context of the Ukraine war and sanctions against Russia is currently the main topic probably in all EU member countries. After the global financial crisis and the health crisis caused by coronavirus, the energy security crisis is a new test for the EU's internal strength and resilience, with crucial decisions in dealing with that…

ZAGREB, 4 August, 2022 - The general government debt at the end of April 2022 was HRK 356.1 billion, 18 billion or 5.3% more than in April 2021, show data from the Croatian National Bank (HNB) while analysts of Raiffeisenbank (RBA) expect the debt to continue growing due to growing needs for financing. The year-on-year increase in the general government debt is due to an increase in both domestic and foreign debt, with domestic debt going up by HRK 7.6 billion or 3.5% compared to the end of April 2021 to HRK 225.9 billion, while foreign debt increased by HRK 10.4 billion or…

ZAGREB, 4 August, 2022 - War Veterans Minister Tomo Medved on Thursday issued a message on the occasion of Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day, saying that Operation Storm heralded peace and an end to the 1991-95 Homeland War. "As we remember the days that heralded peace for our people, we provide consolation and express immense respect to all those for whom the end of the Homeland War did not bring final peace - the families of Croatian defenders gone missing in the war," the minister said in his message. Croatians owe the freedom they live in today to Croatian defenders, and…

ZAGREB, 3 August, 2022 - Several NGOs held a half-hour anti-war protest in Ban Jelačić Square in downtown Zagreb on Wednesday to commemorate people killed and expelled during and in the aftermath of the 1995 Operation Storm, stressing that the crimes committed are the responsibility of the state and should be prosecuted. Participating in the rally were representatives of the Centre for Women Victims of War - ROSA, the Centre for Civil Courage, the Youth Initiative for Human Rights, the Association for Social Research and Communications from Sarajevo, and the Women's Network of Croatia, who expressed solidarity with all victims of war and war…

ZAGREB, 3 August, 2022 - Defence Minister Mario Banožić clarified on Wednesday that he will not be able to attend a reception organised by President Zoran Milanović on Thursday ahead of the 27th anniversary of Operation Storm because of his scheduled work obligations. The President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces is holding a reception for Homeland War commanders at the Knin Fortress on Thursday on the occasion of Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and Croatian Veterans Day to mark the 27th anniversary of Operation Storm. Banožić said that two years ago, the Defence Ministry decided to include the President in the event,…

ZAGREB, August 3, 2022 - After a commemoration for the WWII Romani victims of genocide in Uštica, near Jasenovac, on Tuesday, Roma MP Veljko Kajtazi said that this was the first time Roma were starting to speak publicly about the suffering of the Roma people. He noted that today's commemoration was attended by many young Roma people, and that the most senior state officials now attended the commemorative event as well. Asked if he expected an apology from President Zoran Milanović for his latest statements about Roma, Kajtazi would not give a straightforward answer. "I stand by what I have already said…

August the 3rd, 2022 - Are Croatian exchange offices doomed to failure as Croatian Eurozone accession rapidly approaches, and with the sending of the kuna to the history books set to take place on the 1st of January, 2023? As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, six hundred kuna for one hundred euros has become a common amount that is obtained when exchanging these currencies during the height of the summer tourist season when you have to convert money at local Croatian exchange offices. That is all due to alter with the arrival of the euro as the country's official currency, and the need…