‘The decision on the transport Airbus should be reconsidered. It’s a big plane. We need something else’

Croatian Minister of Defense Ivan Anušić announced on Tuesday in Ankara that Croatia will participate in a joint air transport project in a coalition of seven NATO member countries. Seven member states participate in the multinational NATO project of a joint fleet of Airbus A400M aircraft: Belgium, France, Croatia, Poland, Spain, Turkey and Great Britain. Anušić explained that this does not mean that Croatia will have to own such aircraft, but that it will use them together with other partners participating in the project.

Milanović said today in Montenegro that he generally supports the strengthening of the capabilities of the Croatian army, but believes that the decision should be reconsidered once again. He claims that the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia (GS OSRH) questioned him about such a solution and believes that this type of aircraft does not fully meet the needs of the Croatian Army.

“It’s a big plane that Croatia will use very rarely. Our army needs something else,” Milanovi said. after a meeting with representatives of Croats in Montenegro.

He added that before the final decision, additional discussions should be held with the military leadership and alternatives should be considered, citing as an example the Czech Republic, which chose smaller transport planes that better suit its needs. Milanović warned that defense should not be guided only by political trends and pressure to spend more, but by the actual needs of the army.

‘I’m not inciting against Serbia, but we have to ask what’s going on with it’

He also referred to his earlier statements about arming Serbia, after which Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić called out, calling his claims “foolish.” He repeated that he does not consider that he is inciting against Serbia, but that it is his duty to warn about issues that he considers important for Croatia’s security.

“We are in NATO, they are not. If a neighboring country is arming itself with systems that cause attention, every normal country must ask what is in it for them,” Milanovi said.

He said that he did not want to analyze the internal politics of other countries, but that Croatia had to take into account its own interests.

“The European Council is not the private property of the government”

Milanović also reflected on his conflict with Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovi in ​​representing Croatia in the European Council. He claims that this issue is not the exclusive authority of the prime minister.

As an argument, he cited the constitutional role of the president in matters of foreign policy, security and defense. “It is not the private property of either the prime minister or any party, but a matter of constitutional authority,” said Milanović.

He said that the way of representing Croatia in the highest political body of the European Union should be agreed between the president and the prime minister, and not exclude one of the institutions in advance.