Andrej Plenković reacts to criticism by veterans associations that the government has been too lenient with Serbia.
HDZ president Andrej Plenković said that Serbian government and all institutions including the war crimes prosecutor should be very thoughtful when commenting on the EU accession negotiations and conditions which Croatia embedded into the position of the European Union, reports Novi List on July 23, 2016.
He pointed out that it was important for the Croatian public, and especially for veterans' associations which are concerned with the whole process, to understand that the current Croatian government had done all it could to protect national interests and veterans’ rights so they would not be in fear of possible secret indictments. He added that HDZ, in relation to Serbia's opening of chapters 23 and 24 in negotiations with the European Union, is protecting the rights of Croatian veterans and Croatian interests in all foreign policy activities.
Plenković pointed out that, at the insistence of the Croatian government and diplomacy, chapter 23 benchmarks now include many elements with regards to the relations with Serbia. He stressed that especially important one was the protection of Croatian minority in Serbia. Another extremely important thing, according to Plenković, are the missing persons issue and the possibility of compensation for war victims. “There is also the issue of full cooperation of Serbia with the Hague Tribunal and the most sensitive issue concerning the avoidance of conflict of jurisdiction with regards to war crimes prosecution”, he said.
Plenković added that all countries of the European Union had adopted the position that Serbia must meet all the criteria in the negotiations. He also pointed out that previous government did not take part in lobbying activities, while the activity of Serbian diplomacy was very visible and strong. “This HDZ government has insisted on the protection of Croatian national interests and we will continue to do so in the future as well”, he added.
“We are not talking about impunity for war crimes, because we are a country that has transformed its legal system, but we want to ensure the legal security for our citizens”, concluded Plenković, talking about the controversial Serbian law which gives it jurisdiction to prosecute war crimes committed in the territory of the whole of former Yugoslavia.
