ZAGREB, 15 July 2022 - The Croatian Parliament voted confidence in the Minister for the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković, to take up the office of Deputy Prime Minister, previously held by Finance Minister Zdravko Marić who had resigned at his own request.

The longest-serving minister in the present government received votes from 79 lawmakers, 49 voted against and one abstained from the vote.

Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković wished Butković success in his new office.

Butković thus become one of the four deputy prime ministers, alongside Tomo Medved, Davor Božinović and Anja Šimpraga. He will take charge of the government's coordinating body for the economy.

Butković announced earlier that the government would increase large-scale investment in infrastructure and continue to ease the tax burden.

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ZAGREB, 14 July 2022 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Thursday that Sea, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Oleg Butković had been in the government the longest and that he was more than competent to assume the role of a deputy prime minister.

Presenting Butković at the parliamentary Constitution, Standing Orders and Political System Committee as a candidate for deputy prime minister, Plenković said he had extensive political experience, knew well how the government worked and would need no major adjustment.

Butković is a vice president of the HDZ party, the president of its Primorje-Gorski Kotar branch and runs a ministry in charge of big investment and infrastructure projects, with the upcoming inauguration of Pelješac Bridge as the crowning achievement, Plenković said.

He added that last night, after this week's decision on Croatia's accession to the euro area, Fitch increased Croatia's credit rating and that other agencies announced they would, too.

With his experience and the government's economic team, Butković will contribute to finding solutions, notably in the context of the energy and food crisis and inflationary pressures, Plenković said.

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ZAGREB, 4 June 2022 - Deputy Prime Minister Tomo Medved said on Saturday he was confident that at its session at the beginning of next week the government would adopt measures to stop energy price hikes, adding that citizens would not be left on their own.

"I'm confident that these measures we will adopt... will again be aimed at stopping the (price) growth and at helping our population, just as we have done throughout this time behind us," he told the press in Karlovac.

Medved said Prime Minister Andrej Plenković was working together with Economy Minister Davor Filipović and Finance Minister Zdravko Marić on concrete measures, including excise taxes and the possibility of cutting margins.

"We see that energy prices are rising. Croatia has dealt with that successfully so far, using every measure at our disposal. Our people certainly won't be left at the mercy of rampant energy price hikes."

Asked if the measures were late and about his stand on variable excises as mentioned by the opposition, Medved said "the opposition is proposing without responsibility and constantly criticising, which is understandable," but "the government has the responsibility and has so far reacted with timely and appropriate measures, and it will do so now."

He said he was confident that "citizens know, very much so, the effort the government is making so that they can weather the burden of these price hikes more easily, and we will come up with available measures to help them."

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ZAGREB, 28 April 2022 - The parliamentary Committee on the Constitution, Standing Orders and Political System on Thursday supported by majority vote Anja Šimpraga for deputy prime minister, amidst criticism from the right and praises from the left, which nonetheless withdrew its support.

Šimpraga, an MP of the Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS), received seven votes for and three against.

It is expected that the parliamentary majority will support her tomorrow as deputy PM for social activities and human rights.

The committee's right-wing members called her out for not respecting the fact of the Serbian military aggression on Croatia or the legitimate 1995 Operation Storm.

Left-wing members praised her personally and her work so far, but would not support her, saying this vote was not about her but the Andrej Plenković cabinet.

Presenting her to the committee, Plenković said he expected her to contribute to human and minority rights and to hate speech prevention in line with the government's concept.

Šimpraga said she would deal with the most vulnerable social issues, such as human and minority rights, gender equality, the rights of the LGBT community, Roma and all other vulnerable groups, as well as with the aftermath of the 2020 earthquakes.

Šimpraga said she would work in the spirit of her predecessor Boris Milošević, "who brought peace", continuing to build inter-ethnic confidence and inclusion.

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ZAGREB, 25 Aug, 2021 - It is important that hate stops and is not passed on to new generations because only that way, can we build a better Croatia, Deputy Prime Minister Boris Milošević said at a commemoration for the civilian victims of the 1995 Operation Storm in Plavno and Grubori near Knin.

"Unfortunately, those who know what happened in Grubori 26 years ago have chosen silence, they have chosen to protect those who committed the crime. Those who have chosen to keep silent and those who committed the crime, just as all of us here, need to be aware of the importance of human life, including in war, when people get killed. There is no higher goal that can justify the killing of elderly and infirm civilians," Milošević said at the commemoration, organised by the Serb National Council (SNV) and the Šibenik-Knin County Serb Minority Council.

One should not differentiate between victims, justify crimes

Noting that one should not differentiate between victims or justify the crimes committed by one side with crimes committed by others, Milošević said that forgiveness did not give legitimacy to crimes nor did it mean oblivion but rather "that we opt for the future and hope."

"Those who committed this horrible crime with impunity did not expect that the survivors who were expelled from here would return," SNV vice-president and Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS) MP Anja Šimpraga said.

She noted that the state had finally launched reconstruction in Grubori and that the first steps had been made in that regard.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić's envoy Veran Matić said that so far "Croatia has failed in every possible respect when it comes to Grubori."

"By rebuilding Grubori, a process that was launched last year when a new policy of reconciliation was introduced here, Croatia would show that indeed it has not failed in every respect when it comes to this area," Matić said, adding that the return of pre-war villagers could not threaten anyone.

Pupovac: Awareness of need for reconciliation built in Grubori

SNV president Milorad Pupovac said that Grubori was one of the places where an awareness of the need for forgiveness and reconciliation was fostered.

"We are doing our best for the number of such places in Croatia to grow. Much stronger reconstruction efforts are needed in this area, in terms of public lighting, public transportation and social care," he said.

On Ustasha salute

He also commented on current debates about a ban on the Ustasha salute "For the homeland ready".

"Below the society's surface, a battle is being waged between what constitutes today's democratic Croatia and what constitutes a pro-Ustasha Croatia and its integration in today's Croatia as a legacy. That is a battle we should wage and for that, we need media, schools, public authorities, as well as the government, parliament and the president of the republic, and not only courts and criminal laws," said Pupovac.

Today's commemoration in Plavno and Grubori was held for 32 people killed in Plavno and for six Serb civilians killed in its hamlet of Grubori.

Former members of the Anti-Terrorist Unit Lučko Frano Drlje and Božo Krajina were tried on two occasions for the murder of the six Serb civilians in Grubori on 25 August 1995, but the Zagreb County Court acquitted them both times for lack of evidence.

The Supreme Court upheld the verdict in October 2019 and explaining its ruling, it stated explicitly that there had been attempts to cover up the atrocity.

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ZAGREB, 4 March 2021 - Deputy Prime Minister Tomo Medved said on Thursday that inspections of the remaining 2,000 buildings damaged in the December earthquake should be inspected in the next 10 days, which would bring initial quick inspections to a completion.

"So far a total of 35,772 buildings have been inspected, 4,227 that were labelled red (unfit for use), as well as 7,743 buildings labelled yellow (temporarily unfit for use)," Medved said during a cabinet meeting.

Medved heads the task force dealing with the aftermath of the 29 December earthquake, underscored that a list was being updated of hazardous buildings and that documents for their demolition were being prepared.

He added that so far 2,883 people from earthquake-affected areas in central Croatia had temporarily registered their residence in other towns throughout the country.

He also said that 2,897 applications for reconstruction had been submitted.

Medved advised  that 51 polling stations in earthquake-hit areas have experienced damage and that in agreement with the State Electoral Commission the task force will arrange for alternative localities for polling stations for the local election in May.

Medved added that temporary accommodation is still being organised and to date 1,594 housing containers or mobile homes have been set up.

ZAGREB, Sept 2, 2020 - Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Zdravko Maric said on Wednesday after an inner cabinet meeting that keeping jobs is a priority and that support measures for sectors affected by the coronavirus crisis, such as hospitality and transport, will be made known in the next few days.

Maric made the statement while responding to reporters' questions about the continuation of measures for the hospitality sector, which Tourism and Sports Minister Nikolina Brnjac had announced earlier, saying that they were on the table and being taken care of.

He said that internal consultations were ongoing and recalled that the government had generously financed support for the economy, however, he noted that everything has its fiscal repercussions and fiscal possibilities.

"This year the budget result is not a priority, however, in these circumstances it is necessary to find funds and ensure budget sustainability for this year and the years to come," said Maric.

Keeping jobs is a priority, he said, recalling that the government had presented a shorter working week and that the recently approved SURE program would provide a little more than €1 million in loans for Croatia.

Intensive talks are underway regarding the generous envelope that is part of Europe's recovery plan, Maric said, adding that testing was already underway regarding the use of support in hospitality.

Maric added that he understands the problems faced by the occasional transport sector whose representatives earlier in the day handed out leaflets to lawmakers listing their problems.

We have embarked on horizontal measures and have continued to support tourism and transport and everything will be made known in the next few days, he said. 

Our priority is to keep jobs and we are willing and ready to do the best we can, he added.

Maric explained that there had not been any money in the budget for the first round of support either, however, the money was eventually found and efforts would be made to continue to preserve jobs.

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ZAGREB, Aug 24, 2020 - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic said on Sunday that Croatia had won an imposed war and that it was oriented to the future and wished to commemorate every victim, and that it expected Serbia to take part in that dialogue more constructively.

"Croatia is turned to the future and we primarily want to commemorate every victim," Jandrokovic said in Barban in a comment on the announced visit of Deputy Prime Minister Tomo Medved to Grubori, where members of Croatian forces committed a war crime in 1995.

Jandrokovic, who was attending the 45th Prstenac tournament in Barban, said that history was well known and that it was well known who in the 1990s war was the aggressor and who the victim.

"Our messages have been very clear - the ball's no longer in our court, we expect Serbia to participate in that dialogue much more constructively, turned to the future," he said.

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