MFA: Croatia not refusing to train Ukrainian troops

Zagreb is considering two options for assistance to Ukraine: training Ukrainian service members on the territory of Croatia and sending Croatian instructors to the territory of a third country.

Though the President of Croatia rejected the request of the country’s defence minister to approve the conduct of training of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the country, it does not mean that the decision will not be made, Ukrinform reports.

"We are not talking about Croatia's refusal to train the Ukrainian military. Indeed, in accordance with his authority, President Zoran Milanović rejected the request filed by the defence minister. At the same time, this does not mean that a decision will not be made," Oleg Nikolenko, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, told Ukrinform in a comment.

He noted that the Ukrainian side is working with the Government of Croatia to "greenlight" Croatia's participation in the EU training mission through the Parliament of Croatia.

"Zagreb is considering two options for helping Ukraine: training Ukrainian service members on the territory of Croatia and sending Croatian instructors to the territory of a third country," Nikolenko said.

The MFA Spokesperson underscored that Ukraine highly values the support and solidarity with our country from the Croatian government headed by Andrej Plenković.

As reported, President of Croatia Zoran Milanović rejected the request filed by Defense Minister of Croatia Mario Banožić to approve the conduct of training of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the country, saying that, according to the Constitution, only the president, the government, or the parliament are authorized to file such a request, as well as for other formal reasons. In particular, the President's Office noted that Banožić allegedly did not specify what exactly the Ukrainian military would do in Croatia, describing the tasks of the EU Military Assistance Mission for Ukraine only in general terms.

The EU Military Assistance Mission for Ukraine was launched in October this year. Within its framework, the Ukrainian troops are to be trained in the territory of the EU, but the president of Croatia stated that he would not allow this to be done in his country.