By training Ukrainian soldiers Croatia is not entering the war

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Wednesday that Croatia would participate in the training of Ukrainian soldiers as part of an EU mission, and criticised President Zoran Milanović and his supporters for opposing this, noting that during the Homeland War Croatian soldiers had also been trained by foreign instructors.

Croatia, by decisions of its government, has been willingly supporting Ukraine for months -- politically, diplomatically, financially, economically and by sending humanitarian and military aid, Plenković said in his opening remarks at a cabinet meeting.

"If any of these boycotters, criticisers and pro-Russian politicians in Croatia has forgotten that, it would be good for them to become aware of that," the prime minister said.

Milanović said on Tuesday he did not support the idea of Ukrainian troops being trained on Croatian soil because that would mean Croatia getting involved in the Ukraine war more than was necessary. He announced that he would veto such a decision if necessary.

Plenković said he was appalled by the President's reaction and even more by the reactions of his supporters in Parliament  "who are revealing their pro-Russian views."

He said that the European Union was establishing a military assistance mission for Ukraine. 

Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman, "together with 20 other EU foreign ministers, has expressed Croatia's general readiness to participate in the training of Ukrainian soldiers, and 12 countries, including Croatia, have expressed their readiness for such training to take place on their territory," Plenković said.

"This does not mean that Croatia is entering the war nor that the war is coming to Croatia. This is Croatia's policy within wider EU activities through the assistance mission," the prime minister said, noting that Croatian soldiers, too, had been trained by foreign instructors during the 1991-1995 Homeland War.

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