President Milanović at Croatian Defense Academy: Let’s be solidary with NATO partners, but first and foremost loyal to Croatian national interests
The President of the Republic and Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces Zoran Milanović attended the swearing-in ceremony of the 20th generation cadets of the Dr. Franjo Tuđman Defence Academy. In his address, President Milanović told the cadets that their primary task is the defense of Croatia, its Constitution and laws, territorial integrity, sovereignty, borders, democratically elected government and population.
“The conciseness and clearness of the oath you have just repeated and sworn cannot be shorter, clearer and more loyal”, President Milanović stated, saying that just a few sentences of the oath define a soldier – courage, constitution, law and homeland. He told the cadets that they chose a difficult and demanding, but also a beautiful and exciting life, and that they will have the support of the democratically elected civil authorities in carrying out their work.
“The primary task is the homeland – its borders, its people and finally its democratically elected government that changes according to the will of the people. All else comes as our obligation, debt of honour, contract. That’s our NATO membership, not just something written on paper, it is a very serious obligation obliging us in the event that one of our allies falls into grave danger”, President Milanović stated, adding that that has not yet happened and hoping it never would.
Stating that we are living in very complex times, President Milanović told the cadets that today the whole world is living in a more challenging time than any he remembers. “But not for Croatia. Croatia has never been more peaceful and safer. Its geographical position has never been more favourable, but the world is shaking. One of the two biggest nuclear powers attacked its neighbour, a war is going on on its borders, and nothing is as it used to be, and nothing is comparable,” the Croatian President noted. In that sense, he underlined that in such circumstances the Croatian democratic government, commanders and he as Commander in Chief have the obligation to be just, reasonable, efficient and guided first and foremost by international commitments, honour, morality and Croatian national interests.
“These interests dictate that before us are you as people, human beings, Croatian officers, Croatian soldiers, people who tomorrow, in some war or in no war, will lead an army. The war in Ukraine has shown that man, the so-called human factor, is almost as essential as technology. Croatia is the only country in Europe, and of course Bosnia and Herzegovina too, that in the last thirty years has experienced the horrors and challenges of fighting a war on its territory and defended itself from an enemy and an aggressor, at a time when the rest of Europe lived in peace and prosperity, and developed itself. No other European state had that experience. Now Ukraine’s experience is a hundred times worse. It’s up to us to be solidary, humane, objective and reasonable, but first and foremost loyal to Croatian national interests. That’s the mission, the sacred task of the Croatian Army, that’s what the Constitution says and that’s what I will honour,” the President of the Republic and Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces said in concluding his address.
Today, 77 cadets of the 20th generation of the Dr. Franjo Tuđman Croatian Defense Academy swore an oath in a ceremony attended by their parents, relatives and friends. Attending the ceremony along with President Milanović was the Adviser to the President of the Republic for Defense and National Security Dragan Lozančić.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Tomislav Bušljeta