President Milanović Comments on His Visit to Albania: That Was State Business, My Visit Was Official
After the first session of the Energy Transition Council of the President of the Republic of Croatia, President Zoran Milanović answered journalists’ questions about his visit to Albania. The Office of the President had already responded to the Conflict of Interest Commission following an earlier query on the matter.
“The public knew about my visit as we informed the public about it beforehand. I went there at the invitation of the Prime Minister. It was a real visit, but in summer form. You ask why it was declared as private, probably due to an oversight. I did not declare anything private as public, and there were such cases in the past. I did the opposite. The Prime Minister invited me. He welcomed me there and the embassy was informed about that. It’s the opposite of one case from a couple of years ago that concerns my predecessor. We declared the trip as a private visit and I apologize for the oversight. I couldn’t move about privately; the police always surrounded me,” said President Milanović, emphasizing that in Albania he met with Prime Minister Edi Rama, that a Croatian military envoy who arrived from North Macedonia was also there and that the Croatian Embassy was informed about his visit. “That was state business, that’s my duty and I apologize for the oversight,” he said, adding that he is not concealing anything and that the visit was official.
When asked by journalists about the documentation related to the trip, President Milanović said that he did not have a travel order because travel orders for the President of the Republic are not issued in the Office of the President, as the President does not take foreign currency per diems. He believes that paying out per diems to the President of the Republic, but also to the Prime Minister and ministers, amounts to “pocket-picking of the state budget,” since all travel expenses are covered.
“I don’t want to defy the Commission. I declared as private something that is actually official, but I did not conceal anything. It’s my fault. When you declare something as official and then go privately, then there’s a problem. I didn’t do that. I went to a man, not as his consultant,” he added, explaining that he was never an advisor to the Albanian Government. The President said the Conflict of Interest Commission should request documents from the Ministry of Defence or ask those who witnessed the trip.
President Milanović refuted claims that he used a military helicopter and navy boat for private purposes, saying security decided on how he travelled, not he. “I have not used military resources for travel, I never do that. That’s not for me to decide. My movements are strictly controlled and if I want to go somewhere, my security usually makes decisions on that. A helicopter is a means of transportation. Helicopters are used according to the assessment of security services, in line with the needs and possibilities for their use. Military helicopters have their own capacities and an optimal number of flight hours. It is normal that as President, in accordance with security assessments, I fly on Croatian helicopters because pilots need to fly. That is the case in many countries,” the President explained.
President Milanović posed the question of how the information on the number of flights performed became public, which some media outlets reported on, since that should have been kept confidential. “This concerns the movement of a person that is determined by the level of protection. If this would be announced, then what is the point of having a protected person? Annul that and I will travel by car in a traffic jam, by tram… I announced my visit to Albania. This was an entirely official meeting and much more eventful than any that happens by protocol,” President Milanović underscored. The President confirmed that his wife accompanied him during the visit to Albania.
Asked if the Government knew about the content of the meeting, the President said: “I also talk with foreign statesmen over the phone and of course the Government cannot know what I talked about, just as I don’t know what the Prime Minister talks about. The important thing is not for us to have knowledge of everything, but to be coordinated and to have a common direction.”
The President also replied to journalists’ questions on the GDP drop. “The Government had no influence on that, you can’t blame anyone. It’s the second quarter and after that we had tourism revenues higher than expected, so I think the third quarter will not be as bad. We are too dependent on some economic activities. It all comes down to how long this scourge will last, how much we will protect those who need our protection, for the situation is extraordinary. We must show a bit more of self-control than usual and continue to live normally,” said President Milanović. Asked whether salaries should be cut due to the situation in the country, he replied: “I gave up one salary for the reconstruction of Zagreb. For now, there is no need to cut salaries. We will have a huge budget gap. We do have more money at our disposal; there are EU funds. The military budget has been cut and that’s fine, it can be financed. Money will be lacking for welfare and we will see if it will be lacking for salaries. I am trying to be constructive.”