President Milanović Tells Soldiers at International Military Exercise in Slunj: It is up to us and up to you to defend democracy and our common way of life
The President of the Republic and Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces Zoran Milanović attended “Immediate Response 21” Distinguished Visitors Day, an international military exercise held at the “Eugen Kvaternik” military training grounds in Slunj. The exercise was held on the occasion of Croatian Armed Forces Day and Croatian Army Day, and the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Croatian National Guard on the 28th of May.
After the military exercise, which was attended by more than 1,500 members of the Croatian, partner and allied armed forces, President Milanović performed a ceremonial inspection of the participating echelons. In his address, he told the troops that they had done an excellent job.
“You have done an excellent job and you are all healthy, whole and alive. And that is the most important thing. This is a very complicated job and it is difficult to imagine a more complicated interaction between people at a job, compared to the military job,” said President Milanović. He recalled that Croatian soldiers, defenders and guardsmen first gathered thirty years ago. “They gathered in need and in fear, but at the same time in courage, to defend their country at any cost. Many of them are still alive, and those who are not would be happy and proud to see today what they wanted back in 1991. And that is the Croatian Army, the army of a modern, independent Croatian state, together with its Western allies,” President Milanović emphasized.
He wished the soldiers successful careers and that they complete them without any consequences for the mind and body, and that they return to their families and a different way of life. “It is up to us and up to you to defend democracy and our common way of life. Of course, this is much easier said than done because people experience democracy in different ways. Since you have successfully completed this exercise, without casualties or injuries, may the force be with you and may you never be tempted to use it. May temperance prevail, in the name of democracy and the way of life we used to know and may we – after this cumbersome and gruesome year, after Covid-19 – return to normal,” concluded the President of the Republic and Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces.
Commenting on the military exercise, President Milanović said he was pleased with what he saw. “This is a very complicated and demanding job; this was an exercise of organization and not a show of force. It was well done, impressive in my opinion,” he said, expressing additional satisfaction that the exercise was conducted with partners from the Slovenian and U.S. armies.
Apart from the President of the Republic and Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces, Croatian Minister of Defense Mario Banožić, Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces Admiral Robert Hranj and Commanding General of the consolidated U.S. Army Europe and Africa Christopher Cavoli attended the military exercise in Slunj.
Attending the military exercise alongside President Milanović were the Head of the Office of the President of the Republic Orsat Miljenić, Adviser to the President of the Republic for Defense and National Security Dragan Lozančić, Adviser to the President of the Republic for Foreign and European Policy Neven Pelicarić and Special Adviser to the President of the Republic for Homeland War Veterans Marijan Mareković.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Marko Beljan