President of the Republic Will Not Allow Attacks on Military by Daily Politics and Abuse of Powers at the Expense of Army Officers who are War Veterans
By the decision of the Minister of Defense Mario Banožić to send into early retirement the Commander of the Honorary and Protection Battalion Colonel Elvis Burčul, the Government of the Republic of Croatia bluntly attacked the usual functioning of the Croatian Armed Forces. The HPB Commander was sent into retirement on the 20th of October 2021 by the decision of the Minister of Defense, contrary to a proposal by the Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces Admiral Robert Hranj, who established that Burčul’s staying on as HPB Commander was in line with the needs of the services and in the interest of the Croatian Armed Forces.
The decision of the Minister of Defense is an attempt by the Government to run the personnel policy in the Croatian Army, which disrespects the needs of the service, the decisions of the President of the Republic as the Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces, and the proposals of the Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces, by driving decorated Croatian Army officers out of the defense system without reason and contrary to the interest of the military.
Colonel Burčul was a volunteer of the Croatian Homeland War who joined the defense of the Homeland in January 1991. He attended military academies and was appointed HPB Commander in 2016 by the decision of President Kolinda Grabar Kitarović. He performed the responsible duty of HPB Commander during the terms of two Presidents of the Republic, three Ministers of Defense and two Chiefs of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces, whereby no one in that period, not even the current Minister of Defense, had any objections to his work, and with Colonel Burčul regularly being given the highest marks by his superiors.
The decision of the Minister of Defense shows that the Government is trying to arbitrarily install personnel in a unit whose primary task is the protection, security and support of the President of the Republic as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, thereby not taking into consideration the needs of the services.
In seeking to protect the system of command and control in the Croatian Armed Forces, the President of the Republic spoke in person with the Minister of Defense, warning him about the possible consequences of his actions, and officials of the Office of the President conveyed the same message by getting directly in touch with officials of the Croatian Government and the Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia.
The President of the Republic will not allow any attacks on the Croatian Armed Forces by daily politics and abuse of powers at the expense of members of the Croatian Armed Forces, notably Croatian Army officers who are also war veterans. The President of the Republic will do everything within his constitutional powers to protect the dignity of the Croatian Army.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Filip Glas i Dario Andrišek