President Milanović Is Repeatedly Calling on the Croatian Government to Urgently Establish a Permanent System for Formulating and Implementing Foreign Policy
The President of the Republic Zoran Milanović is reiterating his position that the Republic of Croatia must have a unified and coordinated foreign policy that is equally and jointly formulated and implemented by the Government of the Republic of Croatia and the President of the Republic. The system of formulating and implementing foreign policy is prescribed by the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia and it is President Milanović’s view that it is the only way that the Republic of Croatia, through its foreign policy, can realize its state goals and protect its national interests.
The Office of the President of the Republic is informed of the position of the Government of the Republic of Croatia on the resolutions of the war in Ukraine, which should be voted on in the United Nations. However, before it took its position on the resolutions in question, the Government of the Republic of Croatia did not consult with the President of the Republic. Consequently, the President of the Republic did not participate in formulating the position that the Government of the Republic of Croatia presented in institutions of the European Union and the United Nations.
Given the rapid and dramatic changes in the international political and security situation, President Milanović has repeatedly called on the Government of the Republic of Croatia to urgently establish a permanent system for formulating and implementing foreign policy so that the Republic of Croatia can quickly respond to changes and challenges in international politics. President Milanović previously proposed the establishment of a Foreign Policy Council and is doing so again, confident that this is the most efficient way to formulate and subsequently implement foreign policy. In the meantime, until the proposed format of cooperation is established, the only way to formulate and implement foreign policy, as prescribed by the Constitution, is a direct conversation and agreement between the Government of the Republic of Croatia and the President of the Republic.
Related to the adoption of a resolution by the United Nations, the President of the Republic feels that the UN is definitely one of the key international forums where attempts should be made to arrive at a solution and an end to the war in Ukraine and through direct negotiations between the warring sides. The President of the Republic expects that the Croatian diplomacy will support every solution in the UN that contributes to peace in Ukraine regardless of the positions of other international factors.