President Milanović Receives Heroes of Osijek Association Delegation on 30th Anniversary of 130th Croatian Army Brigade Formation

The President of the Republic Zoran Milanović met in the Office of the President with the Heroes of Osijek Association representatives, who are members of the 130^th Croatian Army Brigade, on the 30^th anniversary of the formation of the Brigade from Osijek.  

The members of the Heroes of Osijek Association informed President Milanović of the circumstances in which the 130^th Brigade of the Croatian Army was formed on the 25^th of October 1991. In November of that year, after the fall of Vukovar, the Brigade found itself under attack by enemy troops whose goal was to intercept the Osijek-Đakovo highway and surround the city of Osijek. Wartime Commander of the Brigade Živko Mijić highlighted the courage of its members, thanks to which the aggression against Slavonia and Eastern Croatia was halted, and Osijek was successfully defended. Some 3,500 Croatian defenders passed through the ranks of the 130^th Brigade, which suffered great casualties: 63 members were killed, 370 were wounded and 22 went missing.

The major contribution of the 130^th Brigade’s military engineers was also discussed at the meeting with the President. As was underscored by the wartime Chief of Engineering Zlatko Dernaj, who is today the Association’s President, the Brigade was the first in Croatia to launch demining efforts to make agricultural and economic activity in the area of Osijek possible once again. More than 10,000 hectares of agricultural land belonging to the IPK Osijek enterprise were successfully demined, again enabling agricultural production. The village of Ivanovac and its entire surrounding area was cleared and demined, as were the northern and southern route of the transmission line to the Ernestinovo Power Station and the military training grounds in Čepin and Osijek.

The documentary “Heroes of Osijek – 130^th Croatian Army Brigade” was made about the Brigade and its heritage has been preserved and promoted for years by members of the Association. The representatives of the Association described the very successful multimedia exhibition “Osijek under attack of brutal aggression” as their paramount project, which was showcased not only throughout Croatia, but also in several European cities and the European Parliament in Brussels. The members of the Association also presented their plan for opening a museum in Osijek to President Milanović and asked for his support in its realization.

The following persons attended the meeting with the President of the Republic: former members of the 130^th Croatian Army Osijek Brigade; members of the Heroes of Osijek Association; Commander of the 130^th Croatian Army Osijek Brigade Živko Mijić; Chief of Engineering and President of the Heroes of Osijek Association Zlatko Dernaj; RBHO Chief and Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations Milan Prpić; Chief of the Quartermaster Service Vladimir Cini; Commander of the Engineering Company Pavao Bradarić; Brigade Command Officer Ivana Hećimović; Military Engineers Dalibor Demeter, Ivica Govorušić, Željko Dodig; General Affairs Officer of the Engineering Company Miroslav Pavrlišek.

Special Adviser to the President of the Republic for Homeland War Veterans Marijan Mareković was alongside President Milanović.

PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Dario Andrišek