Defence Minister Davor Bozinovic said on Monday that what could be seen in yesterday's footage of Croatian soldiers in the ISAF mission in Afghanistan could be seen at today's military exercise in Gasinci and that such situations were no surprise for Croatian soldiers, who were getting ready for every challenge.
The footage was released by 24 Sata TV, which claimed that it featured combat in an Afghan village. An unidentified man filmed from behind commented on the footage for a reporter in Croatia, saying that Croatian soldiers and mentor teams were accompanying the Afghan army in dangerous situations as well, which he added was kept from the Croatian public.
Asked to comment on the footage, Bozinovic said one could see at today's exercise that Croatian soldiers were getting ready also for situations that could be seen in the TV footage, namely that Croatian soldiers were at the rear, that they were commanding the attack and that they were in a position to call the air force backup, given that Afghan soldiers had still not acquired those skills.
"Afghanistan is, and no one is hiding this, an unsafe country, which is why we insist that our soldiers be trained, equipped and learn from previous missions, and I think we can be satisfied in this regard," Bozinovic said, adding Croatian troops in ISAF were equipped as the most elite armed forces around the world.
Asked if an investigation might be launched into how the footage was leaked to the media and if those accountable might be punished, the minister said "the Armed Forces are an organised system and act in everything in accordance with established protocols, including in this situation."
The military exercise he attended was the final preparation of a Croatian contingent before its departure for Afghanistan.
