Admiral Davor Domazet Loso told a news conference in Zagreb on Wednesday that global human rights watchdog Amnesty International was in the service of British foreign policy which was trying to prevent Croatia from closing Chapter 23 (Judiciary and Fundamental Rights) and completing its European Union accession negotiations.
Commenting on reports that he was under investigation for his role in the Croatian army's 1993 Medak Pocket operation, Domazet Loso said he believed this was happening to him because he had been exposing Britain's anti-Croatian activity for a full 10 years and because he had been involved in the 1991-1995 Homeland War since its start and had participated in the planning of all major military operations.
"It seems I have been chosen as a crisis operator," he said.
In its comment on Tuesday on the AI report entitled "Behind a Wall of Silence: Prosecution of War Crimes in Croatia", the Ministry of Justice said that "preliminary investigations" were under way against Domazet Loso even though the Hague war crimes tribunal had found no evidence against him.
Domazet Loso said that this was an attempt at restoring Yugoslavia, adding that pressure on Croatia would continue in other forms until Croatian politicians gave in. He said he was sure the Croatian people would never give in to such pressure.
When asked what he was going to do next, he said he would continue promoting his book "The Croatian Homeland War 1991-1995".
His lawyer Branko Seric said that the Justice Ministry was trying to remove even the least obstacle that might threaten the closure of Chapter 23 in EU membership negotiations. He said he was confident that once the chapter was closed no more questions would be raised about the Homeland War.
Seric said prosecutors had not pressed charges against his client because there were obviously no grounds for an indictment.
