"Congratulations to Gotovina and Markac for their release and that they are able to go home to their families. I greet them especially because their country and people consider them to be heroes", Sljivancanin told the tabloid.

Commenting the recent acquittal of the two generals, Sljivancanin compared the relations Croatia shows towards their generals, adding that Croatia has taught Serbia a lesson in dignity.

"If the international community believes that so many deported people do not represent a crime, the generals can't be blamed for that. They were doing their duty but their country has stood behind them while our (Serbia) is in constant fear of who will say what. We can think what we want of the Croatians but they have taught us a lesson in dignity and we should learn from them, he said.

Sljivancanin also commented on his relations with the two Croatian generals while all of them were kept in the ICTY's Detention Centre in Scheveningen.

"These generals were fair to me, and we are glad when anyone manages to drag themselves out of there (The Hague). Markac is a good cook and he would always prepare something for us to eat. We never discussed politics or other bad things, we wanted to leave all that behind us," said Sljivancanin.

Sljivancanin was originally convicted according to command responsibility to five years which was later increased in an appeal to 17 years and finally reduced to 10 years. He was released on parole after serving two-thirds of the sentence. Judge Theodor Meron was the presiding judge of the Appeals Chamber in the Sljivancanin case when he got 17 years and also the presiding judge who on Friday cleared Gotovina and Markac of all charges against them.