The time has come for Croatia to be, after joining the European Union on July 1 this year, no longer a small state but a small force that will know how to articulate its interests and goals, President Ivo Josipovic said at Split's Law School on Tuesday at a talk on Croatia's foreign policy.
"New possibilities are opening up in the new stage of Croatia's foreign policy. As a European country we also have new funds and are heading towards a Croatia that stops being a small state and is becoming a small force."
Since 1990, Croatia's foreign policy had the characteristics of a small state and the main goal of such states is to wage a policy of silence in order not to make enemies, and "there is often a Big Brother directing them to his goals," the president said, adding that, "As of July 1 this year, we will act in the region as a part, a representative of the European Union."
Commenting on relations with neighbours, Josipovic described those with Serbia as "very complex," those with Bosnia and Herzegovina as "complex," those with Montenegro as "extremely good". As for Slovenia, he said the prospects of solving the dispute over Ljubljanska Banka's debt to Croatia were good.
Josipovic said that after joining the EU, Croatia's borders would not become a "Chinese Wall" but be open for trade, adding that Croatia had big economic interests in cooperating with its neighbours.
Speaking of Croatia's global position, the president said there remained the lasting strategic partnership with the United States but that Croatia would also open towards others big economic states.
"We won't neglect some states and I would especially mention Russia and China as countries with great possibilities," Josipovic said, noting the need to also develop cooperation with India, Japan, Australia, Kuwait and Qatar.
Speaking of Croatian troops in peace missions, the president said "the most sensitive for us is the involvement in Afghanistan." In this context, he thanked the Islamic community in Croatia for helping Croatian troops in Afghanistan be acknowledged by the local population, which he said had contributed to the safety of Croatian troops there.
Josipovic said the mission to Kosovo was also sensitive because of Croatia's relations with neighbouring Serbia, as was the mission to the Golan Heights, from where, he recalled, Croatian troops would be withdrawn because of allegations in international media that Croatia had smuggled weapons to the rebels in Syria. "We didn't traffic in those weapons," he said.
Responding to questions from those attending the talk, Josipovic said that as president he tried not to become involved in party conflicts. "If I became involved in arbitration, I would very soon lose my constitutional position."
Commenting on a group of retired army generals who recently accused the government of "internal aggression," the president said each of them had the right to state their opinions and disagreements, also with him as the president, but that they should not be doing so through their non-governmental organisation HGZ.
He said that if they wanted to deal in politics "they should join parties."
