Having a working knowledge of the English language is probably not necessary for all Croatian politicians. But for Damir Krstičević, who negotiates major international arms deals, or Dubravka Šuica, who represents Croatia in the European Parliament, the ability to communicate effectively in English would seem essential. And they make up the foundation of the image Croatia presents to the world.
A recent video of Krstičević, Minister of Defense and Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia, struggling through a speech in English at an event in the United States went viral. It was then rapidly incorporated into a spoof advertisement for a “Basic English For Dummies” language course on a local Croatian comedy TV show. And Index recently posted a video montage of Dubravka Šuica, HDZ member of EU parliament and Vice President of the European Commission, attempting to communicate to her audience in English, even though she obtained a college degree in the language.
RTL Direkt created a video montage of Croatia’s top politicians speaking English on January 10, 2020. And TCN included a video of attempts by RTL Direkt to interview Croatian politicians in English, which occurred on the same day, and also revealed mixed results.
Here’s a closer look at ten of the most powerful Croatian politicians giving speeches or interviews in English, from best to worst, plus a surprise bonus at the end. Politicians’ English-speaking abilities are rated on the following four criteria: fluency, grammar, vocabulary and accent.
#1 Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović
The current Croatian President’s English-speaking skills are flawless. Not only does she deserve a number one ranking, but she’s in that number one spot by far. Grabar-Kitarović spent a year in Arizona in the 1980’s as a high school exchange student and speaks English with a strong Southwestern American accent. Her confidence in the language is obvious and well-deserved. In this interview with Good Morning Britain, she discusses her views on Brexit and the challenges of being a woman in Politics.
Fluency: 5
Grammar: 5
Vocabulary: 5
Accent: 5
Total: 20
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= RH7cBBGAUjE
#2 Andrej Plenković
The current Croatian Prime Minister is proficient and confident in English. He speaks with a slight Croatian accent with palatalized t’s and rolled r’s. He pronounces Theresa May’s first name with a “th” rather than a “t”. In this interview with France 24, he discusses Brexit, Catalonia independence and other EU topics.
Fluency: 5
Grammar: 5
Vocabulary: 5
Accent: 3
Total: 18
#3 Zoran Milanović
The former Croatian Prime Minister and current President-Elect also shows a strong command of English. He pronounced “th” with a soft “d” or “t” and misses some a’s and the’s in his sentences. He discusses the 2015 Migrant Crisis in Croatia in this video with France 24.
Fluency: 5
Grammar: 4
Vocabulary: 4
Accent: 3
Total: 16
#4 Ivo Sanader
The former Croatian Prime Minister, who is serving a 6-year prison sentence for corruption, also appears to have a strong command of English. He rolls his r’s and missed some the’s and a’s. In this video for AP, he provides a brief summary of his meeting with former US President George W. Bush.
Fluency: 5
Grammar: 4
Vocabulary: 4
Accent: 3
Total: 16
#5 Ivo Josipović
The former President of Croatia speaks a more heavily palatalized version of Croatian-English. His delivery is slower, with short pauses. Like others, he misses some the’s and a’s, and pronounces th’s with a very soft “d”. In this interview for TRT World, he discusses his return to music and plans to compose a musical about John Lennon.
Fluency: 4
Grammar: 4
Vocabulary: 4
Accent: 3
Total: 15
#6 Davor Bernardić
The current President of SDP speaks a slightly palatalized English and his sentences also miss the’s and a’s. He pronounces the word happy “heppy” and his speech at the International Crime and Punishment Film Festival, as recorded by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, was very brief, which suggests a limited working vocabulary.
Fluency: 3
Grammar: 4
Vocabulary: 3
Accent: 3
Total: 13
#7 Dubravka Šuica
The current HDZ member of EU parliament, Vice President of the European Commission and former Mayor of Dubrovnik, received a degree as “Professor of English” according to media reports. Her Croatian-English, as compiled in a recent Index video, is so heavily accented that it’s almost intelligible. In addition to heavy palatalizing and missing the’s and a’s; she comes up with several humorous sentences and word segments including:
“I don’t need anyone’s emotions here.”
“This is closed circle.”
What’s even more humorous about her “massacre” of English is her disproportionately confident delivery. Her behavior suggests that of a very senior esteemed college professor casually gifting her vast pool of knowledge to a group of eager students, who hang on to her every word. Not only is that not the case; she doesn’t seem aware that the joke is on her. Simply not understanding what she was trying to say wasn’t the only reason EU parliament members might have appeared perplexed or unimpressed.
Fluency: 2
Grammar: 2
Vocabulary: 3
Accent: 2
Total: 9
#8 Jadranka Kosor
The former Croatian Prime Minister is clearly uncomfortable reading her speech in English at the 2010 Zagreb Annual Meeting and Business Forum as recorded by Radio Federacije BiH. At one point she stumbles on the name of an organization and reverts to Croatian. Her delivery is heavily palatalized and filled with most of the common letter mispronunciations including rolled r’s and separated g’s. Her struggle suggests that her knowledge of English is probably very limited and she seemed particularly eager to sit down at the end of her short speech.
Fluency: 1
Grammar: 2
Vocabulary: 2
Accent: 2
Total: 7
#9 Damir Krstičević
This is the viral video of Damir Krstičević, Minister of Defense and Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia, speaking English at an event in the United States. It was later integrated into a spoof commercial “Basic English for Dummies” on the Croatian TV show Prime Time on N1. Like his HDZ contemporary, Dubravka Šuica, Krstičević comes up with several curious phrases:
“The same idylls we fought for in our honor war.”
“Keep in mind that every success is merrily a stepping-stone to new challenge.”
At the end of his speech, he suggests:
“You ask me great questions. Ah…probably I will speak in Croatia, and my advisor…she will translate, if you agree.”
Fluency: 1
Grammar: 2
Vocabulary: 2
Accent: 1
Total: 6
#10 Ingrid Antičević Marinović
A former member of Prime Minister Ivica Račan’s cabinet and current justice of the Croatian Constitutional Court, the Honorable Justice Antičević Marinović speaks English with a lovely Croatian-Italian accent. Many of her words and sentences end with an extra soft “a” syllable, which gives her diction an oddly pleasant lilt, even though her content is virtually unintelligible. In this 2013 video, she discusses the problem of corruption in Croatia.
“I think-a it’s a job-a that never-ending ending-a. It’s-a our permanent task.”
Fluency: 1
Grammar: 2
Vocabulary: 2
Accent: 1
Total: 6
#BONUS Milan Bandić
In this Index video, the infamous Mayor of Zagreb is asked “What are you wearing tonight?”
“Yes,” he answers a few times.
After a few more attempts by the interviewer, he answers “speaking Croatia.”
Fluency: 0
Grammar: 0
Vocabulary: 0
Accent: 1
Total: 1
Follow our Politics page for more information on the English language speaking skills of prominent Croatian politicians, and important developments taking place during Croatia’s six month EU presidency.
