ZAGREB, February 15, 2020 – President-elect Zoran Milanović has confirmed that Dragan Lozančić will be his advisor on national security and defence, declining to comment on outgoing President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović’s decision to dismiss Lozančić as Security and Intelligence Agency chief and saying only that she had the right to do so but that her explanation was unusual.
Answering reporters’ questions in Pazin, where he attended an event marking the 30th anniversary of the Istrian Democratic Party (IDS), Milanović recalled that the Lozančić case happened five years ago and that “the President of the Republic had the right, together with the government, to dismiss and appoint officials.”
“And that is what she did. But I must say that her explanation was really unusual, that’s all. Politics goes on, parties compete and I don’t see anything that would require my comment. That happened five years ago, it remains to be seen if the competent institutions will conclude or take action to establish if there was anything illegal in that case.”
Milanovic confirmed that Lozančić would be a member of his team, as an advisor on national security and defence.
He added that the information on his advisors published by the media so far was mostly correct and that he would make their names public once he took office.
“I have made, more or less, all the decisions. The inauguration will be held on February 18, at the Office of the President, it will be a republican inauguration, not ceremonial as it used to be. Forty people have been invited and I hope no one is offended by my choice of inauguration,” Milanović said.
Asked by reporters if after taking office he would meet with the leadership of the Croatian Bishops’ Conference (HBK), he said that he would do it very gladly.
“Those details and forms are very important. I did it when I was Prime Minister, particularly in the first year and a half of my term. The situation later got a bit complicated, I still don’t know why because I was very much careful about what I did and even more about what I said. Orsat Miljenić was the person in charge of high-level liaison also back then. Contact has been maintained and I look forward to cooperation,” he said.
He added that the situation regarding the Vatican agreements “is a done deal”.
“Everything I said during the campaign and in debates has been recorded and should I start acting differently, bring that to my attention,” Milanovic said.
He would not comment on the latest developments in the ruling HDZ party in the context of intraparty elections.
Speaking of his cooperation with the IDS, he said that he would not have attended today’s event if he did not have a good opinion of the party. “The philosophy and practice of regionalism has brought a lot of good to Istria. This region has made progress much faster than other Croatian counties, and not only because there was no war here. Istria is a well-governed region and a lot of credit for that goes to the IDS,” Milanović said.
More news about Zoran Milanović can be found in the Politics section.
