After more than five weeks, finally a firm deadline from MOST on a new PM or new elections.
“Either we will have the Prime Minister-designate by Tuesday or we will have new elections”, MOST leader Božo Petrov said yesterday evening. Petrov also announced that today they will hold meetings with HDZ at noon and at 7 pm. “SDP can participate in both meetings tomorrow, and we hope that they were honest with their offer to take part”, Petrov said. He added that it was now clear that a tripartite government should be formed. “There will be no new delays. On Tuesday, we will know who the Prime Minister-designate is or we will go towards new elections”, Petrov repeated, reports Vecernji List on December 18, 2015.
MOST later announced that the meeting at noon will include five representatives from MOST and five people from other two coalitions which want to enter a tripartite government. “Topic of the first meeting is to select key reforms we can all agree about.” The second meeting will discuss the names for possible non-partisan Prime Minister. “The talks will continue until Sunday night at the latest. All parties wishing to participate in the formation of the government have been invited to the meeting”, MOST announced.
SDP has confirmed that Croatia Is Growing coalition will take part in Friday’s meeting between MOST and HDZ-led Patriotic Coalition. It is not known who will represent the coalition at the meeting, since SDP party president and current Prime Minister Zoran Milanović is at a meeting of European Council in Brussels. Milanović said yesterday that he did not believe that a solution with Božo Petrov or a non-partisan expert as prime minister is a good solution for Croatia. “But, we can talk about a solution which is not good for Croatia, since other solutions may even be worse, and then we have to choose between two bad solutions”, Milanović said.
HDZ President Tomislav Karamarko commented on a decision by Milanović to change his mind about cooperation with MOST and Patriotic Coalition. “Perhaps he will eventually join HDZ or MOST. It is amazing what this man is ready to do.” He added that he believed the negotiations with MOST could be completed by Tuesday. Karamarko did not want to answer a hypothetical question whether they would talk with SDP if MOST accepts them as partners. “We will perhaps talk, but under firm conditions. These are all just hypothetical questions”, he concluded.
