ZAGREB, Croatia The president of NATO-member Croatia lambasted Western countries on Monday for giving Ukraine heavy tanks and other weapons in its fight against invading Russian soldiers, claiming that such armament deliveries will prolong the conflict.
It’s “crazy,” according to Zoran Milanovic, to think that Russia can be defeated in a conventional battle, he told reporters in the Croatian capital.
Milanovic declared, “I am opposed to deploying any lethal weapons there. It stretches out the war.
What is the objective? Russia’s disintegration, a new administration? There is also a discussion of dismantling Russia. This is crazy, he continued.
Milanovic, a liberal with a left lean who ran for president in Croatia in 2019, defeated the country’s conservative incumbent administration. Croatia is a member of NATO and the EU. However, he has recently embraced populist nationalism and condemned Western approaches to the Balkans and Russia.
Although Milanovic has consistently denied it, he has developed a reputation for being pro-Russian. However, he has recently come out against the NATO membership of Finland and Sweden as well as the training of the Ukrainian military in Croatia as part of EU assistance to the beleaguered nation.
The Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which Russia invaded in 2014, will never again be a part of Ukraine, the Croatian president said on Monday, adding to his earlier assertion.
The United States declared it would send 31 of its 70-ton Abrams combat tanks to Ukraine after months of deliberation, and Germany said it would send 14 Leopard 2 tanks while allowing other nations to do the same.
According to Milanovic, “we are observing how someone provokes Russia with the purpose of initiating this conflict from 2014 to 2022.”
What is the aim of this conflict? A conflict with a nuclear power engaged in battle in another nation? Is there a traditional strategy to take down such a nation? On Monday, Milanovic questioned. “Who bears the cost? Europe. America makes the least money, he claimed.
We have yet to discuss tanks after a year, Milanovic claimed. “In a year, not a single American tank will travel to Ukraine. There will only be German tanks deployed there.
Milanovic is officially the supreme commander of the armed forces, even though the position of president of Croatia is largely ceremonial. His most recent anti-Western rants have angered and embarrassed the administration of the nation, which has completely backed Ukraine in its struggle against Russian aggression.
