Serbian ambassador won't take Croatia's "insulting note"

Serbian ambassador won't take Croatia's "insulting note"

"On one hand, although Serbia is doing nothing that would provoke Croatia's reaction, Croatia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has called our ambassador to deliver a note to her, and our ambassador has refused to take it, due to not only its insulting content, but also because of the insult itself, to all of Serbia," Dacic said, according to a Beta agency report.

The minister in the caretaker government added that Serbia was not provoking anyone, but reacting to what is happening in Croatia - "to all the judgments that lead to a rehabilitation of the fascist Ustasha NDH (Independent State of Croatia)."

Dacic said that Serbia will continue the policy of developing good-neighborly relations, but also of protecting its national and state interests.

"For the Germans, Hitler is a symbol of evil, and only in Croatia, the fascist NDH creation and her priest Stepinac are proclaimed heroes, martyrs and saints," said Dacic, who made the comments in Belgrade while attending the promotion of a book about Winston Churchill.

Earlier, Serbia sent a protest note after a Croatian court overturned the 1946 verdict against Catholic cleric Alojzije Stepninac, which was followed by a strong reaction from Croatia.

Croatian Foreign Minister Miro Kovac said it was "a cheap attempt to destabilize Croatia" adding that its language was "reminiscent of the times of Slobodan Milosevic."