Jeremić hits back at Croatia reaction

The diplomatic row over Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic's statements made in Zagreb earlier this week continues. Jeremic late on Wednesday qualified the reaction of Croatian top officials regarding the fact that ethnic Serbs had been subject to ethnic cleansing from Croatia during Operation Storm as "completely improper". Jeremic hits back at Croatia reaction He reminded that the Croatian government “arrested General Ante Gotovina and handed him over to the Hague Tribunal,” and that he had been one of the commanders of the Croatian armed forces at the time of Operation Storm, in August 1995. Nearly a quarter of a million Croatian Serbs were forced out of their homes during this military campaign. "Gotovina was handed over following an indictment that the Hague Tribunal had issued against him, as well as against some other Croatian officials, including then president Franjo Tudjman," the foreign minister said in an interview with the Serbian public broadcaster RTS last night. Jeremic also quoted the Hague indictment that specifies that Gotovina was charged for participation in criminal activities, the aim of which was a forcible and permanent removal of the Serb population from the region of Krajina. “The Croatian government arrested Gotovina and handed him over so that he could answer for the crimes, and it is more than clear that if we have more than 250,000 people of one nationality living in a certain region, and if after a military operation they are no longer there, we are speaking of ethnic cleansing,” he said. Jeremic underlined that “presently, there are almost one quarter of a million Serbs less in Croatia than before Operation Storm", and added that he "did not hesitate to present that fact in Zagreb”.

Jeremić hits back at Croatia reaction

He reminded that the Croatian government “arrested General Ante Gotovina and handed him over to the Hague Tribunal,” and that he had been one of the commanders of the Croatian armed forces at the time of Operation Storm, in August 1995.

Nearly a quarter of a million Croatian Serbs were forced out of their homes during this military campaign.

"Gotovina was handed over following an indictment that the Hague Tribunal had issued against him, as well as against some other Croatian officials, including then president Franjo Tudjman," the foreign minister said in an interview with the Serbian public broadcaster RTS last night.

Jeremić also quoted the Hague indictment that specifies that Gotovina was charged for participation in criminal activities, the aim of which was a forcible and permanent removal of the Serb population from the region of Krajina.

“The Croatian government arrested Gotovina and handed him over so that he could answer for the crimes, and it is more than clear that if we have more than 250,000 people of one nationality living in a certain region, and if after a military operation they are no longer there, we are speaking of ethnic cleansing,” he said.

Jeremić underlined that “presently, there are almost one quarter of a million Serbs less in Croatia than before Operation Storm", and added that he "did not hesitate to present that fact in Zagreb”.