MFA: Croatian minister made incorrect claims, Serbian consul did not violate Vienna Convention

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Regarding Croatia's decision to declare a Serbian diplomat in Zagreb persona non grata, in response to the same move by the Serbian authorities towards a Croatian diplomat in Belgrade, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia announced that the claims that reciprocal measures are being applied to the Serbian consul are incorrect.

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Consul Petar Novakovic never violated the Vienna Convention, nor was he sent to Zagreb to perform political, but rather consular duties, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia rejects the reasons given by the Croatian side as an explanation for the decision to declare the adviser at the Embassy of Serbia in Croatia persona non grata.

A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs added that such a decision cannot be a question of reciprocity, but of whether or not someone has in fact violated the Vienna Convention.

"The assertions of Minister Grlic Radman and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia that these are reciprocal measures against the Serbian consul at the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Zagreb are incorrect, since he has never violated the provisions of the Vienna Convention by his actions in the Republic of Croatia, nor was he sent to Zagreb to perform political, but rather consular duties," the statement reads.

It is also stressed that the Serbian consul took office in mid-September 2023.

"We demand from the Croatian side to provide us with evidence and inform the public about how he was able to violate the provisions of the Vienna Convention within two months of assuming office," the statement continued.

The MSP points out that there is no evidence in the case of Serbian Consul Petar Novakovic.

"Whereas in the case of the Croatian diplomat Hrvoje Snajder, we are talking about actions that represent a gross violation of the Vienna Convention, about which the Croatian side has been informed," the statement reads.

The MSP calls on the Croatian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs to invest additional efforts in order to repair the damaged relations between the two countries, "instead of, with its moves, further undermining good neighborly relations and peace and stability in the region."

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs made a decision yesterday to declare Hrvoje Snajder, the first secretary at the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in Belgrade, persona non grata.

(Telegraf.rs)