Bulgarian President on One-Day Official Visit to Croatia
Zagreb, March 21 (BTA) - Bulgarian President Georgi Purvanov paid a one-day official visit to Croatia on Monday at the invitation of Croatian President Ivo Josipovic. Libya and bilateral relations dominated the talks.
At a joint news conference with President Josipovic following a one-to-one session and plenary talks of the official delegations, Purvanov said that NATO should have had a concerted position on Libya before the start of strikes against Libyan targets, rather than have one prepared now after the start of
Operation Odyssey Dawn. "We shouldn't allow the coalition-of-the-willing format to become a tradition. That was an exception for the Iraq War. When it becomes a trend, it is worthwhile thinking about the meaning and the condition of the [North Atlantic] Alliance," said Purvanov.
The two heads of state expressed support for the Un Security Council resolution on Libya and said that what Bulgaria and Croatia can do is help the efforts to minimize and overcome the humanitaran catastrophe.
"When I said that this military operation was late, I meant that dictators were for years divided into 'good' and 'bad'. Bulgarians did not see the true nature of Colonel Gaddafi today or three weeks ago: we have known it for years and have been urging the international community to take a much more pro-active and firm position on his actions and policy," Purvanov also said.
He hopes that a chance will be given for democracy and reforms: not just in Libya but across North Africa and the Middle East where a process of changes has started.
President Josipovic said that his country supprts all measures that will be needed for the implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution and for stopping the humanitarian catastrophe
and making sure Libya takes a road of reforms. He also said that Croatia is a NATO member state and will participate in all measures, as much as its capacities allow it, to ensure the success of the humanitarian assistance efforts. .
Back to news