Miroslav Škoro: “I will stay in politics”
Presidential candidate Miroslav Škoro, a pop singer, said on Sunday on Croatian state television show that he plans to stay in politics even if he loses presidential elections (he is third regarding the polls). Jutarnji.hr on Sunday published a story that Škoro is gathering political parties on the right-wing spectrum. Most (right wing close to Catholic church) on Friday supported Škoro as a presidential candidate. Right-wing parties at European elections won about 15 per cent of votes but those votes were divided into several parties. Part of that votes was previously going to leading HDZ (EPP). If Škoro can gather those parties he can make a strong parliamentary group and strengthen ongoing clashes between factions in HDZ: there are two streams against party president and PM Andrej Plenković.
The first test will be presidential elections at the end of this year. Signs of the internal fight were seen this weekend several senior members of HDZ (including Davor Ivo Stier) openly criticized Plenović after he said that “Miro Kovač is not an important member of HDZ”. More in jutarnji.hr.
Why Croatia tolerates Italian and Hungarian provocations?
The reaction of Croatian authorities to pro-fascist provocations in Rijeka last week were tepid. "It had to be answered faster and more fiercely because Italy, like Hungary, is a long-standing hegemon in the Croatian territories. We have to be friends with both countries, but there is a limit that must not be crossed, and these are events like this. However, our Government will completely silence them, but they will fixate on Serbia as if all evil comes from there”, warns Ivica Maštruko, first Croatian ambassador in Italy in jutarnji.hr. Conclusion of experts is: Relations between Croatia and Serbia relations, as professor Dejan Jović called them, are a "frozen conflict" that does not allow the war in the 1990s to end. However, it is clear that reconciliation or normalization (at least not at this stage of development) of relations does not suit the political elite, either Croatian or Serbian, since in this case a strong card would be lost for homogenizing and gathering their followers, who are frightened by the neighbouring spectres, said professor Goran Bandov.
Interestingly, the export of chocolate from Croatia to Serbia is growing. So, there are other things more important than politics. More on novac.hr.
And one more thing: a group of young people from Trieste wrote a letter to citizens of Rijeka expressing their disappointment with recent events. More on index.hr.
HSLS will stay in the coalition
Croatian Social Liberal Party (HSLS) decided to stay in governing coalition. Party has one MP. Croatian Democratic Alliance of Slavonia and Baranja (HDSSB), will decide about it on Friday. They also have one MP. Coalition is stable without them and they know it. This is just a show for the public: elections are coming. Of course, the reason for thinking about leaving the coalition was Milorad Pupovac, Serb minority leader and his statements about raising of fascism in Croatia. More on jutarnji.hr
A key factor for the stability of the coalition is Zagreb mayor Milan Bandić and his party Bandić Milan 365 - Labour and Solidarity Party. It has five members according to sabor.hr, but they are more than 10. It is worth repeating that Labour and Solidarity Party had one MP after the elections: all new ones are defectors from other parties.
New foreign policy counsellor for PM
Vladimir Drobnjak will be new foreign policy counsellor of Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, reports dnevnik.hr. Drobnjak was a journalist, correspondent from New York in the 1990s and then entered Croatian diplomacy. He was chief negotiator for entering EU, ambassador at EU and UN. There were rumours he could become Minister of Foreign Affairs, but the right-wing faction of HDZ does not like him. Another rumor says that he will be appointed as coordinator for EU presidency.
Discovery of Croatian scientists confirmed by Japanese
Japanese scientists recently confirmed hornerin supersymmetric genetic discovery in Croatia, Vladimir Paar, member of Croatian Academy (HAZU) reported on Sunday. In 2011, a group of Croatian scientists: Vladimir Paar, Matko Glunčić. Marija Rosandić, Ivan Basar and Ines Vlahović published in the respected worldwide scientific journal Molecular Biology and Evolution the bioinformatic discovery of new genomic supersymmetry (the so-called 36mer HOR - higher-order repeat) in the hornerin gene. Recently, a group of Japanese scientists: Romero, Nakaoka, Hosomichi and Inoue published the results of their research (Genome Biology and Evolution 10, 3167-3175, 2018) confirming the discovery of supersymmetry by Croatian scientists. Hina
Izetbegović is again the leader of SDA
SDA (Party of Democratic Action, founded by Alija Izetbegović in the 1990 and seen as leading Muslim political family) again elected Bakir Izetbegović, son of Alija, as president. He was the only candidate and got unanimous support. In his speech, he accused Croatia and Serbia of “interfering in internal political issues of his country” and “behaving toward it paternalistically”. Hina