on 28 May 2015, attended by the Croatian Prime Minister, Zoran Milanovi\u0107, the Speaker of the Croatian Parliament,\u00a0 Josip Leko, Defence Minister, Ante Kotromanovi\u0107, Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces, General Drago Lovri\u0107, the Envoy of the President of the Republic, Domagoj Juri\u010di\u0107, ministers of the Croatian Government, ambassadors, members of the academic and religious communities in Croatia, present and former personnel\u00a0 of the Ministry of Defence and the Croatian Armed Forces.
The Croatian Prime Minister, Zoran Milanovi\u0107 extended congratulations to the members of the Croatian Armed Forces on the occasion, stating: \u201cThe Croatian military has a unique place among the NATO partners,to whom we are compared, for the experience behind\u00a0 its members, men and women alike, many of whom attend this ceremony. The unique character that distinguishes us from other militaries is a reason to feel proud and, more importantly, self-aware.
\u201cCroatia has gone through a very hard time, unlike any EU or NATO nation. It was forced to defend its freedom and status at an enormous price. It will take us 30 more years or much longer of peace to demonstrate what we can create and achieve in peace.
The Armed Forces, who enjoy respect and special place in modern democratic Croatia, need to constantly demonstrate their readiness and strength and serve as deterrent.
\u201cThe Croatian Armed Forces will receive the necessary funds to maintain their\u00a0 professional performance. Continue to carry our your duties honourably, as an \u00e9lite force\u201c, said the Prime Minister.
The Defence Minister, Ante Kotromanovi\u0107 stressed 28 May as an important day for the Croatian Armed Forces, whose first units were established 24 years earlier from remarkable individuals who demonstrated great courage and patriotism. As Croatian defender myself, I recall the times when the Croatian people and their courage were the biggest arm. I am proud of our feats and of the Croatian Armed Forces\u00a0 today.
\u201cThe past may offer inspiration and strength, but it is by looking ahead we can achieve real results, guided by the vision of the future development of the Croatian Armed Forces\u201c, said the Defence Minister.
\u201cDuring our term of office we have invested, and will continue to invest sufficient funds into equipping, modernisation and improvement of living conditions for our soldiers.
The Long-term Development Plan envisages investmenf of additional 10 bil kuna within the next decade. Most importantly, we shall retain all capabilities of the Croatian Air Force, the Navy and the Army\u201c, stressed the Minister.
The Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Force, General Drago Lovri\u0107 emphasised the personnel of the Croatian military as its major asset.\u00a0 The Croatian soldiers engaged throughout the country and in international missions worldwide promote humanity and victory, \u201calways striving for better performance and do more for their country. The high quality personnel of the Croatian Armed Forces has been one of the criteria for appointment of Sergeant Major of the Army Petek as Allied Command of Operations Senior NCO. The human quality was among the motives for the 100-mil USD military equipment donation from the USA\u201c.
The Army and Armed Forces Day was an occasion for promotion of 112 officers (including 22 female officers), among whom the first Croatian female general officer, Gordana Gara\u0161i\u0107, who has been promoted to the rank of Brigadier General. The Croatian Army Commander Mate Ostovi\u0107 has been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General, and Brig. General Mladen Fuzul, Deputy Commander of the Army and Brig. Gen. Slaven Zdilar, Deputy Defence Inspector, to the rank of Major General.
On the first Croatian female general officer promotion the Minister stated:\u00a0
\u201cI am highly proud of Brig.Gen. Gara\u0161i\u0107, a formidable officer, who has worked hard and demonstrated excellence for years. She has\u00a0 spent last ten months in Afghanistan, doing a great job for Croatia. The Ministy of Defence shares this sense of pride over the first Croatian female general officer\u201c.
The ceremony featured the presentation of the awards to the three best performing participants of the\u00a0 \u201cThe Best Soldier Competition Croatia 2015\u201c. The winner, First Sergeant Pero Bertovi\u0107 was presented with the badge and the challenge cup. The fittest Croatian soldier in 2015 said: \u201cWinning the title for the second consecutive time is an immense honour to me. It was quite an achievement, considering my age and the demanding route of the Competition. But I have succeded and proved myself\u201c.
The Symphonic Wind Orchestra of the Croatian Armed Forces and the Croatian Navy’s Vocal Ensemble “Sveti Juraj” performed during the ceremony.
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A ceremony on the occasion of Croatian Army and Armed Forces Day,\u00a0 marking also the 24th anniversary of the establishment of the Croatian military, staged in the “Vatroslav Lisinski” Concert Hall<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4698,"featured_media":36372,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[115],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9734","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n