Croatia's President Zoran Milanović has announced his country's withdrawal from NATO should war break out in Ukraine.

“NATO is increasing its presence, we have nothing to do with it and we will have nothing to do with it.

If there is an escalation, we will retreat to the last Croatian soldier," Milanović said on Tuesday after visiting a factory in Zagreb.

Thomas Gutschker

Political correspondent for the European Union, NATO and the Benelux countries based in Brussels.

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Michael Martens

Correspondent for Southeast European countries based in Vienna.

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Croatia's Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman, on the other hand, rejected Milanović's statements to the FAZ: "The President does not speak for Croatia, but for himself. We are and will remain a loyal member of NATO.

Everything we do, we do in consultation with our partners”.

The statement by the Croatian President therefore has "nothing to do" with the attitude of the government, according to the Foreign Minister.

"In times like these, it is particularly important to show solidarity among partners, and Croatia will do that in the EU and in NATO."

“Ukraine has no place in NATO”

Milanović had previously said the recent escalation had "nothing to do with Ukraine, but with Biden's policies, in which I see inconsistency and dangerous behavior." The president added, "Ukraine has no place in NATO," since it is "one of the most corrupt countries in the world".

"Extremists" should not be allowed to influence politics, "and that's why Croatia will not take part in it." Croatia must stay away from the conflict "like from a fire".

The development of gas prices shows "that this confrontation with Russia is not the smartest."

Croatia has been involved since the deployment of so-called NATO battlegroups to the eastern flank, as part of the US-led task force in Poland. The eighth contingent of Croatians, around 350 soldiers, only arrived there on Monday. Defense Minister Mario Banožić thanked the returning soldiers "for the exceptional results and said that the Croatian army had once again demonstrated an "enviable level of knowledge and skills," according to the Croatian Defense Ministry's website. "Thanks to you, the Republic of Croatia has once again demonstrated its readiness to participate in a common defense system with allies and partners and its active contribution to peace and stability not only in this area,but also strengthened far beyond their borders.” In addition, troops from the United Kingdom and Romania are part of the approximately 1,300-strong task force.

The Croatian president's announcement comes at a time when the alliance is increasing its presence on the eastern flank - specifically because of Russian build-ups on the borders with Ukraine and in Belarus.

Most recently, the Netherlands, Spain and Denmark announced that they would send additional forces.

The United States put 8,500 troops on call Monday to augment the Alliance's Rapid Reaction Force.

A statement from NATO on the announcement from Zagreb was initially not available.

However, Milanović's power struggle is also part of the ongoing power struggle between the President and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.

Plenković, head of the conservative ruling party HDZ,