FM Pusić: We share the same feeling, it’s an attack on all of us

“Today we share the same feeling, a feeling of sympathy for the French Republic, its citizens and the ambassador,” said First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Vesna Pusić after signing a book of condolence for Paris victims

“Today we share the same feeling, a feeling of sympathy for the French Republic, its citizens and the ambassador,” said First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Vesna Pusić after signing a book of condolence for Paris victims opened at the French Embassy in Zagreb. In her words, this was an attack on all of us and we must not let this evil slide. We must fight it together and not let them achieve their goal – destroying our way of life, Pusić said.

In regard to speculations about the Syrian passport of one of the attackers registered on the Balkans route and a possible change of stance on the refugee issue, Pusić said that the holder of said passport had not yet been identified as the attacker. France has taken a very articulated position, Pusić said, adding that that country and others made a clear distinction between refugees and terrorists, whose leaders and organizers are foreign fighters, people born in Europe who went to Syria and Iraq to fight and continued their terrorist activities upon return.

“Croatia is the only country with police escort of migrants from the moment they arrive until they leave and we will continue implementing these security measures,” Pusić said, adding that Europe was still working on stopping the refugee wave and that initiative was launched again for the foreign ministers of the Balkan route countries to meet in Brussels and see how they were complying with the agreements. There is also the imperative of reaching an agreement with Turkey, she said, as well as financial assistance to that country, accommodating refugees on its territory and stopping the refugee wave, as this was the only place to stop it – at the Turkish-Greece border, Pusić added.

Pusić also stated that the European Commission was to send a group to establish the facts and determine ways to accommodate refugees and migrants along the Western Balkans route, in order to get a complete overview of the situation against a cacophony of unreliable information.  

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