In regard to the proceedings launched by the Conflict of Interest Commission on the appointment of Igor Pokaz as the Croatian ambassador to the UK, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs would like to state the following:
Pokaz is a long-standing ambassador, employed at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs since 1994. During his career, he has held various positions both at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the Ministry of Defence. Pokaz has an extensive diplomatic career: in 1999 he was deployed to the first diplomatic post at the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Croatia to the UN in New York and before being appointed ambassador to the UK he was ambassador at the Permanent Delegation to NATO and ambassador to the Russian Federation.
This shows that Pokaz’s expertise has been recognized at Croatia’s diplomatic service. Dismissing his appointment as cronyism negates and devalues his professional contribution.
We would like to point out that the Constitution (Art. 99) regulates that ambassadors are appointed and dismissed by decisions of the president, with the prime minister’s co-signatures, based on the government’s decision and the opinion of the relevant parliamentary committee.
In this case, the prime minister did not nominate Pokaz, but merely gave his co-signature for the president’s decision. The procedure was done entirely in line with the constitution and other regulations. Decisions on the appointments and dismissals of ambassadors and heads of diplomatic missions are made by the president.
The prime minister cannot exempt himself from decisions on the appointments of ambassadors. The Constitution allows for no other possibility of appointing or dismissing ambassadors and heads of missions other than that by the prime minister and president’s co-decision.