Milanović: It's possible the president's statement was authentic, when they saw the damage, they are trying to get out of it

ZAGREB, (Patria) - When going to the Middle East, you don't need to talk much. This was incorrect on the part of the host, who is our strategic partner, and we declared them as such. It is unimaginable to me that after a closed meeting of the two presidents, such things are published in the newspapers. This never happens," said former Croatian Prime Minister and candidate for Croatian President Zoran Milanović for the Zagreb studio of N1 television, commenting on the alleged statement of Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović that militant Islam reigns in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The statement appeared in the Jerusalem Post newspaper during the Croatian president's visit to Israel, while Grabar-Kitarović later denied making such a statement.

"It's possible it's authentic, and when they saw they offended the guest, they decided to soften it a bit, to look into it, to smooth things over. They should apologize to her, and she must be more careful about what she says and with whom she talks, because this is not a tent, these are state affairs," said Milanović.

He pointed out that the Croatian president has had misunderstandings in media statements several times. "We clearly have a communication problem. You are ultimately responsible for what happens, but the closed meeting was recounted, and when they saw that damage had occurred, they are trying to get out of it. The main problem is that we don't bring trouble upon ourselves, because all these stories are very sensitive, and we just don't want trouble to happen, not to light a match, because we are not a country that should push itself to the forefront in such matters," said Milanović, reports the Patria News Agency.