Topic: New Canada-Croatia military partnership

[milnews.ca]

Shared in accordance with the "fair dealing" provisions, Section 29, of the Copyright Act.

During his meeting with the Ambassador of Canada to Croatia Edwin Loughlin on February 8, the Croatian Minister Kotromanović said that Croatia and Canada have been working together in the defence field mostly in education, where Canada sponsored specific training for Croatian officers in Canada, but also that there was scope for expansion of defence cooperation between the two countries.

In his inaugural visit, the Ambassador was accompanied by Defence Attaché of Canada to the Republic of Croatia, Colonel Donald Deene.

New Canadian military attaché to Croatia, Colonel Denne, agreed with this and announced that in discussions with representatives of the Ministry of Defence and Croatian Armed Forces and the Canadian Armed Forces he would try to see what would be those specific areas in which the defence cooperation between the two countries could be expanded.

Minister Kotromanović and Ambassador Loughlin also discussed international peacekeeping missions and operations, particularly ISAF operation in Afghanistan, where both countries member of NATO have significant forces deployed.

New Europe Online, 12 Feb 12

[CDN Aviator]

Interesting.

Its been over 15 years but, that country can still kiss my *** and go to hell.

[the 48th regulator]

Interesting.

Its been over 15 years but, that country can still kiss my *** and go to hell.

I second that, my brother.

dileas

tess

[3VP Highlander]

Same feeling.

[medicineman]

Imagine how I cringed when the Croat MP's wandered into Camp Julien when were setting it up...no love lost here.  I'd say motion carried.

MM

[CDN Aviator]

You know, i was in Italy once and saw Canadian WW2 vets drink, tell stories and have fun with the same Germans who had once tried to kill them. It was an amazing thing.

I'm not ready for anything remotely like that.

[Jammer]

F*#k those scroat di*ks.

[medicineman]

You know, i was in Italy once and saw Canadian WW2 vets drink, tell stories and have fun with the same Germans who had once tried to kill them. It was an amazing thing.

I'm not ready for anything remotely like that.

My Grandad was like that - was one of the last guys out of Dunkirk...however, if a Japanese guy showed up, would have been another story, since he spent the rest of the war in India and Burma.

I'm a little bitter and twisted still.

MM

[Jim Seggie]

This is international politics at its finest.


I'm not ready to take in Croats to train with us......I'm with you guys....

[the 48th regulator]

Let's not forget the the rest of them  Croat, Serb, Bosnian/Muslim as they were all equally guilty of destroying their country, and our Canadian lives.....I spit on the fact they are so casually accepted.....

dileas

tess
 

[Macey]

                I"ll be honest guys, I wasn't in the former Yugo conflict. But I can understand your feelings towards the Croatians. I seen them over in KAF, wasn't to sure what to think of them. But I keep my eye out, just in case. Very weird working with former Warsaw Pact members in the sandbox. I still remember the Shoot to Kill books. But I have a little story to tell you.

               One day, when I was a Pte, I was on a VIP detail. Waiting outside by the staff car for some General to show up from his hotel. A taxi cab was parked behind me. And he knew I was in the CF, hints the uniform. I walk by, and he start to talk to me. He told me he was from Egypt. And he serve as a soldier during the Six Day War. Time went by. He move to Canada to start a new life. Everything was fine, until he had a heat attack. He had an urgent open heart surgery.

             During his recovery, the Doctor came over for a visit at his bedside. He look at the Doctor, and start chating. The doctor told him he is a former IDF soldier. The Egyptian was shocked, and ask why the Doctor didn't let him die on the table. The Doctor said "we were all brothers. That is the past. I hold no grudges against anyone."


Regards,
TN

[milnews.ca]

TN:  good story, but veeeery different wars

Here in Thunder Bay, there are families from all sides of the former Yugo conflict who don't speak following their "troubles" almost 20 years later - and I think the kids (and maybe grandkids) will carry on the tradition. 

That said, imagine how the troops standing in the middle of this might feel about the Croats.

That said, Tess is also bang on....

Let's not forget the the rest of them  Croat, Serb, Bosnian/Muslim as they were all equally guilty of destroying their country, and our Canadian lives.....I spit on the fact they are so casually accepted.....

to you and all the others who did the job in sometimes pretty sad, ugly situations

[George Wallace]

- and I think the kids (and maybe grandkids) will carry on the tradition. 

That statement is a sad fact, not only with families from the FYR, but other parts of the world as well, and something that I personally am not impressed with........their bringing their hatreds with them to Canada and perpetuating their 'battles' here.

[Loachman]

Very weird working with former Warsaw Pact members in the sandbox.

Minor point, but Yugoslavia was not part of the Warsaw Pact. It was a popular vacation spot for CF personnel from Lahr and Baden.

[milnews.ca]

That statement is a sad fact, not only with families from the FYR, but other parts of the world as well, and something that I personally am not impressed with........their bringing their hatreds with them to Canada and perpetuating their 'battles' here.

Some of the Croat/Serb families I'm talking about have been in Canada for 2 generations, and it continues.... 

[GR66]

Unfortunately it's sometimes the following generations that are the worst for carrying on the old hatereds.  They are brought up on the stories of how their people were wronged or persecuted without it being tempered by having actually experienced the horror of living through a conflict.

[medicineman]

Very weird working with former Warsaw Pact members in the sandbox.

Imagine the "I just saw a four headed alien" look on my face when I wandered into a UN Mil Ob course I was teaching on and all the foreign students were Russian, Ukranian, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Bulgarian, Latvian and Estonian...well you get the picture.  Still had that Cold War conditioning going on.

Most of my aversion to the Croat military stems from crap friends of mine went through in Medak in '93 and stuff they did when I was there in '94 that just frankly scared the crap out of me.  I found them unprofessional and almost Ramboesque...not saying that the RSVK Serbs didn't put us through the ringer, because they did,  but I felt a bit safer when doing jobs with them.  Maybe it was the shyte magnet on my forehead, who knows.  Just my perspective/opinion though.

There is a subtle irony to all this - Yugoslav troops used to share the same stomping grounds with Canadian troops while wearing bue helmets and berets in UNEF in Egypt/Siniai during the 50's and 60's.  Who'd have thought...

MM

[Rifleman62]

My personal, long standing, definition of the Trudeau multicultural policy:

1. Come to Canada. Bring all of your hates and prejudices. We will subsidize you big time.

2. Canada is not a melting pot. Vote Liberal. Liberal is Canadian values.

[milnews.ca]

Unfortunately it's sometimes the following generations that are the worst for carrying on the old hatereds.  They are brought up on the stories of how their people were wronged or persecuted without it being tempered by having actually experienced the horror of living through a conflict.

One academic I know calls it "the kitchen table hatreds".

[Macey]

TN:  good story, but veeeery different wars

That said, imagine how the troops standing in the middle of this might feel about the Croats.

              Oh I'm totally understanding the point you made. Not to age myself here. But I was in grade 6-7, when the Medak Pocket happen. I was just sharing a story that I figure would attempt to shed some light on the issue.

              Kind of like bumping into a WWII German vet. We are all humans. And we react to what our leadership says. Not trying to upset anyone if it did. That wasn't my intent, at all.

Regards,
TN

[jmlane]

That said, imagine how the troops standing in the middle of this might feel about the Croats.

I know it is only human to associate the evil done under a certain label with that label itself. I hope we can find a way to remember past injustices and honour those who suffered under them, without that past impairing our ability to strive toward future cooperation, and hopefully, eventually, mutual respect and understanding.

I hope the true issue at hand is that events that transpired in former Yugoslavia is not nearly "in the past" enough to justify the lax attitude the Canadian government is taking toward near future cooperation with Croatia.

[medicineman]

I'm thinking some folks would be happier if the Croatian government really acknowledged what happened, what their military and police forces did that were directly and indirectly condoned by them on their behalf and actually punished those involved...until then, as far as many are concerned, they've literally gotten away with murder.  So now, they are allowed into our mainstream alliances - what kind of message does that send?  I'd have to say they're having a big political "Nana nana boo boo" at our expense.

  for what it's worth.

MM

[milnews.ca]

I'm thinking some folks would be happier if the Croatian government really acknowledged what happened, what their military and police forces did that were directly and indirectly condoned by them on their behalf and actually punished those involved...until then, as far as many are concerned, they've literally gotten away with murder ....

[Retired AF Guy]

The problem with the Croats is not so much the fight they had with our guys in the Medak Pocket, but the atrocities they committed afterwards.

[Kat Stevens]

Not one player in that entire crap hole of a region has clean hands when it comes to atrocities.  There's a reason we called them the *******.  Build a 40' concrete wall around the whole of the FRY and start pumping from the Med.