The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Croatia asserted on Tuesday that Serbia’s decision to designate the First Secretary of the Embassy of Croatia in Belgrade as “persona non grata” exacerbates tensions between the two countries and destabilizes the situation in the region.
On November 20, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia declared Hrvoje Schneider undesirable in Serbia, citing that he had “exceeded the limits of diplomatic norms”.
Croatia opposed Serbia’s decision, asserting that it does not accept the “reasons for the expulsion of an accredited Croatian diplomat”.
“The aforementioned decision of the Republic of Serbia represents a step towards the deterioration of mutual relations, as well as further destabilization of sensitive political and security situations in the region at a time when the stability of Southeast Europe is of utmost importance for all of Europe,” stated the Croatian Ministry in a released statement.
The Ministry expressed concern that the expulsion of the Croatian diplomat “puts additional pressure on the employees of the Croatian embassy in Belgrade, especially during the pre-election period in the Republic of Serbia”.
“We express our regret that the predicted escalation of relations by the Republic of Serbia at this time was realized with a drastic decision to expel diplomats,” conveyed the Croatian Ministry’s response.
Croatia emphasized that it would not respond “forcefully” to Serbia until the situation is clarified, according to Siniša Hajdaš Dončić, the President of the Committee on Internal Politics and National Security of the Croatian Parliament, commenting on Belgrade’s decision.
The Croatian Embassy in Serbia did not publicize the decision, by which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia declared Schneider as “persona non grata” on November 20, citing that he “exceeded the limits of diplomatic norms”.
The decision, as stated, was made in accordance with Article 9 of the Vienna Convention.
“During his professional engagement in the Republic of Serbia, Schneider has gone beyond the framework of diplomatic norms and violated the mentioned Convention. On this occasion, the Croatian Ambassador Hidajet Biščević was handed a diplomatic note,” clarified the statement.
The announcement did not specify how Schneider exceeded diplomatic norms.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia, as mentioned in the statement, expressed regret for the actions of the aforementioned diplomat in the past period, stating that they “do not contribute to improving bilateral relations between the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Croatia, good neighborliness, cooperation, and the overall promotion of peace and stability in the region”.
