Zagreb Declares Montenegrin Officials Persona Non Grata Over Genocide Declaration

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — Croatia has declared three senior Montenegrin government officials persona non grata following their involvement in a parliamentary declaration that labeled the actions of a pro-Nazi Croatian regime during World War II as genocide. The officials—parliament speaker Andrija Mandic, lawmaker Milan Knezevic, and Vice Premier Aleksa Becic—are now unwelcome in Croatia, as confirmed by the Croatian Foreign Ministry. The controversy stems from Montenegro's recent parliamentary resolution regarding the Jasenovac concentration camp, where tens of thousands of ethnic Serbs, Jews, and anti-Nazi Croats were killed. Croatia's government condemned the declaration as “unacceptable, inappropriate and unnecessary,” accusing Montenegro of exploiting the memory of Jasenovac victims for political gain rather than fostering a genuine culture of remembrance. The tensions are further complicated by Montenegro's support for a UN resolution commemorating the Srebrenica genocide, which has angered Serbia, a country with significant influence in Montenegro. The three Montenegrin officials have since called for a similar declaration condemning the Jasenovac massacre, which Croatia views as a provocative act. Croatia's foreign ministry emphasized that such actions undermine Montenegro's aspirations for European Union membership. Montenegro, which joined NATO in 2017, has recently reshuffled its government to include pro-Serb and pro-Russian parties, raising concerns in the U.S. about the country's political direction amidst its EU ambitions.