The ceremonial military parade marking the 30th anniversary of the military-police operation Storm began at 17 p.m., watch it live...
The military parade begins at 17 p.m., and citizens have already filled the stands on Vukovarska Street.
Tanks and other motorized vehicles have left the barracks and are awaiting the order of the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces to begin the parade.
The route is 2,4 kilometers long, running along Vukovar City Street, from Marin Držić Avenue to Savska Street.
During the parade, the Croatian Army will show the public the weapons, vehicles and aircraft at its disposal, and at the same time, a parade will be held in Split with ships of the Croatian Navy.
Anušić: The symbolism of the parade is in handing over our common future to new generations
On Thursday, ahead of the grand military parade, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Ivan Anušić said that its greatest symbolism is in the handing over of the Knin flag from the hands of the defenders to the cadets of the Croatian Armed Forces and the Ministry of the Interior, which gives new generations a pledge for our common future.
On the eve of the start of the ceremonial parade marking the 30th anniversary of Operation Storm, Anušić said that a grand parade of the Croatian Armed Forces, the Ministry of the Interior, Civil Protection and all components of national security awaits us.
"Everything is ready, the preparations took a long time and I hope everything will go smoothly, and I can only congratulate and thank all the participants, the organization, the media and the Armed Forces who, together with the Ministry of Defense, prepared this parade. The most impressive will certainly be the flying program because we will see such a large number of Rafaels in the air," Anušić shared his impressions with reporters.
According to him, the greatest symbolism and the most emotional event of the parade is the handover of the Knin flag to veterans, children of fallen Croatian defenders, and disabled people who will bring the flag and hand it over to the cadets of the Croatian Armed Forces and the Ministry of the Interior. "This is great symbolism. We are handing over to the new generations what we have done and everything that has happened, and we are giving them a pledge for our common future," said Anušić.
Commenting on different political views, he said that politics will always have different views on the same things, but he believes that the values stemming from the Homeland War should not be questioned and there should be no division over the universal values of the Croatian people, especially when it comes to this parade or the celebration of Statehood Day, the celebration of Operation Storm and the dates that are etched in the memory of the Croatian people.
He points out that November 18, 1991, and all those values that have held the Croatian people together throughout the past and survived all the hardships we have had for centuries. We must not question that unity, those theses, those dates from any political party, he stressed.
The minister admitted that the adrenaline is at its peak, with the wish that all those watching the parade, and he believes that there will be many of them outside Croatia, see the strength, discipline and training of our Armed Forces. We are all on pins and needles, said Anušić.
Milanović: The most impressive people are in the parade and it is because of them that we are here today
President of the Republic and Supreme Commander of the Croatian Armed Forces Zoran Milanović said ahead of the parade that there should be harmony and normality because we celebrate victories and do not hate anyone, adding that the people in the parade are the most impressive to him and that we are here today because of them.
"I'm sure this will be a nice day, nice company and a nice event. I've been burned a few times by the word togetherness, but there needs to be some kind of harmony and normality because we celebrate victories, we don't hate anyone. We are fully aware and I want those who come after us to be aware that this is a victory of Croatian soldiers, Croatian people and the Croatian leadership of that time, with minimal help from abroad and mostly with obstruction, which makes the victory even greater," Milanović said on the eve of the parade.
I am not saying this, he added, out of regret or malice, but because of the facts, because Croatia was completely the master of its own destiny and that is a lesson for tomorrow, God forbid that something similar happens again. Of course, we cannot live in isolation, we have allies, some of whom will be at the parade today, but, in the end, you are on your own, you depend on yourself and we are the only ones who really care about Croatia, he said.
He said that his decision, unlike his predecessor, was not to ride in a jeep at the beginning of the parade, because he believes it is enough for the commander-in-chief to protocolically and formally open the parade.
"The most impressive people in the parade are the formations of the Croatian infantry, and that is why we are here today. There will be technology, old equipment from the war, as well as modern equipment, but the most impressive are the people," concluded the commander-in-chief.
Photo: HINA/Damir SENCAR
