RADOS: I HAVE KEPT COMBAT READINESS I FOUND AT THE START

DIVULJE, March 25 (Hina) - Croatian Defence Minister Jozo Rados said on Monday that his statement that Croatia was not capable of defending itself from a modern equipped military force only spoke about the relationship of military power and technology. #L# The president of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), Ivo Sanader, said on Monday the party would ask for Rados's resignation because of his recent statement that the Croatian army was not capable of defending the country. I consider it my success that I and my associates have kept the combat readiness we found when taking up office, despite the fact that when I became defence minister, military equipment had already been almost completely used up in the war. Therefore, it is clear in which state it is now, Rados said. Funds at the ministry were not spent rationally, he said. Expensive flats were bought, for example, while last year 73 percent of budgetary resources were spent on personnel. He said he was very satisfied to have managed to keep the combat readiness he found when he had entered the office two years ago. "The reaction to my statement is full of hypocrisy and crocodile tears, and does not serve to defend national interests but daily politics. We are no longer in the former state in communism when the truth was kept from the people. All citizens must be involved in and informed about the process of national security," Rados said. (hina) lml