"I know the time of departure but I won's say it for security reasons. I hope it will be very soon, but it depends on the situation on the ground," the minister said, adding that talks to that effect had been conducted with the allies, notably the Austrian troops.
"They totally understand and support our decision to withdraw," Kotromanovic said, adding that all withdrawal preparations were proceeding as planned.
President and Armed Forces Supreme Commander Ivo Josipovic, in agreement with the government, recently initiated a gradual withdrawal of Croatian troops from the UNDOF mission because, after reports in the foreign media that Croatia is allegedly selling weapons to the Syrian rebels, their safety is not guaranteed.
The Croatian contingent is 97-strong. The UN observer mission also includes troops from Austria, India, Japan and the Philippines.
At the proposal of external member Vlatko Cvrtila, the Defence Committee unanimously adopted a conclusion whereby the Defence Ministry commits to notifying the Committee every two months about the peace missions in which Croatian troops are engaged.
At the end of the session, Josip Djakic of the opposition HDZ party asked Kotromanovic to transparently present the ministry's procurement plan to the public.
The minister said the plan was publicly presented for the first time, that the anti-corruption council was acquainted with it for the first time, and that since 2011, when the HDZ was in power, funds for confidential public procurement had been slashed eight times. "We're not hiding anything," he said.