DistantNews
Support us
🇭🇷 Croatia /Conflict & Security

“A Few People with Lighters Can Exhaust the Entire System”

From Večernji List · () Croatian

Translated from Croatian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Interview Named sources Context piece
  • Retired General Slavko Barić says Croatia needs a stronger, integrated system of national defense that includes civilian institutions and critical infrastructure.
  • Barić warns that Europe is rearming without enough production capacity, a unified foreign and security policy, or a single command structure.
  • He says Croatia remains vulnerable in tourism, food and energy, and lacks a clear long-term defense and resilience strategy.

“A few people with lighters can exhaust the entire system,” retired General Slavko Barić warns while discussing the vulnerabilities facing Croatia. The former deputy chief of the General Staff says the phrase “national security system” has become a slogan whose practical meaning is unclear.

A few people with lighters can exhaust the entire system.

· Slavko BarićBarić's warning about how small-scale actions could exploit weaknesses in Croatia's security systems.

In an interview with Večernji List, Barić described modern conflict as a combination of different forms of warfare, with attrition at its core. Drones, GPS, satellite imagery and digital battlefield management have changed how wars are fought. Attacks on energy systems and infrastructure, he said, aim not only to weaken military forces but also to break the population's will.

Barić argues that a country cannot claim to be militarily prepared unless its defense preparations are fully connected to civilian life. Medicine, the economy and other essential services must be able to function during wartime. He referred to the Scandinavian concept of “total defense,” in which society as a whole contributes to national resilience.

Today we are talking about a combination of different forms of warfare, but the most important thing to emphasize is that this is a war of attrition.

· Slavko BarićHis description of contemporary conflict and its effects on civilians.

Europe has recognized that its existing military capabilities are insufficient and is rearming, Barić said. But he sees the effort as fragmented, with inadequate production capacity, no common foreign and security policy, and no unified command. Croatia, in his view, relied too heavily on NATO membership and neglected civil defense, defense planning, personnel and capabilities.

Joining NATO is not the goal, but a means of having a stronger national defense system.

· Slavko BarićBarić argues that NATO membership should support, not replace, Croatia's own defense capabilities.

He called for a clear ten-year vision rather than investment spread across every military branch. Croatia must also assess threats to tourism, food and energy. The country does not produce enough of its own food and remains dependent on imported energy, he said, while water, food and even waste management are increasingly security concerns.

Europe is arming itself and has realized that what it has is not enough.

· Slavko BarićHis assessment of Europe's current defense preparations.
About this summary

Originally published by Večernji List in Croatian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog