Croatia's Ruling HDZ Calls for PM's Dismissal

Tomislav Karamarko, who also holds the position of vice prime minister, said on Tuesday that his HDZ party will initiate a motion of no confidence to oust Prime Minister Tihomir Oreskovic because it believes the government has become dysfunctional.

Karamarko said that his party was ready for new elections, but Croatia "does not have time for that".

"As the largest parliamentary party which founded this government, we want our party programme to be implemented," Karamarko told a press conference.

"We should end the arguments and bad relations. Croatia does not have time or patience for such relations. The government should be homogenous and united if it wants to achieve its goals, which are reforms. In this situation, this is not possible," he said.

The strongest opposition force, the Social Democratic Party, SDP, said on Monday that it will vote for the HDZ's proposal to oust Oreskovic.

The HDZ's move came four days after Oreskovic urged his two quarrelling vice prime ministers, Karamarko and Bozo Petrov, leader of the junior ruling coalition party MOST, to step down in order to stabilise the country.

Croatia's fragile coalition government has been rocked since the weekly newspaper Nacional reported in May that Karamarko's wife, Ana Saric Karamarko, had received over 60,000 euros for alleged consulting services from a lobbyist for Hungarian energy company MOL, a company which is in dispute with Croatia.

The SDP then filed its own no-confidence motion to oust Karamarko.

MOST's leader Petrov said last week that his six ministers and 12 MPs would vote against Karamarko, bringing the prospect of early elections closer.

The SDP-initiated no-confidence vote will be scheduled within the next two weeks and it...