Kissing assault on Baerbock causes outrage
A kissing attack by Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman on German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has triggered harsh criticism in Grlic Radman's home country. The minister's behavior was "highly inappropriate", women's rights activist Rada Boric told the newspaper "Jutarnij List". "Forcibly kissing women is also called violence, isn't it?" asked former head of government Jadranka Kosor on the online service X, formerly Twitter.
The 65-year-old Grlic Radman had tried to kiss the Green politician on Thursday during a group photo on the sidelines of a conference of European foreign ministers in Berlin. Video footage circulated online shows Grlic Radman first extending his hand to Baerbock in greeting, but then suddenly leaning in for a kiss. The German Foreign Minister quickly turns her head away to avoid the kiss.
The Croatian Foreign Minister told reporters that he "didn't know what the problem was": "We always greet each other warmly. It's a cordial approach between colleagues." Women's rights activist Boric, on the other hand, criticized that the video "clearly shows that no such relationship exists here and that the minister was surprised by such an approach".
At Baerbock's invitation, more than a dozen foreign ministers from European countries discussed reforms to the European Union on Thursday. At the heart of the talks in Berlin was the question of how the EU's ability to act can be maintained in view of the planned enlargements. According to the Federal Foreign Office, 17 foreign ministers confirmed their attendance - including the heads of department from Ukraine and Turkey. Eleven other countries were represented at state secretary level. EU members and candidate countries had been invited. The European Conference was organized in coordination with the Spanish Council Presidency.
Annalena Baerbock strongly denounced the incident of sexual harassment by Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman, calling for a respectful and professional atmosphere in EU meetings. The incident sparked calls for Grlic Radman's resignation from some EU members, questioning his suitability to represent Croatia in such forums.
Source: www.ntv.de
