Muslims serving in Croatia's armed forces will have access to Muslim clerics and meals and will be allowed time for worship, under an agreement signed on Wednesday.
The agreement, signed by Defence Minister Berislav Roncevic and Croatia's top Muslim cleric, mufti Sevko Omerbasic, applies to conscripts, professional soldiers and officers, state news agency Hina reported. So far only Roman Catholic priests have been assigned to the armed forces, as almost 90 percent of Croatia's 4.4 million people declare themselves as Roman Catholics. A small minority of around 21,000 are Muslim Slavs.
"This is a historic event and I hope it will entice Muslim soldiers in the Croatian army to perform their military duties even better," Omerbasic said.
Young men in the European Union candidate country must do six months of military service or opt for nine months of civilian service, usually in state administration, hospitals or pensioners' homes.