ZAGREB, 30 April (Hina) – Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Thursday criticised the lack of responses by key international bodies to major global crises, pointing to the UN Security Council as an example of such dysfunction.

“The most important body of the world established after 1945 has not taken a position on anything important, let alone Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and the war in the Middle East,” Plenković said in his opening address at the International Democracy Union (IDU) Forum in Zagreb.

He said that, given the paralysis of the UN Security Council due to the veto power, it is legitimate to question whether key international organisations are functioning at all in times of crisis “of such magnitude”.

The world that was once believed to be based on multilateralism and international law, he added, is failing to meet the two main expectations that had been “a mantra for most of our parties and international organisations”.

“When you look at Russia’s aggression against Ukraine today, you can ask how much international law is worth. Does it even exist?” Plenković said, calling it an important rhetorical question.

The IDU Forum brought together around 250 representatives of political parties from some 50 countries, hosted by the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) at the Esplanade Hotel in Zagreb.

The IDU brings together centre-right parties from around the world that share democratic values, the organisation said in a statement.

Among other topics, political leaders will discuss transatlantic relations in a new geopolitical era, EU membership prospects of Southeast Europe, migration and demographic challenges, security architecture, and the EU’s strategic autonomy.

The forum is mostly closed to the public, and on the sidelines Plenković is expected to meet IDU President and former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Bosnia and Herzegovina High Representative Christian Schmidt, and former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, who are attending the event.