"Europe had been undergoing integration processes in the past, but always through the war. Now it is uniting based on interests, including our interest," Mesic said to those present at Zagreb's Cvjetni Trg square, including Croatian Foreign Affairs and European Integration Minister Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic and the head of the European Commission's Delegation in Croatia, Vincent Degert.
Mesic also said that Croatia was not yet in the security zone, adding that the country needed "an umbrella".
"This umbrella is NATO. It represents security for the capital and technology (...) and Milosevic would have never attacked us if we were part of NATO," Mesic said, adding that there were a lot of misunderstandings when it came to European unification, notably when it came to NATO.
He therefore welcomed an event aimed at providing citizens across Croatia with information about integration processes. The president referred to the so-called European buss that started a route from Masarykova street, downtown Zagreb so as to provide Zagreb residents with relevant information.
"With this project we wanted to give the European union a human face," Degert said.
He also expressed conviction that EU membership would bring Croatia stability and prosperity.
The European Week is organised by the Delegation of the European Commission, the Croatian Foreign Affairs and European Integration Ministry and the City of Zagreb.