ZAGREB/BRUSSELS, April 30 (Hina) - Croatian Foreign Minister Miomir Zuzul and Defence Minister Berislav Roncevic represented Croatia at a meeting with the North Atlantic Council in Brussels on Friday.
ZAGREB/BRUSSELS, April 30 (Hina) - Croatian Foreign Minister Miomir
Zuzul and Defence Minister Berislav Roncevic represented Croatia at a
meeting with the North Atlantic Council in Brussels on Friday.#L#
This is the second and last Membership Action Plan (MAP) round this
year. MAP is NATO's programme for countries aspiring to join the
Alliance.
Croatia completed the first MAP round in May 2003. and it received the
second National Annual Plan in September 2003.
Today's meeting focused on NATO's annual report on progress in the
implementation of the National Annual Programme for 2003-2004.
"I believe that the general opinion is that Croatia had made great
progress and I believe that nobody at that table had doubts that
Croatia would join NATO in the second enlargement round," Zuzul said.
Zuzul and Roncevic were answering the question by the ambassadors of
the NATO-member states.
Roncevic said Croatia would continue to implement reforms in its Armed
Forces, "thoughtfully and not in a hurry". He said he expected the
modernisation process in the Croatian Armed Forces to start in two
years.
The 2004 NATO report is very favourable. Croatia has been assessed as
a democratic country with a functioning market economy. The report
also says that Croatia has accelerated the reforms necessary for NATO
membership. It also praises the protection of minorities, freedom of
the media, cooperation with the Hague-based war crimes tribunal, the
return of refugees, but it criticises the situation in Croatia's
economy.
Apart from the judicial reform, the report says it is necessary to
make further progress in the process of the return of refugees and the
restitution of property, as well as in the fight against corruption.
At the meeting, Croatia received support for its integration with
Euro-Atlantic structures. The NATO ambassadors praised Croatia for
taking part in a peace mission in Afghanistan.
According to a statement issued by the Croatian Foreign Ministry, the
NATO Ambassadors said Croatia was on the best path towards NATO
membership. The ambassadors also said Croatia's progress on the path
to NATO and the EU was a stabilising and motivating factor for other
countries in Southeast Europe.
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