ZAGREB, June 25 (Hina) - Croatia firmly believes it will become a full NATO member in the third enlargement round and hopes it will not have to wait long, Assistant Foreign Minister Vladimir Matek said on Tuesday.
ZAGREB, June 25 (Hina) - Croatia firmly believes it will become a
full NATO member in the third enlargement round and hopes it will
not have to wait long, Assistant Foreign Minister Vladimir Matek
said on Tuesday. #L#
Croatia is viewed today as a generator of stability in the region,
Matek said on the second day of a Zagreb conference called "Regional
Stability and Cooperation: NATO, Croatia and Southeast Europe".
Croatia's policy relies on peace, stability, cooperation, and
measures aimed at bolstering mutual trust, Matek reiterated. "We
firmly believe the third enlargement round, the one after Prague,
will be ours and we hope we won't have to wait too long," he said.
On the second day of the conference, representatives of several
countries spoke about models of preparation for joining NATO. A
representative of NATO's information office spoke about the
Alliance's new agenda in the 21st century.
Opening the conference on Monday, NATO Secretary-General George
Robertson commended Croatia's progress as regarded stability and
security in the region. He said, however, that Croatian authorities
had to do much more in modernising the armed forces and bringing
Croatia closer to the usual democratic standards.
Also yesterday, Croatian President Stjepan Mesic said that NATO's
demands of Croatia would enable the reduction of the armed forces,
the formation of professional officers, the standardisation of
weaponry and equipment, and the depoliticisation of the army.
The aim of the Zagreb conference was for top politicians,
diplomats, and experts to exchange opinions regarding NATO's
strategy, regional security and stability, and cooperation within
Partnership for Peace and the Membership Action Plan.
(hina) ha