While operations in Afghanistan and Libya rightfully deserve our immediate attention, we must be careful and not underrate long-term risks and challenges in relation to energy security, cyber attacks, terrorism and mass destruction weapons proliferation, the minister said.
The establishment of the NATO Emerging Security Challenges Division is an important organisational innovation which should help strengthen the alliance's ability to cope with new nontraditional security challenges, he added.
If NATO wants to continue offering security to its member-states, then it cannot ignore challenges posed by terrorists, pirates, extremists, mass destruction weapons proliferation, other dangerous technologies, he said.
The importance of the energy sector from the political, economic and social point of view as well as from the environmental protection's point of view can no longer be underestimated in security circles, he said.
The conference was organised by Croatia's ministry of defence and foreign affairs with the assistance of the NATO Emerging Security Challenges Division.
The event, which gathered some 70 participants from NATO member-states and partners, focused on emerging security challenges and their impact globally and regionally. Also on the agenda are the consequences and impact of energy security and the development of the security sector.