The event was opened by Deputy Foreign Minister Josko Klisovic and NATO Assistant Secretary General Gabor Iklody. They said weapons of mass destruction proliferation was one of the biggest global security challenges.
Klisovic said Croatia had recognised that measures against trafficking in weapons of mass destruction were one of the conditions of a safer world and that success in fighting it could be achieved through regional and international cooperation.
Before the conference, he told reporters that Croatia was trying to contribute as much as possible to non-proliferation "through NATO and other formats."
Klisovic said Croatia had no major problems in that respect but that its location could make it an interesting route to someone who wanted to traffic in such weapons.
Attending the conference are NATO officials and representatives of the UN, the European Union, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation.
Klisovic said the participants would discuss mechanisms for preventing weapons of mass destruction proliferation, adding that outside its borders NATO could cooperate with the UN in offering options and methods for facing those challenges.
He cited Iran, North Korea and Syria as the biggest security challenges.
Croatia shares the international community's concern about Iran's nuclear programme and Iran's direction and would like to see Iran actively take part in international negotiations and take steps to restore international confidence, said Klisovic.
Croatia supports the international efforts and goals to have North Korea stop its nuclear and ballistic programme, including uranium enrichment, he said.
Klisovic also warned about the danger of Syria's supplies of chemical weapons, voicing Croatia's concern over suspicion that civilians there could be attacked with them.
NATO Assistant Secretary General Iklody especially warned about the situation in Syria, saying the possible use of chemical weapons indicated that the conflict could enter a new stage.
Such developments show that preventing weapons of mass destruction proliferation is one of the biggest international community priorities in the next period, and a new, effective policy in such prevention is a strategic imperative, he said.
If we fail, our common vision of creating a world without nuclear weapons will never be realised, Iklody said.