"We are firmly convinced that the door to NATO must remain open (...) that is particularly important for the area of Southeast Europe," the President said at an international conference marking the 15th anniversary of the founding of the Atlantic Council of Croatia, the 6th anniversary of Croatia's accession to NATO and the 65th anniversary of the Alliance.
With the development of new technologies and globalisation "a spectrum of security threat has become much wider than it was some twenty years ago and institutions have become more vulnerable," she said adding that this is why "cooperation within NATO and with partner countries that have special relations with NATO through various partner framework agreements contribute to greater stability and security in the world, to which Croatia too contributes."
The conference "NATO - Achievements and New Tasks," brought together young 'Atlantists' from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Slovenia and Serbia to discuss where NATO is today and "how individual sections of the region are drawing closer to membership," president of the Atlantic Council of Croatia (ACC) Radovan Vukadinovic said.
Current circumstances are complex because of the conflict in Ukraine, instability in Northern Africa, transnational threats which all indicate the importance of collective defence which is the reason why the Alliance was established, Grabar-Kitarovic said.
As the former assistant to NATO secretary-general for public diplomacy, President Grabar-Kitarovic underscored common values - peace and security, the freedom of individuals and respect of international law in accordance to the UN Charter. These values are important components of NATO in the military and political sense, she said.
She underscored that NATO had a strong integrating role because enlargement to other countries meant the spreading of democracy and these common values and "Croatia has matured as a society in that process."
Education and informing the public so that it can raise its awareness of the importance of Euro-Atlantic integration are the main objectives of the ACC which, Vukadinovic recalled, helped with the founding of the Atlantic Alliance of Montenegro and Atlantic Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Croatia's experience is valuable for countries in the region that are aspiring to become full members of the Alliance, Deputy Defence Minister Visnja Tafra said, adding that the NATO summit in Warsaw in 2016 would be an opportunity to "implement the open door policy."
Croatia has proven to be a dedicated member committed to advocating the Alliance's values and has actively contributed to the stability and security in the North Atlantic area, Tafra said.
Croatian Armed Forces' Chief-of-Staff Drago Lovric spoke about the challenges of transforming the armed forces into a modern army which today is capable of quality defence.
"The Croatian Armed Forces are an example of the fastest integration," he said. He added that an important tool in transforming the armed forces was the Membership Action Plan, the experience of the Homeland War and the participation of Croatian forces in NATO missions worldwide.