The head of the Institute for International Relations and a member of the Academy, Mladen Stanicic, has said that a meeting in Zagreb last week concluded that NATO was a guarantee of security in the region provided that Southeast Europe be declared a nuclear-free zone.
Declaring a nuclear-free zone within NATO is the foundation of peace, security and stability and reduces other threats, notably terrorism, Stanicic maintains. He has said that Croatian President Stjepan Mesic was informed of the SEED/WAAS meeting's conclusions before departing for Ohrid, Macedonia, for a summit of the region's presidents.
The participants of the Ohrid conference were also sent a letter on energy issues, which pointed to the insufficient exploitation of renewable energy sources and called for an increased use of wind farms, solar collectors and bio-diesel.