A statement said Solana was presented with the international award for his appropriate action in the reaching of peace in Europe and the world, notably in the Balkans and the Middle East.
On the fringes of the ceremony, Mesic held bilateral talks with Solana, Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker and German Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier on bilateral relations, Croatia's European prospects and the situation in the region. The European officials supported Croatia on its road to EU membership.
Juncker voiced confidence that there would be no institutional hurdles to Croatia's accession because the European constitution crisis would be settled by the end of the year.
However, he declined to say when Croatia might become an EU member. If Croatia persists with this pace of progress, full membership will not be far away, he said.
Addressing the award ceremony, Juncker defended Solana from those saying that in his capacity as NATO secretary-general's in 1999 he had approved air raids against the then Yugoslavia. Solana has always done his utmost to prevent violence, he said.
The aware ceremony was accompanied by demonstrations at which peace groups pointed the finger at Solana over the armed intervention in the Balkans.