About 50 eminent figures from politics, science and journalism from Europe, the United States and Russia discussed political and economic stability in the Balkans, including the still high risk for foreign investment and the liberalisation of visa requirements in Southeast European countries.
One of the topics were two of Serbia's challenges -- the future status of Kosovo and the referendum on Montenegro's independence.
Serbian President Boris Tadic, who took part in the conference, told the press Serbia had to extradite Ratko Mladic to the UN war crimes tribunal and keep its promises.
Tadic said it was important to strengthen the European prospects of all countries in the region and that Serbia counted on joining the European Union in 2014 after meeting the required conditions.
The conference, chaired by European Forum Alpbach president Erhard Busek, will continue on Saturday. Also in attendance, among others, were Croatian Assistant Foreign Affairs and European Integration Minister Damir Kusen, Croatian Parliament Deputy Speaker and People's Party leader Vesna Pusic, and a representative of Austria's Social Democrats and European parliament rapporteur on Croatia, Hannes Swoboda.