The students also visited Serbia-Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina, where they met representatives of state institutions, political parties and nongovernmental organisations.
Mesic briefed them about the situation in Croatia and the region, and about Croatia's efforts to achieve European standards during its European Union integration process.
He also spoke of the situation before the break-up of communist Yugoslavia and of Croatia's struggle for independence.
The president said he understood that those not from this region had difficulty imagining the dramatic times Croatia went through until it gained independence. He added the world had been reserved and that "this is why we seek the reform of international organisations so that they could act faster and more effectively" in preventing the reoccurrence of crimes like those witnessed at Vukovar and Srebrenica.
The students were interested in the future of Serbia-Montenegro and Kosovo. Mesic said Croatia was in favour of every solution which was reached by political will and not by force. He added a solution for the status of Kosovo could be found only through negotiations between Belgrade, Pristina and the international community.