BRUSSELS: CRO. FOREIGN MIN. ADDRESSES ANTI-TERRORIST CONFERENCE

BRUSSELS, Oct 20 (Hina) - The threat of terrorism requires a joint European answer and joint efforts to prevent it will unavoidably lead to the creation of a truly uniform European space of safety and justice, Tonino Picula, Croatia's Foreign Minister told a European conference held in Brussels Saturday. Croatia strongly believes that the ongoing process of European Union and NATO expansion strengthens safety and stability in Europe. Croatia is ready to make additional efforts in order to prevent terrorism by implementing relevant provisions of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement and actively participating in Partnership for Peace, Picula said. The European conference of foreign ministers dedicated to the battle against terrorism included 40 countries of which 15 are EU members, 13 are EU candidates, four are EFTA (European Free Trade Association) members, five are participating in the stabilisation and association process, and guest countries Russia, Ukraine and Moldova. The achievement of the goals in the battle against terrorism can be contributed to on three levels - national, regional and European, Picula said. Actions on the national level help the neighbours' security, and the strengthening of cooperation among neighbours complements actions taken on the global and European level. In this context, efforts need to be harmonised to make the European set of legal measures more efficient, Picula told Saturday's conference. The participants in the conference will adopt a final statement on measures and ways of fighting terrorism. (hina) np/ha sb