The
situation in the Balkans
Address
by Mr. Jozo Radoš,
Minister of Defence of the Republic of Croatia
at the EAPC in Defence Ministers Session
Mr. Secretary General, dear colleagues:
Let me first of all thank NATO for recognizing Croatia's progress
in the PfP by inviting my country to join MAP. This fact obliges
Croatia to invest additional efforts on projecting stability
throughout the region.
The situation in the South-East Europe has recently been slowly
but steadily improving, which provides grounds for moderate
optimism. However, the overall security situation in this part
of Europe is still burdened with uncertainty and unpredictability.
Despite the transformation of many states to a democratic system
and the growth in trade and interdependence among states, many
unresolved issues may generate new crisis and once again destabilize
the region. I would like to use this opportunity to summarize
the challenges and to highlight Croatia's contribution to the
stability of the region, in particular with regards to Bosnia
and Herzegovina.
As you are aware, the list of security challenges and problems
in the region is still long: political instability, economic
difficulty, minority and human rights, ethnic and religious
differences, organized crime, corruption, drug and arms trafficking,
illegal migration and trans-national environmental and natural
disasters. The challenges of South-Eastern Europe cannot go
away overnight; on the contrary they require concerted and focused
efforts.
Croatia fully supports the internal democratic development
in Bosnia-Herzegovina and is committed to active contribution
by working with the international community. In this regard,
the recent introduction of constitutional changes at the entity
level is a good step toward having all the three peoples as
constituent on the entire territory of BH. At the same time,
Croatia hopes that these changes will be implemented in a principled
manner.
As part of our commitment to the Dayton Accords, Croatia also
continues to provide direct assistance to NATO's SFOR mission.
In light of some announcement of further downsizing NATO's military
presence in BH, we think that NATO's commitment to the region,
which includes the presence of troops on the ground, will still
be crucial for stability and development of BH. It is important
that the political and security framework continue to be provided
by the EU and NATO in order for the various peace efforts to
become self-sustaining.
Croatia welcomes the recently declared intentions of both BH
and Yugoslavia to develop closer relations with NATO and EU.
We find the numerous initiatives and mechanisms available through
the PfP as very good tools for fostering further democratisation
and necessary reforms. In that regard, Croatia stands ready
to provide assistance and share its experience in order to help
these countries explore all the opportunities of PfP.
As another commitment to enhancing stability in the region,
Croatia is ready and willing to work bilaterally, or regionally,
on the most pressing issues that still burden the region.
At the end, let me inform you of the most recent plans to resume
military cooperation talks between Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia
by organizing a high level expert group meeting to discuss a
broad spectrum of issues: from joint education and training
to military technical cooperation to possible exchange of military
attachés.
I do believe that we can work together and build a cooperative
framework that would enable us to develop trust, stability and
prosperity in the long run.
Thank you.
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