Croatia elected non-permanent member of UN Security Council for 2008/2009 period

Minister Grabar-Kitarović receives congratulations from UN General Assembly’s President Srđan Kerim

The Republic of Croatia was elected a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the 2008/2009 period. At the elections in New York on 16 October 2007, attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, Croatia was elected in the third round of voting by the support of 184 countries, after opposing candidate the Czech Republic quitted due to Croatia’s advantage in the previous rounds.

The election to non-permanent UN Security Council membership is one of the biggest foreign policy achievements and recognitions for Croatia since its gaining of independence. Croatia’s candidacy was a project that encompassed the entire state administration system, headed by the Croatian President, Prime Minister and Parliament Speaker, and conducted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration.

The votes Croatia received are a testimony to its reputation, built in the past 16 years, based on the achievements in developing democracy, peace, and stability. During that period, Croatia has grown into a country that, advocating multiculturalism, actively participates in various activities of the world organisation, including peacekeeping operations, and contributes to the activities of the international community in building and preserving peace.

The election to the UN Security Council represent a serious task that Croatia is undertaking with utmost dedication, as well as an opportunity to further profile its foreign policy and prove itself as an important and valid partner in solving the fundamental issues of world peace and security.

Croatia’s entering the UN Security Council also represents a recognition by the international community of Croatia’s achievements in the process of acceding to the Euro-Atlantic integration, as well as an incentive for its dynamisation.