On invitation by Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, Minister Grabar-Kitarović paid official visit to Norway

During the visit, which was describes by both sides as exceptionally successful, Minister Grabar-Kitarović held official meetings with Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, President of the Norwegian Parliament Thorbjørn Jagland, Chairman of the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee Olav Akselsen, and members of the Norwegian Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee.

Minister Grabar-Kitarović talked about Croatia’s EU ascension, expectation from the forthcoming NATO summit in Riga, Croatia’s participation in the Peacebuilding Commission, and thanked for the support Norway is offering to development and other projects for Croatia, through which Croatia is receiving annually 100 mil. Norwegian kronen (approx. 100 mil. Croatian kunas).

As regards acceding to the Euro-Atlantic integration, Minister Grabar-Kitarović thanked for the support so far for Croatia’s NATO accession, who Norway is a member of, as well as the support for the EU accession, with whom Norway has rich and well-developed relations. During the meeting with Minister Støre, she presented Croatia’s progress in satisfying the political and military standards for NATO membership, reiterating that Croatia firmly supports and shared the values on which NATO is based and is determined to continue with the reforms and preparations for membership. In that regard, Croatia places special importance on the forthcoming summit in Riga, from which it expects to receive a clear membership signal. Minister Støre communicated Norway’s full support for Croatia’s NATO accession, adding that Norway believes the Riga summit should send a clear signal with the perspective of 2008 as the year of possible admission of the countries who will have satisfied the required criteria, whereby focus remains on conducting the necessary reforms.

Minister Grabar-Kitarović also described as very good the co-operation between the two countries within other international organisations, especially the UN and the Peacebuilding Commission, the vice-president of whom is Norwegian Yohan L. Løvald. “In view of our valuable national experience in peacebuilding in the post-war period, we hope that our membership in the Commission will contribute to the UN system of collective security”, said Minister Grabar-Kitarović. Our engagement in the Commission, as well as in numerous peacekeeping mission around the world, is a confirmation that Croatia has grown from an assistance receiver into a democratic country capable of offering it.

During the meeting with Minister Støre, Minister Grabar-Kitarović especially thanked the Norwegian side for the long-standing support it offered Croatia, first through humanitarian and now through development and other projects.

Among the numerous projects currently being realised through the bilateral assistance program, Minister Grabar-Kitarović pointed out as especially important the projects on the prevention of human trafficking, meant for the employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, as well as the general public, the project of support in the preparations for the EU membership and state administration reforms, and the projects directed at the justice reform.

During her stay in Oslo, Minister Grabar-Kitarović also met with the representatives of the Croatian associations in Norway and representatives of the Croatian Catholic Mission.