Foreign and European Affairs Minister Vesna Pusic held talks 22 March 2012 in Brussels with NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
Foreign and European Affairs Minister Vesna Pusic held talks 22 March 2012 in Brussels with NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
The meeting focused on the political aspects of NATO's activities, the situation in the region and the NATO-led operation in Afghanistan.
In regard to the region, Pusic expressed support for the Euro-Atlantic perspective of all the Southeast European countries. She welcomed NATO's enlargement policy, which expands the area of stability and encourages reforms. Pusic voiced Croatia's lasting support for the Euro-Atlantic ambitions of countries in the region, the process in which Croatia is actively and constructively involved. Croatia can also contribute by transferring its experience in reforms and building a modern state and institutions.
Rasmussen thanked Croatia for its contribution to the efforts in Afghanistan, saying that Croatia's involvement in ISAF was an example of a responsible approach, as its focus was on the priority areas such as training the Afghan security forces. He also praised the initiative launched by Croatia and its regional partners to professionalize the Afghan army.
Minister Pusic confirmed Croatia's commitment to the international efforts to stabilize Afghanistan and improve the living conditions of its people, highlighting the need for the protection of human rights, namely the rights of women and children. She presented Croatia's goals as regards ISAF and the modes of further activities. She said Croatia would continue to focus on training the Afghan forces so that one day the Afghan people could take the country's future in their own hands. This is the goal of both the Afghan government and the international community, and Croatia will continue to fully support this transition, concluded Pusic.
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