First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Vesna Pusić Friday attended the To Be Secure Forum in the Montenegrin city of Budva, which discussed the future of NATO and the prospects of enlargement. Pusić said that Croatia assessed that Montenegro had met the necessary requirements to be invited to join NATO at the September summit in Great Britain.
Pusić added that she and Croatian Defence Minister Ante Kotromanović, together with their Slovenian counterparts, sent a letter to the alliance's member-states and the NATO secretariat-general, informing them that Croatia and Slovenia, two NATO members, share the opinion that Montenegro is eligible for the invitation to join the alliance. She noted that two years might pass between issuance of the invitation and admission to the alliance, during which Montenegro would have enough time to finalise some tasks. Pusić said that Croatia was interested that criteria be met as it concerned our security, and that Croatia was also interested in aspirants getting the invitation and joining NATO when they meet the necessary requirements.