Croatian Defence Minister, Mario Banozic, attended a regular two-day meeting of NATO defence ministers on Wednesday and Thursday, where he reiterated Croatia's position on the current security situation in eastern Europe, which is that every nation has the right to choose its own future and that resolving conflict by force is unacceptable, the Croatian Defence Ministry said in a press release on Thursday.

On Thursday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and the alliance’s defence ministers were joined by the defence ministers of Ukraine and Georgia.

The NATO defence ministers reiterated their strong support for the full sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and Georgia. The two countries have partnership relations with the alliance as its Enhanced Opportunities Partners.

Thanks to this status, Ukraine and Georgia have become more successful in implementing defence reforms in the Euro-Atlantic integration process, and the ministers thanked the two countries for their contribution to international security through NATO’s activities, missions and operations.

In a joint statement with Albania, Montenegro, and North Macedonia, Croatia expressed unwavering support for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine and Georgia within their internationally recognised borders.

Croatia expressed concern about Russian activity in eastern Europe, as well as in the Western Balkans, and praised the efforts by Ukraine and Georgia to defuse the tensions peacefully and through diplomacy.

Support was also expressed for the conclusions of NATO’s 2008 Bucharest Summit, Open-Door Policy, and the right of every country to decide by itself on its own security arrangements.

The meeting concluded with a special session on NATO-EU cooperation, which was attended by partners from Finland and Sweden, as well as the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell. Those present agreed that the NATO-EU partnership was stronger than ever.

Banozic said that NATO had been, and would remain, the foundation of European collective security, expressing hope that a joint declaration on NATO-EU cooperation would be signed as soon as possible.

The two organisations are working on their respective new strategic documents – NATO on the Strategic Concept and the EU on the Strategic Compass. Although these documents differ in their approach, those present underlined the need for their complementarity to ensure coherence in a global approach to security, Croatian Defence Ministry said.