International security

A decade of active participation in peace missions

In 2009, Croatia marked the 10th anniversary of active participation in international peacekeeping missions. Indeed in truly a short period of time, the Republic of Croatia has transformed from a country in which peacekeeping forces of the international community were active, to a country that actively participates in peacekeeping efforts around the world, including international peacekeeping missions of the key actors on the global scene - the UN, NATO and the EU. In this period Croatia has managed to increase not only the quantity, but also the quality of its contribution to peacekeeping missions. The experience gained during the ten years of participation in peacekeeping missions have considerably contributed to Croatia's preparations and to its readiness to join Euro-Atlantic integration, especially in the accomplishment of one of Croatia's strategic foreign policy goals - membership in NATO.

In early October, the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration organised a conference at the Croatian Military College in Zagreb to mark the 10th anniversary of

Croatia's participation in international peacekeeping missions. The Conference was attended by the President of the Republic of Croatia Stjepan Mesić, the Speaker of Parliament Luka Bebić and Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor.

Although previous peacekeeping missions involved mainly Croatian armed forces, they were gradually joined by members of the civil police, diplomatic staff from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration and the representatives of other relevant ministries. The circle of Croatian “peacekeepers” thus expanded, enabling them to gain valuable experience and knowledge around the world, and to perform an honourable service aimed at establishing and maintaining world peace. In the course of 2009, members of the Croatian Army, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration participated in UN, NATO and EU peacekeeping operations (in nine, two and three missions respectively).

Croatia's most significant and greatest contribution to peacebuilding

and stability in the world has been its participation in the NATO led ISAF peacekeeping operation in Afghanistan. In line with a decision by the Croatian Parliament, Croatia is participating in this operation with a contingent of 300 soldiers performing various tasks – from training and mentoring the Afghan Army, the protection of security forces, providing medical services, to military police tasks and others – and are deployed in three regions: the capital Kabul, the north and the west of Afghanistan. As part of the international community's integral approach to the stabilisation and reconstruction of Afghanistan, in addition to military personnel, Croatian police officers and diplomats have also been engaged. Croatia also participates in three Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRT) lead by Lithuania, Hungary and Germany. In the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Feyzabad, a Croatian diplomat is acting as the Deputy Head of Civil Affairs and is engaged in the development of assistance projects, which constitute a new form of Croatia’s participation in the international community’s activities in this country.

In 2009, Croatia also continued to implement education and training programmes for the members of the peacekeeping forces. The UN certified Croatian Army Peace Support Operations Centre (CAPSOC) in Rakitje, near Zagreb, conducts training of Croatian and foreign officers

prior to their deployment to peacekeeping missions, and participates in the international exchange of instructors. Similar international education and training is carried out for members of the police force, through courses that also obtained the UN certificate in 2008.

Long-term and implementing documents for better arms control

Recognising global security threats, among which the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their availability to terrorist organisations pose one of the greatest security challenges, the Government of the Republic of Croatia set up the Inter-ministerial Working Group with the aim of developing a National Strategy to Combat the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction and an Implementation Action Plan. As part of the work on the Strategy, a workshop entitled Advanced Training Course - Croatia NATO ATC was held in Split from 4 to 8 May, under the auspices of NATO, for the members of the Inter-ministerial working group, as well as Government officials. The main topics of the workshop were guidelines and the background for the preparation of the national strategy to combat the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration launched the project Second Line of Defence, and in negotiations with the US Department of Energy, a donation of the American Government to the Croatian Border Police and Customs Administration was ensured. The donated technical equipment and financial resources will be used to raise the quality and effectiveness of border control and the control of border crossings, especially with Bosnia and Herzegovina. Packages containing nuclear material will be supervised more strictly.

Representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration also participated in outreach projects organised by the USA to help the Republic of Kosovo. Export Control and Border Security is one such project designed to help Kosovo improve its export control system of military material and dual-use goods.

Croatia is active in the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) based in the Hague, which monitors the destruction of existing chemical weapons, equipment and technology and prevents proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. In 2009, Croatia participated in various projects, such as seminars and conferences on chemical, biological and radiological terrorism and on the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and popularisation of its objectives in industrial and academic circles.

The National Commission of the Republic of Croatia for the implementation of the CWC, presided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Republic of Croatia, and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) organised an International Workshop for the industrial and academic communities about CWC/BTWC/UNSC Resolution 1540 which was held in Cavtat. The workshop took place on 4 and 5 April with 47 participants from 23 countries and representatives of the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) and the UN Security Council Committee for the Implementation of Resolution 1540, as well as representatives of non-governmental organisations. Having participated in the organisation of the Workshop for the second time, Croatia was recognised by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons for its involvement in non-proliferation and prevention of proliferation of chemical weapons at an international and multilateral level.

As part of its efforts to establish and implement systems of control of illegal accumulation and smuggling of small arms and light weapons and ammunition, on 10 September, the Croatian Government adopted the National Strategy and Action Plan for Small Arms and Light Weapons Control. The National Strategy is a strategic document that

defines the key goals and priorities of the national small arms and light weapons control policy. The Action Plan contains clearly defined measures for improvement of existing activities in this field, with the aim of creating a highly secure environment for Croatian citizens and enabling the country's unhindered economic and social development.

Steps taken to further promote a systematic development assistance policy

In May 2009, Croatia established the Inter-ministerial Working Group for Development Co-operation and Humanitarian Assistance Abroad, thus reaching a new stage in the implementation of a systematic policy of development and humanitarian assistance, and in its alignment with EU development policy principles, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the UN Millennium Development Goals. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration is in charge of co-ordination of the Croatian policy of international development co-operation.

The National Strategy for Development Co-operation of the Republic of Croatia (for the period from 2009 to 2014), adopted in February, specifies territorial and thematic priorities for providing development

assistance: development assistance will first of all be allocated to countries of the South East European region where the knowledge and experience acquired, especially during the political and economic transition, can be of great use to the countries receiving assistance.

Assistance to Afghanistan is one of the priorities of the Croatian development assistance policy. In 2009, USD 50,000 were transferred to the UNDP fund for financing pre-election activities in Afghanistan; the health centre Zhar Shakh (which was financed by the Republic of Croatia with USD 237,000) was officially handed over to the Afghan Ministry of Public Health in December 2009; a contribution (USD 50,000) was made to the Food for Education Programme of the World Food Programme; as part of the implementation of small development projects, school equipment was purchased and alternative sources of income were ensured (bee hives purchased for women's bee-keeper cooperatives).

In 2009, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration gave financial support to the HIV/AIDS monitoring project carried out

by the Andrija Štampar School of Public Health and to the UNICEF Schools for Africa programme.

Official external development assistance provided by the Republic of Croatia amounted to a total of HRK 127,393,932 in 2009.

Regional international organisations