Search results

The development of regional cooperation in Southeastern Europe is very low in comparison with other European regions. The changes occurring in the attitudes of the international community (through increased sensitivity & familiarity with the situation in the field & the new democratic advances of Croatia) are now creating favorable conditions for the development of regional cooperation. This region can be strengthened through international efforts, including the international community's presence, since with its economic, political & even police/military resources it has enough instruments to support these developments. Southeastern Europe is expected to commence its transformation of the relationships by developing different forms of useful cooperation that should lead to increased security & a more peaceful coexistence. In this context, by means of regional cooperation, it should be possible to integrate this area into the Euro-Atlantic region as a whole. Adapted from the source document.

In today's world, marked by an increasing interdependence, national security is becoming a component of international security, which is not a mere sum of individual national securities, but a permanent international framework of universally acceptable values. Inter-ethnic relations today are central for a state's security, as well as for international order. There is the question of whether the international system must guarantee individual & collective security of ethnic groups/minorities, regardless of the state they live in. Today, human & minority rights have become an important institutionalized international factor of security & stability & a concern of the entire international community, despite the fact that many states still claim that minority policy is their internal problem into which international community has no right to interfere. The affirmation of the rationalist approach to contemporary security implies that the responsibility for guaranteeing security lies not only on individual states & unions but also on the international system as a whole. 8 References. Adapted from the source document.

The beginnings of the scientific study of international relations in Croatia precede its inauguration & international recognition as an independent state in the early 1990s. Already in the former state of Yugoslavia, there were pioneer attempts in Zagreb at serious research into the complex science of international relations. In 1962, the Faculty of Political Science was founded; one of the subjects was international relations. At the end of the 1970s, & at the same faculty, a postgraduate study program of international relations was launched. Zagreb, due to the quality & quantity of its experts & their dedicated pedagogical work, the publication of their works, & their contacts with their colleagues abroad, had the central role in the development of a modern science of international relations, not only in the former state but in the wider region of Southeastern Europe. The declaration of the independent Republic of Croatia, & geopolitical & geo-economic changes in the international environment, pose new challenges, obstacles, opportunities as well as objective needs for a new approach & the development of the study of international relations, the accompanying institutions & the publication of relevant literature. 24 References. Adapted from the source document.

The Partnership for Peace (PfP) was created by NATO in Brussels in 1994; an excerpt from the document spelling out membership conditions is quoted. Twenty-six countries joined PfP between 1994 & 2000; Croatia became its 26th member, & it also joined the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) as the 46th European country. A membership in both organizations is a significant event in the history of Croatia as an independent state. There are certain duties & tasks that the PfP membership imposed on this country; however, there already are positive results of cooperating with NATO within the PfP program. Z. Dubiel

In the wake of the end of the Cold War, NATO has pursued the promotion of peace & stability on the European continent by: (1) creating the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) in 1997, (2) launching the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program in Brussels in 1994, (3) entering into cooperation treaties with Russia & the Ukraine, & (4) pursuing a "Mediterranean Dialog." The PfP program is presented in more detail, outlining its objectives & mentioning the intentions of the Defense Capabilities Initiative & Membership Action Plan, among others. Croatia's membership in PfP is addressed, clarifying what this program is not (eg, it is not a security organization or a waiting room for membership in NATO) & cautioning the government against neglecting other security policies & arrangement on behalf of PfP. Z. Dubiel

Created in 1994, the Partnership for Peace (PfP) is an ambitious initiative launched by NATO to promote cooperation between this organization & nonmember states. The cooperation principles on which the PfP program is based are outlined, & the Southeast Europe Initiatives & Membership Action Plan, launched in 1997 within PfP, is described. PfP objectives & the basic elements of its program are presented. Croatia became a member of PfP in 2000, & the question of what the country can & should expect from cooperating with NATO within PfP is addressed, investigating the possible convergence of interests between the two parties. It is pointed out that the ultimate goal of Croatia's presence in PfP is the country's acceptance as a NATO member, & the government needs to develop strategies targeting this objective. Z. Dubiel

The goals of NATO to secure peace in Europe after the end of the Cold War & promote peaceful cooperation between all states on the continent, spelled out in the documents issued at the closing of the London summit in 1990 & Rome meeting in 1991, are listed. Two organizations created to achieve these objectives are presented: (1) the North Atlantic Cooperation Council (NACC), formed in Brussels in 1991, & replaced by the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC), formed in 1997; & (2) the Partnership for Peace Program (PfP) created in 1994. The objectives of PfP are listed, & the participation of the Republic of Slovenia in this program since its very inception is discussed, identifying both positive & negative outcomes of this cooperation. The Slovenian government is criticized for failing to perform a cost-benefit analysis & provide adequate information to the public on how the interests of the country & PfP converge. Z. Dubiel

Historical precedents & a host of international documents -- from Daniel Webster's speech on the Caroline Affair of 1837 to the 1949 Geneva Convention & recent UN Security Council resolutions -- are perused to take a legal stand on the 1999 NATO intervention against Serbia to stop the Kosovo genocide. A distinction is made between humanitarian intervention, humanitarian relief action, & the right of a sovereign state to intervene abroad to protect the life of its citizens. It is opined that there is no international law granting states the right to take a military action on behalf of citizens of another state. However, a set of rules of action in exceptional circumstances sanctioning a military humanitarian intervention is established, outlining a scenario where such an intervention would be legal. It is pointed out that the ethnic cleansing in Kosovo met the criteria & satisfied the conditions necessary for a lawful humanitarian intervention, & the NATO military action should be viewed as such. Adapted from the source document.