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As a democratic and economically developed country, whose interests are not any different from those of Western democratic states, the Republic of Croatia may be a decisive factor in the future processes of stabilization in the region. It occupies a very important place in the regional geopolitical structures and might influence the future development of the neighbouring countries and regions, especially through the continuation of democratic transition and the improvement of the relations with its neighbours. Hence the importance of its policies. Its future geopolitical initiatives regarding the stabilization and security of the region can be viewed in relation to their importance within global and regional geopolitical structures, to its participation in the processes of the fragmentation of South-East Europe, and to its geographical, cultural/religious, and historical/geopolitical environment. (SOI : PM: S. 172)

The Sarajevo Convention, on which the Sarajevo Declaration and the Pact on Stability were adopted, is a kind of a finale to the ten-year contlict in the Balkan region. The most important pioneers in that dynamic process of Europe's preparation for accepting the countries of Europe's South-East have been the Brussels study by the Center for political analyses, the German "new politics" and the US support. The analyses of the goals and mechanisms of the Pact show that it is a major political instrument, though hailed as a mixed blessing. If all the actors - states, nongovernmental organizations, associations, and individuals - are provided with long-term conditions for creating affiliations, joint views and projects, the process of building better relations may be initiated. The Europeisation of South-East Europe is going to be a lengthy and complex process, and the Pact on Stability may become an important form of building new relations in this region. (SOI : PM: S. 22)

The beginnings of the scientific study of international relations in Croatia precede its inauguration and 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, and at the same Faculty, a postgraduate study program of international relations was launched. Zagreb, due to the quality and quantity of its experts and their dedicated pedagogical work, the publication of their works, and 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 South-East Europe. The declaration of the independent Republic of Croatia, and geo- political and geo-economic changes in the international environment, pose new challenges, obstacles, opportunities as well as objective needs for a new approach and the development of the study of intentational relations, the accompanying institutions and the publication of relevant literature. (SOI : PM: S. 187)