Croatian President Ivo Josipovic met with Austrian Defence and Sports Minister Norbert Darabos, with whom he discussed Croatia's accession to the EU, relations in the region, and Croatia's role in the process of stabilisation of Southeast Europe.
Darabos said his country strongly supported Croatia's EU membership bid on the condition Croatia carried out the required reforms in the judiciary, economy and fight against corruption and organised crime.
The two officials described the defence cooperation between the two countries as successful. Austria is helping in the stabilisation of the countries in this region, not only politically but militarily as well, primarily through its military presence in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in Kosovo, it was said.
Croatia will not be the last country to join the EU, the two officials said, supporting also the admission of other countries in the region as a precondition for Europe's future security and stability.