Croatia, Albania and Macedonia - three Balkan states seeking to join NATO - said Tuesday at a meeting in Zagreb they would send a joint medical team to Afghanistan as part of NATO's ISAF mission. The decision was made by defence ministers in the presence of a representative of the US Defence Department, the Croatian Defence Ministry said. The ministers adopted a joint statement at the end of the third meeting of the US-Adriatic Charter, confirming readiness further to strengthen cooperation in view of the realisation of the common goal - full integration of Croatia, Albania and Macedonia into NATO. "NATO representatives, including the secretary-general himself, have reaffirmed their support to the countries of the Charter on their road to the North Atlantic Alliance," Croatian Defence Minister Berislav Roncevic said. Roncevic said the medical team might be sent to Afghanistan in August. He said the signatories were agreed that further mutual cooperation was an important instrument for the advancement of regional security and cooperation. They also supported Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro in their efforts to join NATO's Partnership for Peace programme, announced further support for NATO's presence in the region, and reaffirmed their will to broaden cooperation in the global war on terror. --SP 2351 Local Time 2051 GMT
