"In 2012, there were 72,171 criminal offences reported in Croatia, which is a reduction of 4.6% compared to 2011", Ostojic said opening the SIGG 2013, the two-day international Adriatic City Security Conference dedicated to urban safety.

Community police have an important role in creating a positive feeling of safety as part of the "Community Police" programme which will continue and develop in the future, Ostojic said.

He underscored the importance of cooperation with the police forces in other countries, particularly police exchange programmes during the tourist season, adding that this was a Croatian police brand which has been praised by Interpol and Europol.

He added that the police were considering new ways of fighting crime, particularly to reduce the risk of financial crime, and that he was confident that Croatia would meet all requirements to enter the Schengen regime by 2015.

UNDP Resident Representative in Croatia Louisa Vinton said that one of the UN's global priorities was to raise safety in cities and a key feature of this was fighting crime and removing other forms of threats to safety in which local community involvement plays a significant role. She added that Croatia was a safe country, especially when compared to other developing countries.

This is the fifth SIGG conference and to date over 650 people from Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia and Montenegro have participated in previous conferences.

This year's conference will include a module called "Civil-crisis management in cities - critical infrastructure protection".