President George W. Bush in Zagreb
The day after the NATO Summit in Bucharest, where Croatia was officially invited to join the Alliance, President Bush made an official visit to Croatia, the first of a US head of state apart from the brief visits to Zagreb of Richard Nixon in 1970 and Bill Clinton in 1996. In his speech on Saint Mark's square President Bush paid tribute to Croatians for the reforms accomplished and declared that the history of Croatia was the best of testimonies that freedom was priceless and deserved every sacrifice. In his address, he stressed: "Henceforth, should any danger threaten your people, America and the NATO Alliance will stand with you, and no one will be able to take your freedom away." In the photograph: President George W. Bush and Croatia's Prime Minister Ivo Sanader.
