BELGRADE, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Southeast European defense ministers will gather in the Croatian capital Zagreb on Friday for an unofficial meeting on NATO in the region, Croatia's Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday.

    The participants would discuss the regional security challenges and trends and new possibilities for regional cooperation within the Adriatic Charter, the statement said.

    The Adriatic Charter is an association formed by Albania, Croatia and Macedonia for the purpose of aiding their attempts to join NATO. The Charter was signed in 2003 in Washington under the aegis of the United States. Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina joined the Adriatic Charter in December 2008.

    The meeting, hosted by Croatian Defense Minister Branko Vukelic, will rally the ministers and ranking officials of the Defense Ministries of Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey as well as NATO representatives.