Lord Robertson on two-day visit to Prague

NATO Secretary General, Lord Robertson, went to the Czech capital on 21-22 February to meet with President Václav Havel, Prime Minister Miloš Zeman, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Jan Kavan, Minister of Defence Vladimír Vetchy, as well as members of Parliament.

During their respective meetings, they discussed a large number of issues of common concern, namely developments in the European Security and Defence Identity and NATO-EU cooperation, the issue of NATO enlargement and the possibility of the Czech Republic, as well as Hungary and Poland, of sharing their experience with the nine countries aspiring for NATO membership, the situation in Southern Serbia and preparations for the upcoming NATO Summit to be hosted in Prague in 2002. Lord Robertson raised the question of defence reform and stressed the need for the Czech Republic to continue modernising its forces.