NATO Secretary General to visit Operation Active Endeavour and Madrid Thursday 29 May 2003

The Secretary General of NATO, Lord Robertson, will travel to Spain to meet the crews conducting Operation Active Endeavour in the Straits of Gibraltar. He will visit Spanish, Norwegian and Danish ships participating in this operation.

Active Endeavour is an extensive maritime operation being undertaken in the context of NATO's decision to invoke Article 5 of the Washington Treaty following the 11 September 2001 attacks against the United States. The operation aims to demonstrate Alliance resolve and to deter and detect maritime terrorist activity. NATO has carried out this mission in the eastern Mediterranean since October 2001.

Based on threat assessments, the North Atlantic Council extended the operation in March 2003 to include the escorting, by NATO naval ships, of allied merchant vessels transiting the potentially vulnerable, narrow Straits of Gibraltar.

Following the visit at sea, the Secretary General will continue on to Madrid where he will meet with President Aznar, Minister of Foreign Affairs Palacio and Minister of Defence Trillo.

The Secretary General’s schedule is subject to change.