Press point

JAAP DE HOOP SCHEFFER(NATO Secretary General): It's a great pleasure to receive here in theBrussels Headquarters for the North Atlantic Council Prime MinisterNano of Albania and let me, by way of introduction, say that we I thinkhave had a very productive and interesting discussion in the Council wejust finished.

Of course Albania, important countryinvolved in the Membership Action Plan together with Macedonia andCroatia; playing a very important role in the framework of theso-called Adriatic Three, and also may I start by saying that playing avery important role in the region.

We discussed ofcourse Kosovo and the important moderating role Albania is playing inthat respect and Allies all agree, let me reiterate this, thatEuro-Atlantic integration is in the opinion of the Allies the recipefor continuing and lasting stability in the Balkans.

Of course when we discuss Albania-NATO relationship may I commend alsohere publicly the Prime Minister and his government for Albania'sparticipation in many important peacekeeping operations. Albania isthere, has done a lot on defence reform; has been making great progressin that respect and this is also a subject which was discussed byAllies.

What is, I think- and we think, of greatimportance is the elections in Albania in the beginning of July. Thosewill be a very important benchmark I think in the way the Allies willlook at Albania and at its very important reform process. I alreadymentioned defence reform with what is also, of course very important-as important, is the ongoing process and the reaffirmation andreconfirmation and we got it from Prime Minister Nano on the importantprocess of reform in the political sense. And there is of course policereform, reform of the judiciary, the ongoing fight against organisedcrime and the ongoing fight against corruption.

Thereis an ambition with the Prime Minister and his government and Allieswill see and hope that this drive, this ambition, will also bringfruitful results. But let me say again, the elections will be a veryimportant benchmark. We have noted what has been done in electoralreform but the fact that we will be able to say, hopefully we'll beable to say in July, these were free and fair elections of which theresult will not be contested afterwards by one party or the other isabsolutely important.

Let me finish by saying that- byquoting President Bush who at the Summit on the 22nd of February herein Brussels said and it was reconfirmed and restated by Ambassadors inthe Council, and let me also say this--NATO and the entry into NATO andEuro-Atlantic integration is a performance-based process. So Allieswill finally judge the performance of any individual nation, any andevery individual country which aspires to become a NATO member and thesame will be the case with Albania.

Allies have said,and I can add a 'Bon courage' to Prime Minister Nano, thanking him onceagain for coming here and assuring him once again of the support theAllies give Albania, to its completely justified and supportedEuro-Atlantic integration ambitions.

Prime Minister.

FATOS NANO (Prime Minister of Albania): Thank you Secretary General.

I have to reconfirm that the visit at NATO Headquarters and especiallythe leadership and the attention the Secretary General of NATO isshowing towards Albania and the region; has showed even me today- wehave a very productive working day with the North Atlantic Council thatmade the whole process more comprehensive and better focused on thepriorities of cooperation for membership that Albania and NATO aredeveloping now in the sixth cycle of planned cooperation to membership.

I had to reconfirm to the Secretary General and to theCouncil of the Alliance that we consider integration into NATO, andprogress for integration in the EU as well, and rationally linkedstrategic priorities for the growth of Albania regionally and globallyas a responsible partner and a proactive country with the Alliance andwith other global foras that our aim(?) of the stability, peaceful andprosperous evolutions in our part of the world.

We hadto recognise that in the five key areas that membership to NATOcooperation includes from political and legal reforms, to security andresources of capacity performance, there has been very enhancedprogress.

And now, we shared with the Alliance andwith the respective countries- structures from Secretary General to theCouncil, more comprehensive commitments that will continue not simplyevaluating this stable progress and capacities to be consolidated butalso will continue dynamising(?) the whole rapprochement process ofAlbania to NATO standards and requirements for membership.

I guaranteed the Secretary General and the Council members that we aredelivering the necessary conditions, legal steps and guarantees thatthe next elections, the parliamentary elections, will probably(inaudible) to internationally recognised standards. So the process isvery transparent and I'm sure that every eye will continue focussing onelections in Albania, will be properly considering the processes areopen to all and the guarantees for having a normal electoral processare being consolidated. I reiterated the commitment of the governmentthat the standards of these elections for the majority I lead are moreimportant than the results.

In progress andproblematics that we are facing, and are showing to our partners insensitive areas like fighting corruption and organised crime, I had anopportunity to share more information with the North Atlantic Councilfor new legislation and new enforcement capacities that we have builtthat are bringing the indicators of these sensitive areas to a morevisible and credible situation for further progress and for cooperationwith the specialized bodies of the Alliance and other member countriesthat will consolidate the (inaudible) of democratic and prosperousevolution of the region in a safer milieu.

So we arelooking forward, thanks to this very proactive cooperation with theAlliance, to see based on an Adriatic Three cooperation process. Alsothe figures and capacities of Albania on the basis of an individualassessment be promptly considered in the frame of the next NATO summitto receive the deserved, everybody hopes to be further deserved,invitation for membership to the Alliance.

I thank you Secretary General for creating such an appropriate and favourable climate for cooperation with you.

Q:(Télévision Albanie Privé) M. le secrétaire général, j'aimerais savoirvotre opinion personnelle en ce qui concerne le rôle que joueactuellement l'Albanie en ce qui concerne la stabilité et la paix aprèsla question Haradinaj, donc après les développements à Kosovopremièrement; et deuxièmement, vous pensez qu'est venue le momentactuel pour que l'opposition doit collaborer maintenant à Tirana en quiconcerne les élections libres démocratiques? Merci.

DE HOOP SCHEFFER:Je ne parle pas comme secrétaire général de l'OTAN sur la situationinterne politique en Albanie et l'opposition et le gouvernement ça neconcerne pas l'OTAN. J'ai seulement dit que j'attachais- les alliésattachent une grande importance aux élections qui se déroulerais audébut juillet.

Sur le Kosovo, je crois et il est trèsimportant, je l'ai pendant ma petite introduction, les alliésconsidèrent le rôle que l'Albanie joue et le Premier ministre a jouéconcernant la stabilité au Kosovo est un rôle important. Je sais que lePremier ministre Nano a pris contact avec le Premier ministre auKosovo, Kosumi, et je crois que c'est important plus en général quel'Albanie, comme il fait à l'heure actuelle, joue le rôle pour aider leprocessus et pour chercher conciliation au Kosovo.

Vous savez aussi que moi que le Kosovo est en train d'entrer unepériode cruciale dans son histoire. On a bien sûr l'évaluation desstandards, on a peut-être--je ne sais pas--fondé sur ce processus à uncertain moment le début des négociations sur le status mais quand àl'Albanie je peux dire que l'OTAN considère le rôle du gouvernementalbanien un rôle constructif.

Q:(Albanian Public Television) Mr. Scheffer, what do you think about thesteps Albania have made to approach NATO standards and, on the otherhand, when do you think will be the proper time that NATO will inviteto be a member Albania and the two other countries of the AdriaticCharter: Macedonia and Croatia. Thank you.

DE HOOP SCHEFFER:Thank you- your last question, I cannot give you dates and the reasonfor that is what I said in finalizing my remarks that it's aperformance-based process. So I do not know but let me stress againthat I think that if we look at defence reform Albania has made a lotof progress, that we see what has been done on the important issues ofthe elections, the electoral process. The elections, may I repeat, area benchmark and the Prime Minister and I will agree that reforms in thejudiciary, reforms in the police, will have to continue.

It's very important that there is a continuous ambition for thesereforms because these are the benchmarks. I mean the Membership ActionPlan is more than defence reform, the Membership Action Plan and theroad to NATO is also of course about sharing democratic values.

This is as important as defence reform so again, I cannot give you adate, the elections will be a very important benchmark. I discussedwith the Prime Minister in our bilateral conversation before theCouncil that it is of course of the utmost importance that we will seenot only free and fair elections but that we see a process on the basisof which not immediately afterwards one party or the other will say wecontest the result of the elections. That would be detrimental, Ithink, to the process in Albania so those are very important elementsand very important benchmarks.

Q:(Albanian Satellite Television, ALSAT): Mr. Secretary General, let meinsist again on the election, I wanted to know what could happenbetween the relations of the organisation with Albania if theseelections are not good and from the other side, if they will be good,it's the only condition to integrate NATO- it will be sufficient tointegrate NATO? Thank you.

DE HOOP SCHEFFER:I have learned, in a long political career, that I never answer "iffy"questions so I'll not do that again. But let me say at the same timethat I refuse to leave from the assumption that the elections would notbe free and fair and that they will be contested.

Imean we here have a Prime Minister who shows the ambition and the driveon the basis of the Membership Action Plan for the Atlantic integrationof Albania and Allies support that process. The only thing- I'm sayingand I'm repeating is that those elections will be a very importantbenchmark not only for NATO by the way but that goes for the EuropeanUnion and for the OSCE as well; and we have discussed the OSCE/ODIHRrecommendations as far elections are concerned and the first one torealize this is Prime Minister Nano himself and the Albanianauthorities; and the Albanian people for that matter.

Q: YesSecretary General today is the 24th of March, big day for Kosovars, theday when NATO started intervention. Looking back six years, how do yousee the performance of NATO? And maybe Prime Minister Nano can commenton this also.

DE HOOP SCHEFFER:I can remember you asked me this question a few days ago as well(Laughter) so I hope I'll be consistent and give you the same answer-I'm sure by the way that I'm consistent.

NATO isplaying a very important role in Kosovo. KFOR is there, KFOR is thereto stay- KFOR is there to stay on the basis of its present operationalcapabilities. The situation is fragile, the situation is far fromcertain but on the other hand we have seen in the recent weeks,maturity with former Prime Minister Haradinaj when he was indicted. Wehave seen maturity with the people in Kosovo, that they have followedthe appeals of their political leaders to stay calm; we have seen thatthe anniversary of the very unfortunate ethnic violence passed withoutmajor incidents.

We now see a new government, we see anew Prime Minister, in other words- and we were, and you and I rememberthe moment when we discussed this, yesterday Soren Jessen-Petersen washere, as the Prime Minister and I were also discussing, and he soundeda note of cautious optimism but on the other hand we agreed that it'spossible that the Kosovo Serbs participate in the political process inKosovo; that it is important that we have a serious Belgrade-PristinaDialogue.

And making a bridge to what the PrimeMinister might want to say it is important that that process in thisfragile and uncertain situation is not only supported from the part- bythe international community led by the U.N. and Mr. SorenJessen-Petersen, but also gets a boost, an important boost, from theregion and Prime Minister Nano and Albania is one of those countries Ispoke about, playing a very moderating and constructive role.

NANO:Well indeed the presence of NATO in Kosovo and the assistance thatEuro-Atlantic institutions from the European Union, and the OSCE to theUnited Nations specialist (inaudible) put in place for the region areindispensable for continued progress and integration of Kosovo with theother capitals in the region, to the agendas of reforms that bring thewhole Western Balkans scenario in compatibility with the multi-ethnicdemocracy standards that are required to make everybody feel safe athome, to make (inaudible) less relevant, to make possible that beforeany new European status be defined there are operational standards andthe functioning of democratic institutions in opening of the markets,and in guaranteeing to all ethnics living in the region equalopportunities and legal guarantees for a European citizenship or astatus of free citizens in the respective free societies.

We willcontinue supporting what NATO and the EU and other international andEuro-Atlantic organisations are doing for Kosovo and for the region,and we will never give up playing our contributions that we considerimportant because of being complementary with what NATO and the otherinternational parties do in the region.