Remarks

Good morning, Secretary General, Madam Secretary, Minister, colleague Ministers, dear guests. Welcome. Welcome to Slovenia.

I'm pleased to be here. I'm pleased to be... I'm honoured to be able to greet you at the Second Seminar on NATO's New Strategic Concept, that is proudly hosted by Slovenia, and in cooperation, of course, with the U.K. Royal United Service Institute of RUSI.

NATO has come a long way in the past 60 years. we've just celebrated 20 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall and NATO played a crucial role during the Cold War, as well as in the transition in the nineties.

So the future role of NATO will depend also on its ability to adapt and adequately react to the present security environment and the new security challenges.

The world's challenges and threats to international security are constantly changing. The origins of the threats are often beyond the immediate borders of the Alliance, and sometimes hard to identify. NATO's main purpose, to safeguard freedom and security of its members countries, is therefore as important as ever. Just the way how to secure that has changed.

This is also why it is important for the process of developing the new Strategic Concept to be transparent and inclusive. Full ownership of the allies over the process is a must. The aim of the process should also be to lead to the greater coherence within the Alliance.

Creating the New Concept presents an opportunity for an in-depth debate, not only within the Alliance, but also on a wider scale. Therefore, we welcome the role of the group of experts, as well as the inclusion of outside partners, representatives of international organizations and think tanks.

I believe that we are engaged in a two-way process. For the Alliance it is useful to get the out-of-the-box thinking about its role in an era of globalization when addressing new asymmetric threats to international peace and security.

Yet, on the other hand, the process also offers the opportunity to bring the message of NATO's activities to a wider audience. When planning and conducting new operations we should be critical about the past and the present ones. Lessons learned must be fully taken into account.

In this connection, I would like to underline the importance of NATO's engagement in the Western Balkans. NATO contributes significantly to the peace and stability in the region. In fact, it was in this region that the Alliance decided for the first time in its history to go for an out-of-area operation.

Bearing in mind the important work achieved so far, it also needs to be said that the Western Balkans still remain an unfinished business. The prospect of a future Euro-Atlantic integration for the countries concerned, is an important means of ensuring progress of the region. Albania and Croatia joined the Alliance earlier this year and we expect the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia will follow soon. And we hope that Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina could join the Membership Action Plan process in December. There are positive trends in developing also partnership between Serbia and NATO.

In Kosovo NATO's troops remain the key factor of stability. Slovenia participates in this operation with a significant contingent of its soldiers. We therefore call for a prudent, gradual and measured approach toward the KFOR's move to deterrence posture. Countries of the region still need our attention and assistance with their Euro-Atlantic aspirations. Slovenia will continue to pursue its engagement in the region, both on a political and practical level.

Needless to say, one of the key challenges for the international community and the Alliance remains Afghanistan. The way we see it, the path to success lies in the comprehensive engagement of military and civilian capabilities. Coordination with other global players and partners under the auspices of the UN and in close coordination with the Afghan government.

The main goal of the international community should be creating the conditions which will enable Afghan authorities to take over their responsibilities for civilization and development of their own country.

We have learned from NATO's operations in the Balkans and Afghanistan that current security challenges demand a broad spectrum of instruments. That is to say, military as well as civilian. And in other words, NATO does not and cannot act alone.

Regular coordination, consultation and interaction among our Alliance and other international organizations, global partners in other countries beyond the Euro-Atlantic area is the right approach to provide long-lasting security and stability and should be considered when planning future activities. Indeed, the only way to create synergy, complementarity and added value is by taking into account the comparative advantages of each individual organization.

So, in conclusion, let me say that I'm convinced that an open, honest, and critical discussion in this room will offer sound input for further reflections on the process and the content of the New Strategic Concept.

So I therefore wish you all a very successful debate. Thank you very much.