Press
Release
(2003)152
4 Dec. 2003 |
Final
communiqué
Ministerial Meeting of the North Atlantic Council
held at NATO Headquarters, Brussels,
On 4 December 2003
- As we meet today, NATO is acting to preserve peace through
its operations; spreading stability through its partnerships;
and reinforcing our community of shared values through the
most robust round of enlargement in our history. The North
Atlantic Alliance remains the basis of our collective defence
and the essential transatlantic forum for security. Today,
we took stock of NATO's ongoing transformation to meet 21
st century threats and challenges to the security of our
populations, territory and forces, from wherever they may
come, and gave direction on work still to be done, as we
look ahead to our Summit in Istanbul next June.
- We look forward to welcoming seven new members of the
Alliance by the time of the Istanbul Summit, which will strengthen
security for all in the Euro-Atlantic area. We are pleased
to be joined today by our colleagues from these countries,
who associate themselves with this Communiqué. The
formal accession of the new members into the Alliance will
take place as soon as the ratification process is complete.
We welcome the significant contribution the Invitees are
already making to our security and the progress they have
made in their reform efforts, and we encourage them to continue
on this path.
- We categorically reject and condemn terrorism in all
its forms. We express our sympathy to all the victims of
terrorism and unwavering solidarity to Allies that have been
targeted by it. NATO is determined to use all means at its
disposal and to cooperate fully with other international
organisations and with its Partners to fight this scourge.
We welcome the progress on implementing the package of measures
approved at the Prague Summit to improve NATO's capacity
to respond to terrorism, and the recent establishment of
the Permanent Terrorist Threat Intelligence Unit. NATO's
Operation Active Endeavour continues to make a significant
contribution in the Mediterranean to the fight against terrorism,
in cooperation with the International Maritime Organisation;
it has helped to maintain security through maritime anti-terrorism
surveillance and boarding operations in the Eastern Mediterranean
and the escort of designated Allied ships through the Straits
of Gibraltar.
- In Afghanistan, the Alliance now leads
the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) under
its UN mandate. This operation demonstrates our readiness
to deploy forces wherever the Alliance decides, to ensure
our common security. Our aim is to assist in the emergence
of a united, sovereign country, integrated into the international
community, including by assisting the Afghan Transitional
Authority in the maintenance of security and stability and
in the electoral process according to the Bonn Process. We
decided on the progressive expansion of ISAF beyond Kabul
in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions, including
through temporary deployments for specific tasks and limited
in size and duration, provided all military conditions, and
requirements for the Kabul mission, are met. We will continue
to address the scope of such specific tasks. We welcome the
German deployment of a pilot Provincial Reconstruction Team
(PRT), under ISAF, in Kunduz. Expecting that the establishment
of additional PRTs will follow, we consider that ISAF could
move to assume military command of such PRTs where consistent
with military requirements and capabilities. Achievement
of these objectives will be subject to consultations with
and contributions from PRT framework nations and the provision
of the required assets, including for Kabul International
Airport. We will review NATO's contribution to stabilisation
efforts in Afghanistan on a regular basis. It is necessary
to ensure close co-ordination and co-operation between ISAF
and Operation Enduring Freedom, and also with the Afghan
National Army. Our forces will also have to work closely
with the UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan and other international
organisations on the ground, including the European Union.
- We task the Council in Permanent Session to develop
for the Istanbul Summit a comprehensive strategy for NATO's
engagement in Afghanistan, in close consultation with other
International Organisations and the Afghan Transitional Authority.
We welcome the appointment of Mr. Hikmet Çetin
of Turkey to the position of NATO Senior Civilian Representative
in Afghanistan.
- The Alliance continues to support Poland in its leadership
of a multi-national division in Iraq. The North Atlantic
Council will review NATO's contribution to the stabilisation
efforts on a regular basis. We welcome the adoption of UN
Security Council Resolution 1511 on Iraq and are committed
to its full implementation in order to restore conditions
of stability and security in the country, and return governing
responsibilities and authorities to the people of Iraq. In
that regard, we welcome the Agreement on Political Process signed
in Baghdad on 15 November 2003. Peace, stability and reconstruction
in Iraq remain a high priority.
- The security environment in the strategically important
region of the Balkans is stable but remains fragile. We
reaffirm our support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty
of all the countries in the Balkans. We want to see enduring
stability and peace in the region.
- Our missions in the Balkans continue to evolve. The
improved security environment in Bosnia and Herzegovina will
allow for further reduction of SFOR by next Spring. Over
the coming months, Allies will assess options for the future
size and structure of SFOR, to include possible termination
of SFOR by the end of 2004, transition possibly to a new
EU mission within the framework of the Berlin+ arrangements
and to a new NATO HQ Sarajevo. We task the Council in Permanent
Session and the NATO Military Authorities to consult with
their EU counterparts on Bosnia and Herzegovina, in accordance
with agreed texts and procedures and within the framework
of Berlin+. We will consult, as appropriate, with all other
parties concerned, including the authorities of Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
- In Kosovo, KFOR's presence remains essential. We welcome
the proposal of the Contact Group to establish a date for
review of Kosovo's progress in meeting internationally endorsed
standards. Further advancement towards a process to determine
Kosovo's future status, in accordance with UN Security Council
Resolution 1244, will depend on the outcome of this comprehensive
review. We encourage all parties to work constructively to
meet the agreed standards, and to support the efforts of
the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General, Mr.
Harri Holkeri. Direct dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina
on practical issues of mutual concern remains a key benchmark
and an indispensable element of the international community's
policy of Standards
before Status; we encourage Belgrade and Pristina to pursue
their dialogue in good faith.
- We are committed to help the countries of the Balkans
integrate fully into Euro-Atlantic structures. We encourage
regional cooperation among the Balkan countries. We expect
them to assume ownership of, and implement, pressing reforms.
They must comply fully with their international obligations,
including full cooperation with the International Criminal
Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), in particular
bringing to justice all those who are indicted by the Tribunal,
notably Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, as well as Ante
Gotovina, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution
1503.
- We call on the Government and all political actors
in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 1to
continue to work toward full implementation of the Ohrid
Agreement. NATO's support to the European Union's Operation
Concordia successfully demonstrated the effectiveness of
the Berlin+ arrangements. NATO has conducted its preliminary
lessons learned process and we will conduct a lessons learned
process with the EU.
- We encourage Albania, Croatia and the former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia to continue pursuing the reforms
necessary to advance their candidacies for NATO membership.
We want them to succeed and will continue to support their
reform efforts through the MAP process. We reaffirm that
the current round of enlargement will not be the last and
that NATO's door remains open.
- We recognise the progress made by Bosnia and Herzegovina
and Serbia and Montenegro in their efforts to join Partnership
for Peace (PfP), welcome substantive progress on defence
reform, and will continue to assist both countries in meeting
established NATO conditions for PfP membership. We look forward
to welcoming them into PfP once they have met the conditions
set forth by the Alliance, including full cooperation with
the ICTY, in particular to detain and turn over persons indicted
for war crimes to the Tribunal. We urge both countries to
envisage the Istanbul Summit as a realistic target by which
they could meet the outstanding conditions. We will assess
the two countries' progress on their possible accession to
PfP in advance of the Istanbul Summit.
- We task the Council in Permanent Session to review
and develop NATO's Balkans strategy, encompassing political
aspects as well as operations, in time for the Istanbul Summit.
- NATO and the European Union share common strategic
interests, and we remain strongly committed to enhancing
our cooperation. Since our last meeting, NATO-EU cooperation
has made concrete progress and is developing in a constructive
manner. We agreed a concerted approach for the Western Balkans.
We look forward to further substantive cooperation with the
EU, including through the Berlin+ arrangements. A joint NATO-EU
crisis management exercise was successfully held in November.
NATO-EU consultations and cooperation on questions of common
interest relating to security, defence and crisis management, such
as the fight against terrorism, mutually reinforcing capabilities,
and civil-emergency planning, were stepped up and will
continue to be developed. We have tasked the Council in Permanent
Session to consider how to reinforce, by the time of the
Istanbul Summit, the strategic partnership between NATO and
the EU as agreed between our two organisations, including
through effective consultations with the EU, respecting the
autonomy of the two organisations, and in a spirit of transparency.
NATO and the EU could also co-sponsor a seminar on terrorism.
- NATO's Partnerships, which contribute greatly to security
and stability across the Euro-Atlantic area, are of increasing
value and importance. During the ten years of its existence,
Partnership for Peace has been an increasingly effective
instrument for cooperation in such areas as peace support
operations and the fight against terrorism. The Istanbul
Summit should build on progress made at Prague to re-focus
PfP to reflect its post-enlargement dimensions and the Alliance's
focus on new threats. We have therefore tasked the Council
in Permanent Session to develop proposals to further tailor
Partnership to tackle key thematic issues and individual
Partners' needs and capabilities, to promote defence reform
which encourages military transformation and interoperability,
and to enhance regional cooperation and mutual support. In
this context the Council will examine whether and how selected
Partnership activities might be opened, on a case by case
basis, to other countries which might express an interest
in such involvement. These new measures should allow for
more focused and deeper practical cooperation. We agree to
promote a special focus on the strategically
important regions of the Caucasus and
Central Asia.
- Security in the Euro-Atlantic area is closely linked
to security and stability in the Mediterranean. We look for
additional progress beyond that achieved since the Prague
Summit in upgrading the Mediterranean Dialogue. We direct
the Council in Permanent Session to consider ways to further
enhance this relationship by generating, in consultation
with all Mediterranean Dialogue partners, by the time of
the Istanbul Summit, options to develop a more ambitious
and expanded framework for the Mediterranean Dialogue. This
initiative will genuinely improve cooperation in a number
of fields, including on defence reform and interoperability,
including through PfP-like instruments, and open more Partnership
activities to the Mediterranean Dialogue partners on a
case by case basis. Our efforts will complement and mutually
reinforce other Mediterranean initiatives, including those
of the European Union and the Organisation for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
- The NATO-Russia Council, in which NATO member states
and Russia work together as equal partners in areas of common
interest, continues to make valuable contributions to security
throughout the Euro-Atlantic area. Our political dialogue
has developed on key security issues, including Afghanistan
and the Balkans. Our practical cooperation has reached a
new level, including in military-to-military projects; and,
through our focus on improving interoperability, we have
also laid the groundwork for future military cooperation
, including potentially in joint peacekeeping operations
. We welcome progress made on nuclear confidence building
measures, and on the safe management of nuclear and radiological
material. We look forward to approval of an ambitious Work
Programme for 2004. We are committed to building on this
progress, and to further enhancing the NATO-Russia relationship.
- We remain committed to stronger NATO-Ukraine relations
under the Charter on a Distinctive Partnership and welcome
progress made over the past year in the implementation
of the NATO-Ukraine Action Plan and Ukraine's 2003 Annual
Target Plan. We look forward to concrete implementation of
the Annual Target Plan in 2004, including the conduct of
free and fair Presidential elections, improvements to media
freedom , strengthening
arms export controls, and progress on and funding for the
Defence Review. We encourage Ukraine to pursue all reforms
necessary to its goal of full Euro-Atlantic integration,
and we will keep under active review all possible options
to support Ukraine in these efforts.
- We are closely following the development of events
in Georgia. We call on the Georgian authorities to hold free
and fair elections, planned for January next year. We support
the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of
Georgia. The
Alliance remains committed to developing Partnership with
Georgia through using the full range of Partnership instruments.
- The Alliance's policy of support for arms control,
disarmament and non-proliferation will continue to play a
major role in the achievement of the Alliance's security
objectives, including preventing the spread and use of Weapons
of Mass Destruction (WMD) and their means of delivery. We
stress the importance of abiding by, fully implementing and
strengthening existing international arms control and disarmament
accords and multilateral non-proliferation and export control
regimes. Early admission of all invitees into all appropriate
existing non-proliferation regimes could play a positive
role in that regard. In particular, we underline our commitment
to reinforcing the Non-Proliferation Treaty, the pre-eminent
non-proliferation and disarmament mechanism, and ensuring
the full compliance with it by all states party to the Treaty.
We will also strengthen our common efforts to safeguard nuclear
and radiological material.
- The Alliance supports the aims of the Proliferation
Security Initiative to establish a more co-ordinated and
effective basis through which to impede and stop shipments
of WMD, delivery systems, and related materials flowing to
and from states and non-state actors of proliferation concern,
consistent with national legal authorities and relevant international
law and frameworks, including the United Nations Security
Council.
- We remain committed to the protection of civilian populations.
We welcome the progress made in the implementation of the
Civil Emergency Planning Action Plan for the Improvement
of Civil Preparedness against possible Terrorist Attacks
against Civilian Populations with Chemical, Biological and
Radiological Agents. We look forward to its full implementation
in order to reinforce national preparedness and reaction
to civil emergencies.
- As we have consistently stated, we
remain committed to the CFE Treaty as a cornerstone of European
security, and reaffirm our attachment to the early entry
into force of the Adapted Treaty. We recall that fulfilment
of the remaining Istanbul commitments on Georgia and Moldova
will create the conditions for Allies and other States Parties
to move forward on ratification of the Adapted CFE Treaty.
We welcome the approach of those non-CFE countries, which
have stated their intention to request accession to the Adapted
CFE Treaty upon its entry into force. Their accession would
provide an important additional contribution to European
security and stability.
- We urge swift resolution of the outstanding
issues between Georgia and Russia as set out in their Istanbul
Joint Statement of 17 November 1999 and, to this end, call
upon the parties to resume negotiations at an appropriately
senior level. We note the progress that was made on withdrawal
of Russian military forces from Moldova during the first
half of 2003. We regret that this progress was not sustained
and that the 31 December 2003 extended deadline, agreed in
the framework of the OSCE, will not be met. It is essential
that efforts be intensified to complete the withdrawal in
early 2004. We will continue, via the OSCE, to assist in
this process.
- Based on the enduring principles enshrined in the Washington
Treaty, NATO today is demonstrating our commitment to multilateralism
through effective action and our shared commitment to:
the transatlantic link; NATO's fundamental security tasks
including collective defence; our shared democratic values;
and the United Nations Charter. As we prepare for the Istanbul
Summit, we invite the Council in Permanent Session to intensify
consultations on the challenges and threats facing the Alliance,
and how best to respond to them.
- We continue to attach high priority to the implementation
of measures to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness
of the NATO Headquarters organisation, including through
modern management and financial systems, sound and transparent
management of the new Headquarters project, and
improvements to gender balance and diversity
in the Alliance's International Staff.
- We wish to thank Lord Robertson of Port Ellen warmly
for his leadership role in guiding NATO's transformation.
We are confident that the new Secretary General, Jaap de
Hoop Scheffer, will continue to carry forward NATO's evolution,
and build on the Alliance's record of success, and we pledge
our full support to him.
- Turkey recognises the
Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name.
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