Signing Ceremony of the NATO-Russia Founding Act, Paris, 27 May 1997

Statement by Dr. Helmut Kohl Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany

(18 Kb) Mr. President, Mr. Secretary-General, Ladies and Gentlement, We have gathered here at the Elysée Palace in order to open together a new chapter in the history of Europe. I would like to thank President Chirac for being our host on this momentous occasion. I congratulate Secretary-General Solana on the successful outcome of the negotiations achieved together with Foreign Minister Primakov. At this hour, however, I wish to pay a very special tribute to the President of the Russian Federation, Boris Yeltsin. Today we are signing a document of far-reaching significance for the security and stability of Europe in the twenty-first century. It is the outcome of legthly and difficult negotiations between NATO and Russia, opening up the prospect of a long-term security partnership in which the interests of all partners are respected. The German Government has played its full part in making the negotiations a success. Today we sense a new something of that wind of change sweeping across Europe since the dramatic developments of the years 1989/1990 and which indeed brought us to Paris once before, for the signing of the Charter for a New Europe in November 1990. Just ten years ago who would have dared predict that the countries of the Atlantic Alliance would enter into a close and forward-looking partnership with Russia ? For decades the continent of Europe was divided. No nation suffered more grievously from this than we Germans, with the Iron Curtain running right through our country's heart. The co-operation on which the countries of the Atlantic Alliance have agreed today is without parallel in history. It is clear and visible proof that the division of Europe has now been overcome. (25 Kb) This co-operation is not directed against anyone. It reflects the firm conviction of all members of the Atlantic Alliance that only with Russia can security and stability in Europe be assured in the long term. The history of Europe has taught us that there is no future in the pursuit of prestige, nation-state rivalries, playing games with coalitions and counter-coalitions, all this is obsolete, belonging to the past. Only by expanding cooperation between countries and Europe-wide integration can we safeguard lasting peace. The key to the success of our efforts will be building confidence on both sides. In the new Europe evolving since the end of the Cold War the Atlantic Alliance, too, has changed. Its political and military structures and procedures are being adapted to the new realities. It is ready to expand cooperation with the countries of Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe. The Alliance remains open to membership by other European countries. The Russian Federation for its part is going through a process of profound transfromation under the leadership of President Yeltsin. Today Russia is a full member of the Council of Europe. The Partnership and Co-opearation Agreement with the European Union will shortly be entering into force. This shows that Russia is part of Europe. Now it is time for the NATO-Russia Permanent Joint Council, too, to start work. This is a new stage on which we are now setting out, a journey we are making together to bring more security and stability to Europe as a whole. Let us resolve to make the most of the tremendous opportunity this day brings to all of us.