At the Meeting of Heads of State or Government under the Aegis of the Euro- Atlantic Partnership Council July 9, 1997

Statement by His Excellency Alexander Arzoumanian, Foreign Minister of the Republic of Armenia Mr. Secretary General, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen: I am grateful for the opportunity to address you on behalf of my government. I would also like to welcome the signing of the Charter on a Distinctive Partnership between NATO and Ukraine. The creation of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council in May of this year marked the beginning of a new era of partnership and cooperation in security issues among our nations. In our view, three key elements in the EAPC concept distinguish this forum from existing European and transatlantic institutions. These elements are: inclusiveness, the principle of self-differentiation, and the direct political relationship each partner nation - individually or collectively - can enter into with the Alliance. It is now up to us to make certain that the opportunities offered by the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council materialise in practice, and that each nation achieves the level and quality of engagement it is willing and able to achieve. Combining under one umbrella the PfP is practical cooperation and enhancing the political dimension of NACC is a most positive an vital move. It allows for the building and extension of the achievements of both and the opportunity to consolidate their valuable experience. In so doing, the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council can develop into a multifaceted, process wherein participation, empowerment, and interaction at all levels - national regional and EAPC-wide - can carry equal weight and complement each other. The risks and challenges to our common security arise not only from different sources of instability, regional tension and conflict, but also from misperceptions and mistrust. With its unique mechanism of consultations, security dialogue and regional outreach, the EAPC can serve as a framework wherein those risks could be co-operatively addressed, and a suitable agenda for dealing with them devised. I am hopeful that sufficient momentum and effort may be exercised towards the resolution of different, perhaps even occasionally competing interests. I should like to suggest further that the EAPC concern itself with encouraging the partner nations to achieve a commonly-agreed-upon standard of engagement in pursuit of practical cooperation under the enhanced PfP. I feel that it is absolutely essential that this program remain a key and integral element of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, and that in seeking an enhanced security dialogue within the scope of EAPC, more partner nations be able to co-relate, at the same level of commitment and authorisation. In due time, this would allow focusing increasingly on regional programs that we believe are instrumental to enhancing stability, security and shared responsibility for our region. Armenia will be able to contribute to this end by actively engaging itself at two parallel levels: direct political relationship with the Alliance, and efforts aimed at establishing and implementing a sound regional security agenda. Such an agenda would include, but not be limited to, regional measures of arms control, disarmament and specific CSBMs aimed at increasing confidence through a policy of openness, and thereby gradually overcoming mistrust. These measures would further consolidate the existing cease-fire in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and would facilitate compromise solutions in its political settlement. How viable these processes can be depends on the way the peoples of the region can feel integrated into a broader cooperative security framework. It is therefore critical that they be made fully aware of the importance and need of partnership and integration. I feel certain that through its focus on practical regional cooperation and improved crisis prevention and management, especially through peace keeping, the EAPC will achieve what all the member states fervently seek - security and stability for the peoples of their regions. We believe that it is the responsibility of all of us to demonstrate adherence to, and act in accordance with, thus making certain that the opportunities extended to us through the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council are used with the utmost competence for the benefit of our peoples and for achieving a stable an secure peace in the region. Thank you.