Mr. Chairman,
Dear Colleagues,
We face the 21st century with new challenges, new threats and new
achievements. This leads us to the idea, that NATO countries and Partners
should further join their efforts in order to strengthen peace, safe
environment and security in the Euro-Atlantic area.
The EAPC and PfP are to be further explored in coming years in order
to create comprehensive mechanisms for crisis management led by NATO,
where Allies and Partners operate together.
In countries like Georgia transition period is particularly difficult
for armed forces. But my government fully acknowledges the necessity
of tough and even painful decisions to be taken in order to reform
its army and we enjoy in this process a valuable support and assistance
of many countries present here today.
Major element of the initiated reform is to develop interoperability
with NATO in order to increase the ability of Georgian army to act
together with Allies and Partners in peace support operations. We
also believe that enhanced and adapted PARP will give Georgia new
possibilities to improve its interoperability with the Alliance.
The transition period also implies the need to better plan and review
defense budgets. In this regard, we consider that Georgia could benefit
from the broad experience of EAPC countries in this field, namely
in the framework of the EAPC Open-Ended Ad Hoc Working Group on prospects
of regional cooperation in the Caucasus. Next year we'll host EAPC
seminar devoted to this issue. In this regard we hope that in future,
as the cooperation in the Caucasus gains more momentum, the work of
the Ad Hoc Working Group could include some military areas as all
the countries of the region face common problems.
Considerable financial problems should be addressed in order to implement
the agreement reached at the OSCE Summit in Istanbul between Georgia
and the Russian Federation on the withdrawal of Russian military bases
from Georgia. We hope that the cooperation of EAPC states in the force
relocation would help both countries to fulfil their obligations.
The implementation of far-reaching peaceful plans in Bosnia and
Kosovo are the best examples of how modern security challenges should
be met. First Georgian peacekeeping platoon has been already deployed
in Kosovo. Certainly, one platoon does not represent a serious force
but it is the first peacekeeping experience for Georgia outside its
borders and that can be considered as a step forward towards the implementation
of Interoperability Objectives.
We strongly believe and hope that the vast experience gained in Bosnia
and Kosovo can be used in the solution of other existing conflicts
in the Euro-Atlantic area, namely in Georgian region of Abkhazia.
The decisions made at the Washington Summit gave a strong impetus
to the development of a closer partnership between Allies and Partners.
The Enhanced and More Operational Partnership is a big step forward
in terms of strengthening security and stability in the Euro-Atlantic
area by means of ever closer cooperation of the countries with common
democratic values. Its major elements still need to be further explored
but one is certain that the implementation of the Political-Military
Framework for NATO-led PfP Operations, Expanded and Adapted PARP,
the Operational Capabilities Concept for NATO-led PfP Operations,
and PfP Training and Enhancement Programme would lead us to much better
partnership. Georgia fully appreciates these initiatives to enhance
the PfP Program.
The security in the Caucasus region can not be separated from the
European security at large. The developments in Chechnya, Russian
Federation, prove that conflicts in our common house - the Euro-Atlantic
space - can not be considered as isolated ones. The tragic events
in Chechnya are having dangerous repercussions not only in neighbouring
Georgia but also in the broader region of the Caucasus. There is a
real threat of the spillover of the conflict and Georgia has grave
concerns in this regard. Such a spillover would create unpredictable
situation with very serious consequences. The attempts to involve
Georgia into this conflict are particularly dangerous for the regional
security. Having that in mind we fully support the Final Communiqué
of the yesterday's NAC Meeting in Defense Ministers Session which
urges Russia "to ensure that the conflict does not spread to
other states, bearing in mind the importance of regional stability
and security". And we count on a strong NATO support and more
focused attention of the EAPC in this regard.
Thank you.
