Secretary General, Excellencies,
Estonia follows, as closely as possible for a partner country, the
ongoing developments in the Defence Capabilities Initiative - not
because of intellectual curiosity but because the DCI is defining
the alliance we will join. By bolstering alliance's effectiveness
DCI will ensure NATO's position as a centrepiece of Europe's security.
In that respect we welcome the Operational Capabilities Concept which
translates the basic tenets of the DCI to the partnership. OCC is
a good basis for carrying the work forward in ensuring a smooth future
NATO-led PSO if one might come up. Decade-long turmoil in parts of
the former Yugoslavia reminds us that it might.
Another initiative stemming from the Washington Summit is of particular
relevance for Estonia - the Membership Action Plan (MAP). Estonia
has made a political decision to be ready for the next round of NATO
enlargement. The ANP is the most extensive and comprehensive defence-related
planning document approved by the Estonian government so far. MAP
gave us an impetus to review our plans in the entire field of security
and defence and has consolidated co-operation among various governmental
departments involved.
In the light of our aspirations I would highlight here a political
decision of the Government supported by majority of political forces
to allocate appropriate resources to defence issues. Estonian Government
is committed to fulfil the responsibilities it has taken upon itself
to increase the defence expenses to 2% of the GDP by the year 2002.
In accordance with the State budget draft bill already submitted by
the Government to Parliament, the defence expenses for next year will
be 1.6 percent of the GDP compared to this year's 1.39 percent. If
to talk about the allocations of defence budget, then Estonia is in
a privileged situation for not having to spend enormous sums on the
maintenance of old infrastructure or conversion of defence industry.
As I already slipped into money-talk, one might pose a question:
where is the return for the investment the alliance members have put
into the partner countries, in other words - where is the partnership
for peace dividend? The most obvious answer is simple - on the ground
in Bosnia & Herzegovina and in Kosovo. Estonia's contributions to
SFOR and KFOR, though relatively small in real numbers, is quite substantial
in per capita terms. It demonstrates that small countries are able
and willing to give their fair share to our common cause - a stable
and secure Europe.
Those initiatives, policies and actions are paving the way for the
political decision of enlargement. Estonia welcomes that we are provided
with a mechanism to use the time in alliance's antechamber efficiently.
Thank you
