Opening
remarks
by Lord Robertson,
NATO Secretary General
at the Press Conference
following the Meeting of the North Atlantic Council
We've just finished a very timely
meeting, and it's been a pleasure
to welcome Colin Powell here for his
first North Atlantic Council as Secretary
of State.
His presence is a reminder of the
vital importance of the transatlantic
link, which is at the very heart of
NATO, and also the continuing US commitment
to this Alliance. It's become something
of a four-yearly media ritual to greet
every new administration with predictions
of a widening gap between the US and
Europe. As someone whose been around
a while I have to say such predictions
have always underestimated the strength
and value NATO has always had to all
its members - and still does.
That durability is based on NATO's
ability to act decisively and adapt
to new circumstances in a fast-changing
world. There is certainly no shortage
of challenges facing us, and we discussed
some of them in today's meeting.
Today was a good opportunity to look
at the state of transatlantic security,
and what needs to be done to keep
it in a good state of health. Fundamental
to that is our capabilities. NATO
is a military alliance and to act
decisively it needs the tools to do
its job - there can be no credibility
without capability.
We also all know that Europe has
not, over the years, been pulling
its full weight, and needs to spend
more and better to create a more equal
partnership. And that is good for
the US too, because at present if
Europe wants to act it's "NATO
or nothing", and that means the
US or nothing. There can be and will
be, no substitute for NATO, which
remains the cornerstone of European
defence, but it's right that Europe
should have the ability to act together
when NATO as a whole is not engaged,
and there is no difference between
the US and Europe on this.
The other main issue we discussed
this morning was the Balkans, and
what we all agree is an alarming situation.
You will have seen my statement and
I won't repeat it, but I will say
that this is a time which should be
one of hope. The man who was the focal
point of so much tragedy, Milosevic,
is gone, but what is needed now is
the courage and the imagination for
the political leadership of the region
to rise above past bitterness and
seize the opportunities now before
them.
At the moment, to be blunt, too few
are doing so. However the new Yugoslav
government has shown it's learning
a lesson that Milosevic never did,
that brute military force does not
produce lasting solutions, and its
peace plan for Southern Serbia is
an important first step to a lasting,
and fair, peace. Now we need the ethnic
Albanian community to start talking
with the Serb authorities, and for
the extremists to end their violence
immediately.
It is also unacceptable for the Ground
Safety Zone to be used as some kind
of safe haven for extremists, so we
are preparing for a phased and conditional
reduction of the GSZ. We're still
working out the details of how this
will be done, but the commander of
KFOR will retain his authority over
the zone. We also urge the Serb authorities
to move fast to put in place confidence
building measures so that all ethnic
groups in Southern Serbia can believe
their voice will be heard and their
interests reflected.
It will not be easy, and it will
need sustained commitment from all
the international community to help,
hence my decision to appoint a NATO
Representative to the area, but in
the end we can only do so much. We
can help create the opportunity, but
it is up to the people of the region
to take advantage of what's on offer.
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