EAPC Foreign Ministers Meeting Budapest, Hungary 30 May 2001

Opening Statement by NATO Secretary General, Lord Robertson Ministers, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to this meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council in Budapest, the splendid capital of Hungary; a country right in the middle of Europe, and at the heart of NATO and our Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council. I am delighted to welcome to our meeting Foreign Minister Svilanovic of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. His country's decision to reject the policies of the past, and instead to embrace democracy and partnership, bring us significantly closer to our common goal of building long term security and stability in South East Europe. This, in turn, is a major step forward in our efforts to returning all the countries of the region to the European mainstream, where they belong. Of course, there is still work to be done before we reach that goal. Recent outbursts of extremism have reminded us of the considerable challenges that still remain. But ethnic hatred and violence must not be allowed to undermine the peace and stability that we NATO Allies and Partners together -- are working so hard to restore in the region. We all condemn the violent attacks against the government of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (1) and support the efforts of the government there to find a political solution to the present crisis. Today's meeting will be a good opportunity for us to share views on developments in the region, and to seek common approaches to addressing these important challenges. I believe that these discussions, and indeed our discussion of all the important issues on our agenda today, demonstrate just how vital the EAPC and the Partnership for Peace have become, across the entire Euro-Atlantic area. There is potential for much more. The EAPC is a unique, flexible and inclusive mechanism, and our meeting today is an excellent opportunity both to review our cooperation and to give further impetus to it. As we enter the new Century, we are facing new and complex challenges. But at the same time, we have new and more effective tools to meet these challenges. The Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council and Partnership for Peace, in particular, provide us with powerful mechanisms to act together, and that should give us great confidence as we face the challenges of today and the challenges tomorrow. Turkey recognises the Republic of Macedonia with its Constitutional name.