Panel
speech
by
Dr Pleuger, State Secretary of Germany
at the meeting of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council
Panel
2: The role of the EAPR in the international fight against terrorism
11 September 2001 changed the world. What had previously been
dismissed, as unworldly horror scenarios suddenly became reality.
We are faced with a threat, which is new, aggressive and unpredictable
in both its quality and its order of magnitude.
We all, both allies and partners, were aware from the first
moment that the terrible attacks on the United States were directed
against every one of us. They were a targeted threat to our
open societies. The solidarity shown by allies and partners,
as expressed in the declarations of the North Atlantic Council
and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council immediately after
11 September, were therefore a matter of course.
The concrete threat is not over. The people killed and injured
on Djerba and in Pakistan, too, are victims of terrorism. It
is to be feared that AI-Quaida's recent threats will result
in further attacks if we fail to put the terrorists out of business.
The support of each individual partner in the fight against
terrorism shows how closely our world, which was divided in
two only ten years ago, has grown together. Every one of us
is aware that we will only succeed if we stand shoulder to shoulder
in the face of the deadly danger posed by terrorism.
We can only win the fight against terrorism through the prudent
use of both military and political means. In addition to using
military, intelligence and police resources to combat terrorists,
this requires a comprehensive strategy to tackle the political
and social root causes of terrorism, a strategy - and this is
very important - that respects human rights when seeking to
solve the conflicts which provide the breeding grounds for terrorism.
Germany will continue to do everything within its power to
eradicate with political means the causes of hate and thus also
the causes of international terrorism. Our policy of international
crisis and conflict prevention must be further enhanced. In
the Balkans, thanks to outside intervention and the close cooperation
between NATO and the EU, democracy is increasingly taking hold.
FYROM in particular has shown that timely, preventive use of
armed forces in close coordination with political initiatives
can help to peacefully resolve conflicts before they become
violent.
The use of military means, too, remains indispensable in combating
the terrorist threat and in preventing a repeat of attacks such
as on 11 September as far as possible. This is why we are engaged
in Afghanistan with one of the biggest military contingents
in the framework of ISAF. But in the first place we are also
assisting in the political and social reconstruction of the
country devastated, not only in material terms, by 23 years
of war-fighting.
Lasting peace can only be brought to Afghanistan if its internal
security is guaranteed. For that reason, we have committed both
funds and personnel, in particular to the building up and training
of the Afghan police force. The country*s future can only be
secured if we also train its people. That is why we have made
available considerable funds for education. And finally, the
country's return to normality is only conceivable if its women
once more become equal members of society - a further focus
of our work in Afghanistan which also serves regional security
and stability.
Any comprehensive strategy on fighting terrorism would be incomplete
without a continual exchange of information on an equal footing.
This is undoubtedly one of the strengths of the EAPC.
We know that our partners have a rich fund of know-how at their
disposal. We must make the exchange of information - not only
on this issue - more efficient. I therefore believe that a "clearing
house" in the EAPC format on fighting terrorism would be
particularly promising. Moreover, the PfP training centres could
step up the exchange of information on the activities of terrorist
groups and their know-how.
Weapons of mass destruction do not stop at national borders.
We want, and indeed must, design measures to provide protection
from such terrible weapons together with our partners. A range
of reaction capabilities on which every NATO state and every
partner can fall back on is already being elaborated at the
newly created Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Center
(EADRCC). We are keen to see an arrangement, which is as unbureaucratic
as possible so that the information and the available counter-measures
can be requested quickly when required.
Indeed, the internal security of us all can be considerably
enhanced by exchanging information and by developing common
standards, particularly in the face of terrorist threats. We
therefore welcome the deliberations on the development of minimum
standards on preparing for and dealing with the aftermath of
a terrorist attack for both allies and partners. Such standards
would considerably improve interoperability in the Euro-Atlantic
area as a whole; they would accelerate and standardize the reaction
to a terrorist attack. For this reason, we strongly support
the proposal put forward in the Senior Civil Emergency Planning
Committee.
The world changed forever on 11 September; the EAPC and the
Partnership must face the new challenges. We are therefore open
to any proposals on extending the role of the EAPC in the fight
against international terrorism. The EAPC should engage in cooperation
and avoid any duplication of work or results already carried
out or achieved by others.
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