Istanbul, Turkey 29 June 2004

Opening statement by NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer EAPC Summit Meeting in Istanbul Events NATO Istanbul Summit Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to this meeting of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council. I would like to express, also on behalf of the EAPC, our profound gratitude for the warm welcome offered to us in Istanbul by Prime Minister Erdoğan and his country. I would like to extend a particular welcome today to President Karzai of the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan, who joins us for our first agenda item. I would also like to welcome President Tihic, Chairman of the Tri-Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina and President Marovic of Serbia and Montenegro who join us as observers today. Today we celebrate ten years of achievement through the Partnership for Peace. To mark this event, I invite you to watch for a few minutes a short video presentation before we begin our discussions. [VIDEO: CELEBRATING A DECADE OF PARTNERSHIP - 4.50 MINUTES] This is what we have achieved together. It is a record of which we can be very proud. NATO's success has always been based on solidarity - the willingness to accept risks and tackle challenges together. But NATO does not face these challenges alone. Over the past ten years, Partners have played a critical role in helping us tackle the most difficult security challenges – in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and now Afghanistan. But we must always look to the future, and consider how best our Partnership can adapt to meet the new challenges that we face together. This should be our objective today. Avant de donner la parole au Président Karzaï, permettez-moi de faire quelques remarques à propos de l'Afghanistan. Monsieur le Président, votre présence revêt une signification particulière si on considère le nombre de pays autour de cette table qui participent à l'opération que nous menons en Afghanistan. Elle est également un signe de l'engagement ferme de l'OTAN, et de l’ensemble de la communauté internationale, vis-à-vis de votre pays. Je suis heureux que l'élargissement de la mission de la FIAS est acquis et que nous apporterons à votre gouvernement le soutien nécessaire au processus électoral crucial. Nous continuerons aussi d'aider votre gouvernement dans l'important domaine de la réforme du secteur de la sécurité. Monsieur le Président, j'ai maintenant l'honneur de vous donner la parole. Thank you very much, Mr. President for your insightful assessment.