NATO HQ 10 June 2005

Speech by Director Johan Raeder, the Swedish Ministry of Defence of Sweden at the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council Mr. Chairman, Ministers, Ladies and Gentlemen: Sweden is very pleased with the work to implement the decisions from Istanbul. Enhanced application of the Political Military Framework, the development of the Operational Capability Concept and the possibility for partners to participate in advanced exercises are all very important tools for partner countries when preparing to contribute to peace support operations. Partners can also support other Partners and NATO members in their process of transforming their forces and raising their capacities. For instance, the Swedish exercise VIKING 05 contains activities of experimentation. This exercise is supported by NATO and with planned participation from 26 countries, partners and allies, with sites besides in Sweden also in Croatia, Finland, France, Slovenia, Switzerland and Ukraine. The results of this exercise itself, will benefit us all. The PARP Ministerial Guidance we approve today will ensure the continued relevance of PARP as a very flexible tool. This process is vital for our overall ability to contribute to international crisis management, be it under EU, NATO- or UN-lead. The Istanbul Summit report clearly spelled out the need to enhance involvement of non-Allied troop contributors in NATO decision-shaping processes regarding operations in which they participate. Including timely access to relevant documentation. This is essential in order to make contributing Partners able to plan for and decide upon their participation. It will also enable us to better contribute to NATO discussions and planning processes in the actual operation. CMX 05 demonstrated good examples of Partner involvement in NATO decision-shaping, and should be implemented in real-life operations. We support the transformation of KFOR into a Task Force structure. We also support all work aimed at minimizing the number of national caveats. This is important in order to make the force more capable of preventing and handling outbreaks of violence. Our contribution to ISAF is a first priority for the Swedish Government, and is a long-term commitment. We have expressed interest in replacing UK as lead nation for the PRT in Mazar-e-Sharif at a later stage subject to final decision. We are aiming for a multilateral PRT and are consulting with other potential contributing nations in this endeavour. In this context, one key issues which will have to be dealt with in the coming months is the relationship between ISAF and Operation Enduring Freedom. This is an issue of principle on which all contributors need to be fully consulted. Thank you very much for your attention.