At Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey 19 Dec. 2005

Speech by NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, At Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Students, It is a great pleasure for me to be here today and address the students of one of Turkey ’s foremost institutions of higher education. Bilkent competes with the best European and American Universities in scientific research and academic excellence. Therefore I look forward to your questions and comments after my speech. I have come to Turkey on many occasions, and the NATO Summit in Istanbul last year will forever rank among the finest memories in my career. And I remember with particular fondness the Youth Summit that was held there, bringing together young people interested in politics and security from throughout the Euro-Atlantic region. Last year I also had the opportunity to meet with your colleagues at the Galatasaray University – another excellent recollection for me. Let me also salute the representatives of the recently established Turkish Youth Atlantic Treaty Association who have joined us today. I wish you all the success in your endeavours. Why do I make a point of meeting young people, whenever my calendar permits? Because you are the leaders of tomorrow. You must be well informed, and able and willing to play an active role in shaping the world around you. And your views matter to me. I want to hear from you what your interests and concerns are. Because ultimately, NATO is there to defend and promote the interests of the citizens of its member states. I want to talk to you today about NATO’s transformation – the way in which Turkey and its 25 Allies in NATO are adapting the Alliance to modern needs and requirements. That transformation process has five broad dimensions, which I want to briefly set out for you. The first dimension has to do with the way we view security challenges today, and how we use NATO to address them. The second relates to how we prepare ourselves militarily to promote peace and security. A third dimension is NATO’s evolving relationship with other major institutions, notably the European Union. A fourth dimension is the need to take a fresh look at our dialogue and cooperation with countries and regions that, not that long ago, were well beyond our radar screens. And finally, I want to say a few words about the need to reinforce NATO’s role as a political forum, where North America and Europe , including Turkey , come together to shape common policies. First, security today. The Cold War security environment was largely static. It bid two blocs – East and West – against each other in a strategic confrontation. Today’s environment is completely different. We now face a whole range of new and complex threats: a lethal breed of terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, failed states spreading instability, and criminal networks trafficking in people, drugs and weapons. We must be prepared to deal with those threats when and where they emerge, or they will escalate and land on our doorsteps. A reactive approach may have been adequate during the Cold War. Today, it is simply no longer good enough. NATO has learned this lesson. We have moved on from the rather passive, territorial approach to security that was suitable in the past, to a much more active and functional approach. We are running a major anti-terrorist naval operation in the Mediterranean Sea . We are in charge of large and complex peace operations Kosovo and in Afghanistan . We are training Iraqi security forces and assisting the African Union with its peacekeeping mission in Darfur . But we have also taken action in response to a number of natural disasters. Most recently, following the Pakistani government’s request, NATO is airlifting a major quantity of relief items to the victims of the October earthquake and NATO engineers and medical teams support the Pakistani authorities on the ground. So NATO has the political and military means to make a difference. And that is why this Alliance is in greater demand than ever before. Now, whenever I explain this broader orientation of NATO, I am careful to note that we are not turning into some sort of “globocop” – ready to deal with crises or emergencies all over the world. We simply do not have that ambition nor the necessary means. However, all 26 Allies do now look at NATO as a very flexible organisation, that we can use wherever our common security interests demand it. And that new conception of the Alliance offers new, unprecedented opportunities for transatlantic security cooperation. The second area of NATO’s transformation is in the military realm. If we want to continue to effectively carry out the military tasks that all Allies agree we should undertake, then we need the right forces to do so. What we need, in particular, are forces that can react quickly, that can be deployed over long distances, and sustained over extended periods of time. And we need the right mix of forces capable of performing both combat tasks and post-conflict stabilisation work. Within NATO, we have made good progress in modernising our forces. We have established a NATO Response Force to be able to react quickly to any emerging crises, including natural disasters. All our member nations are committed to make a larger proportion of their forces useable for expeditionary missions and operations. And we are looking into ways to better plan and resource such operational engagements. But we do all realise that there is still important work to do in this vital area. The next NATO Summit to be held in Riga in November 2006 will serve as a focal point for those efforts. The third area of NATO’s transformation relates to our relationship with other institutions. In order to tackle today’s complex security challenges, we must apply military, political, economic and other instruments in a well-coordinated way. That means we must have more structured cooperation among our institutions. We have made quite good progress in developing our cooperation with the United Nations and with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe . What we need above all, however, is a much stronger partnership between NATO and the European Union. NATO and the EU have worked together very effectively in the Balkans. But increasingly -- in Afghanistan , Iraq , Darfur – crisis situations require both our organisations to take action. And that means that our ambition must reach beyond the Balkans. Transatlantic cooperation is crucial in meeting today’s risks and challenges. And individually, NATO and the EU each have important contributions to make to that transatlantic effort. But it is critical, at the same time, that both organisations optimise their combined impact. And that requires a much more pragmatic, transparent partnership between the EU and NATO, a partnership that covers the full range of security issues before us. The fourth area of NATO’s transformation that I wish to highlight is the geographic dimension. Now more than ever before, we need to look at certain countries and regions through a common transatlantic lens. This is true for South-East Europe , for Russia , for Ukraine , for the Caucasus and Central Asia , as well as for Northern Africa and the Broader Middle East. Finding ways to help positive change in these regions, to foster democracy and stability, should be a joint transatlantic effort – or it won’t stand much chance of success. NATO is playing its part in this common transatlantic approach. We are helping to prepare Albania , Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia(1) for NATO membership. Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro , for their part, are interested in joining our Partnership for Peace programme, and they know about the necessary requirements, notably full cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague . We are intensifying our cooperation with Russia and Ukraine , and indeed have opened an intensified dialogue with Ukraine on its aspiration to become a member of NATO. We are deepening relations with our Partners in the Caucasus and Central Asia , in particular helping their defence reforms. We are enhancing our dialogue and cooperation with countries in Northern Africa , the Middle East and the Gulf region. And we are developing closer contacts with countries such as Australia , New Zealand and Japan – in order to work together with these countries, as well, to meet security challenges that affect them as much as they affect us. These four key areas of NATO’s transformation that I have highlighted – conceptual, military, institutional, and geographic – all underscore the comprehensive approach to security that NATO has adopted. But I would like to conclude with yet another aspect of transformation – an aspect that in fact cuts across all other areas of NATO’s evolution, which is strengthening NATO’s political role. We face new, complex and truly global threats to our security. Parts of the world that used to be well beyond NATO’s radar screens are rapidly growing in relevance. We must discuss new approaches to these regions. We have to adapt our capabilities to the changing circumstances. We must take our cooperation with other countries and organisations to a new level. And we must continue to defend and promote the values NATO has always stood for – democracy, fundamental freedoms, human rights and the rule of law. Those are all enormous challenges. They demand that we exploit NATO’s unique role as a structured, permanent forum for transatlantic political discussion to the maximum extent possible. Ever since I took office, I have been promoting such an enhanced political role for NATO, and I am pleased that the Alliance is now moving in that direction. I am pleased that we are having more regular, and increasingly constructive, political discussions at different levels in NATO on issues such as Iraq and the Middle East . And I am pleased that NATO is also increasingly seen and respected as a political player – for example in the discussions on the future of Kosovo or Afghanistan , where we are militarily engaged. I firmly believe that that enhanced political role and influence not only befits NATO, but that it is a crucial complement to the evolution of its military role. Ladies and Gentlemen, Listening to my speech, you will have noticed that all aspects of NATO’s transformation agenda have close bearings on Turkey . Look at today’s threats I outlined: Terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, failed states and regional conflicts, trafficking. These are challenges which are high on Turkey ’s agenda, and which it is working, together with its Allies, to address. Look at the regions I highlighted as strategically important to all Allies: The Balkans, the Caucasus , Central Asia , the Mediterranean basin, the broader Middle East . These are all regions to which Turkey has strong historical, cultural and economic links. And your country sets an example to follow for many countries in these regions. A free and democratic country with an emerging economy. A modern country negotiating its accession into the European Union. A secular state in the Muslim world. Indeed, Turkey combines many qualities that make it a unique actor on the world stage. For all these reasons, Turkey has always been, and continues to be, an indispensable Ally. Your country contributes invaluable insights to our political discussions, as was the case when Minister Abdullah Gül briefed his colleagues on the recent Summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, during the NATO Foreign Ministers’ meeting. Turkey also brings well-trained, modern and experienced armed forces to the table. Its troop contributions to NATO operations in the Balkans and now in Afghanistan are very valuable. As a prominent example, Turkey twice ably provided the command and leadership of ISAF in Afghanistan . Turkey also provided me an outstanding Senior Civilian Representative in Afghanistan – your former Parliamentary Speaker and Foreign Minister Hikmet Ç etin. I had the honour to present him with NATO’s Meritorious Service Medal last week. He has done much not only to provide excellent advice to me and the North Atlantic Council, but also to strengthen the political role of NATO in Afghanistan . And Turkey also has an important role to play in promoting the kind of partnership I was talking about between NATO and the European Union. Of course, there is still some way to go in the negotiations about Turkey ’s membership in the European Union, but the way ahead is clear for everyone to see. And if Turkey is truly committed, I believe that this will help us build a closer relationship between NATO and the EU as well. Ladies and gentlemen, The transforming NATO Alliance is all about active engagement to meet current and future challenges. As you continue your studies and look ahead to the future, I would urge you to show active engagement as well. Over the past decades, following the footsteps of the founder of the Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atat ü rk, this country has produced security – for itself, for its Allies in NATO, and for the entire Euro-Atlantic community of nations and beyond. That is a very proud tradition for you all to continue into this new century. Thank you for your attention, and I am ready to take your questions. 1. Turkey recognises the Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name