NATO HQ, Brussels 03 Apr. 2006

Press Point by NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and the EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Mr. Javier Solana Multimedia Audio file .MP3/7.229kb JAAP DE HOOP SCHEFFER (Secretary General, NATO): Thank you very much. We had a good interesting meeting of the North Atlantic Council and the Political Security Committee. While we had at the agenda item Bosnia-Herzegovina, we had briefings by General Webber and General Chiarini on the present situation. You know what NATO's responsibilities are: assisting and defence reform. But progress is being made and has been made through all of this. There is some road, of course, to cover. We concluded as we knew before, and that also, of course, goes for High Representative Solana and myself that the cooperation between the UN and NATO in Bosnia Herzegovina is very good indeed in the different responsibilities we have and in the common responsibilities we have there. We discussed this more in general. Of course the Highe Representative gave his assessment of the political situation. We discussed a trust fund which is hopefully quickly to be launched on demobilization. NATO's biggest trust fund for about 11,000 demobilised members of the armed forces. It will be a big trust fund. Appeals were made for participating to this trust fund. That's what I can say on the Bosnia-Herzegovina. And then, as you know, we had an informal exchange of views after the NATO-EC meeting on another very pressing issue where there is of course cooperation between NATO and the European Union. And that is the humanitarian catastrophe in Darfur . Of course, Javier Solana will have to say what he has to say, being involved on behalf of the union in the political process. I've, of course, mentioned the situation as it is here in NATO headquarters. And that is the phone call by Kofi Annan to me, Monday, last week, and the tasking the North Atlantic Council has given to the NATO military authorities to develop options for NATO for the bridging period between AMIS and a possible UN force and for the period separately when a UN led force would be in place in Darfur. We are not yet there of course. But this tasking has gone out and in the NATO framework will certainly go on discussing this, as soon as the options have been presented. And let me say again, that also under NATO's present responsibility, that is the airlift of forces and the capacity building, the training which has ended on the 31st of March, there has been and there is excellent cooperation between NATO and the European Union. Having said that, it's with pleasure to see Javier Solana here once again. JAVIER SOLANA (EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy): Secretary General, thank you very much and very, very briefly, the meeting has been a very productive meeting. As far as Bosnia-Herzegovina, the operations which are taking place there, the military side, the police side, we've analysed the situation that fortunately is going fairly well. Let me say, we are also among the political component. As you know, the European Union in Bosnia Herzegovina government has started a negotiation for the association's representation agreement. Political meetings to place are ready and technical one, the 17th of March. And things, here, appear to be in the right direction. As far as the force which is deployed, we are not at this point taking any decision about the size of the force. It will be done probably after the election when we will begin talk about that. And we'll do it in good cooperation with NATO. The police is already working and working fairly, fairly well on the on the ground. So we are, in general, happy on how things are moving and also about the cooperation that we have on the ground with NATO. As far as the informal debate on Darfur that the Secretary General has just mentioned, I was in New York on Friday and had a brief talk with the Secretary General and happened to see M. Konaré also in the area, in Washington , on Friday. We are very, very concerned with the situation and very concerned, in particular, with the possibility of giving a push to the budget talks. The budget talks have not only to be in place. We spent hours and hours and days and days. But they have to come through with a roadmap to deal with this issue. And an end that would allow the strategic force to be deployed and will be deployed as peacekeeping force to guarantee that the budget talk is a budgetary agreement, is an agreement that has been accepted by all the parties. We've gone through most of that. Mister Salim Salim, as you know, is the person who is in charge of those negotiations. And he may be calling for a more formal meeting at the beginning of the month of April, a couple of weeks, a week and a half. And he would like to have the people, from the actors. We will be there probably to see how we can give a push on the budget talks. As far as the cooperation with NATO, we've already started a staff relationship which is very good, very productive to see how we can a) strengthen the army's force which is now on the ground that needs more means etc, and see how the evolution goes to the application of the UN Secretary Council resolution that call for a force at the end of the month of September from the UN. Thank you very much. Q: Thank you very much. I'm Magdy Youssef from Nile News, Egyptian Television. For the two secretary generals, I'm wondering about Darfur : if you... the talk about the resolution of the Arab summit about Darfur . And the second, for Secretary General of NATO, we know that you are refusing completely to send troops from NATO to Darfur . So I'm wondering how you can help the UN forces if they are in place, thank you.. SOLANA: Yes, we follow very closely the meeting of the Arab League that took place in Khartoum in all the points of the agenda, not only Darfur but on the other points of the agenda also. But as far as Darfur is concerned, yes, we are aware of the resolution. And we can have some exchange of views about what was said there. But I said and I would like to underline there is already a UN Security Council resolution talking for a tentative force. And I think at this point in time the higher resolution has been taken by the UN Security Council. De Hoop Scheffer: Let me add, as I said before, that as far as Darfur and NATO is concerned it was the UN Secretary General who asked NATO to look into ways to enable, to make it possible in the bridging period between AMIS and a possible UN force on the basis of the resolution the Arab representative was mentioning. And those are the options being at the moment. As you know, what NATO has done up to now is enabling... And if I mentioned the word "enabling", making its possible, it means that can very well be done without speaking of a NATO force. It's the African Union, it's the UN which are guiding organizations, who are guiding the political process. And you've just heard the Arab representative giving his opinion and talking about his participation. I think it is very well doable for the simple reason that NATO has done this over the past period in cooperation with the AU. Q: Paul Ames from the Associate Press, Secretary General, can you give us a few more details about this trust fund that you mentioned for Bosnia ? How much money are you hoping to raise and how exactly will that be used to support the people down there? De Hoop Scheffer: I'm hoping to raise a lot of money. It will be the biggest NATO trust fund. I think the number 11,000 demobilised military people. As I said, as well, that we're in the process of setting up this trust fund. I discussed it with the chairman of the Tripresidency not long ago here. And we're in the process of setting it up and I hope that many nations will step forward. If you have already done so, to fill the trust fund, so that work can start. Q: Yes, for both secretary generals. The European Commission decided to continue negotiation with Serbia and Montenegro on agreement on stabilisation and association on the basis of firm commitment by Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica to deliver, to arrest and deliver general Mladic today. Mister Solana, do you see that evolution as positive and do you expect that a commitment will be realized? And for the Secretary General of NATO, do you think that could be the start point of new approachment of Serbia-Montenegro to NATO? Thank you. SOLANA: Do I see this as something positive? Yes, no doubt about that. Let me, let me explain to you that the decision of the European Union has been taken after having the appropriate conversations and dialogue with Madame Del Ponte. As you know, she was in Belgrade and she returned and talked to us. I talk to Mister Kostunica frequently and I did not long ago. I'm very happy to see that we can continue because to stop or to disrupt the process of stabilization, association, negotiation with Serbia-Montenegro - it just started - would have been very bad news. I'm very happy that it will continue. De Hoop Scheffer: Let me answer that. You know my opinion. The one and only solution for lasting stability in the region, I'm now talking in the region is Euro-Atlantic integration. My second remark would be that this is a region where EU-NATO is essential like so many other regions and on so many other aspects. Remark number 3: I'm also in favour of the European Union and NATO giving the same kind of signals to the region. You also know that as far as Serbia-Montenegro is concerned, we're coming to the first part of your question, the fact that there is not yet... I hope I can say, not yet full cooperation with the ICTY, more specifically that Mladic is not yet in the Hague is hampering and is a block on Serbia-Montenegro into entering PFP. And of course, the most important one: and let me quote Draskovic who always quotes me when he says that one: "Once that hurdle is removed, we'll be in PFP that same night." No, I don't know if I can take it literally. But let me reiterate that if that very important step would happen - and that is of course when EU and NATO are both striving for - that I think that very quickly Serbia-Montenegro could be in the Partnership for Peace. And that would be for the region a very positive development. Q: Une question à Monsieur le Secrétaire général de l'OTAN sur la prochaine réunion de l'Alliance avec les pays méditerranéens au Maroc. Je voudrais que vous nous expliquiez un peu les principaux sujets qui seront discutés et surtout aussi la signification de cette réunion au Maroc. De Hoop Scheffer: C'est un événement de haut niveau, très significatif parce que ce sera la première fois que le Conseil Atlantique Nord, tous les ambassadeurs se réuniront à Rabat. Je voudrais bien parler d'un grand merci pour les autorités marocaines pour cet événement de haut niveau. Qu'est-ce qu'on va discuter là-bas? Bien sûr, l'avancement du dialogue méditerranéen, l'avancement de notre coopération pratique, l'avancement de notre coopération politique. Alors, on aura certainement un volet politique, un volet militaire pour ainsi dire des introductions de la partie militaire de l'OTAN sur les différentes opérations et missions de l'OTAN. Vous savez qu'il y a un grand intérêt à la région de donner un soutien, un support à l'Opération Active Endeavour, à la Mer Méditerranée. C'est alors un événement important avec participation politique de la part du gouvernement marocain. Ce que je considère très important. On a certainement un représentant du gouvernement marocain sur le plan politique de venir à cette réunion. Alors, on se réjouit d'aller à Rabat dans le cadre du Dialogue méditerranéen de l'OTAN. MODERATOR: Last question. Q: Catalan Radio, for both secretary generals please. What's your opinion about the agreement between China and Australia about Australia will be supplying uranium to China , thank you. SOLANA: On the agreement, it tells it's the continuation of an agreement that exists already between China and Australia . I have nothing to say about that. It is a bilateral agreement between two countries. One of the countries is very close to us. Well, both of them, but Australia as you know very well is very close now to NATO. De Hoop Scheffer: Well, I can echo all his words there's no NATO position on this. I mean NATO has a position on many issues but not on this one. Thank you very much.