Press conference

with NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and Ukrainian Defence Minister Yuriy Yekhanurov at the Informal meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission

JAAP DE HOOP SCHEFFER (Secretary General of NATO): A very good afternoon once again, ladies and gentlemen. I think we had a very good discussion, valuable, in the NATO-Ukraine Commission until a moment ago, with Minister Yekhanurov, and you know, that there is an intensive dialogue with Ukraine because this meeting here in Vilnius follows important visits to Brussels of Prime Minister Tymoshenko and Foreign Minister Ohryzko. And now we have the NATO-Ukraine Commission.

I think NATO Ministers appreciated the information provided by the Minister on the new government's priorities in security and defence policy. They are ambitious, and worthy of serious effort, and the Minister stressed today the importance of solid implementation of those plans.   

Ministers welcomed Ukraine's intention to move forward with our cooperation. Perhaps more quickly than we have seen recently, and I think that's an excellent sign, Minister, we have seen today.

Many existing projects in different fields and different areas, such as, for instance, the destruction of unwanted ammunition, or on language training, will provide a lot of substance for our cooperation.

It will come as no surprise to you that there were lots of praise, as I have done before, Ministers did it, and I will repeat it here, for Ukraine's role of security exporter. I think it is still fairly unique to say that Ukraine is NATO's only partner participating in all NATO-led operations and missions. And I think that is, from an operational point of view I think, of course, very positive. I think it is also politically significant. Ukraine is proving that the country has very capable military.

Of course, Minister Yekhanurov also raised the issue of Ukraine's aspirations in the context of the Membership Action Plan. Let there be no doubt all allies are friends of Ukraine. They took careful note of Ukraine's interest in further integration. They stressed the opportunities provided by the Intensified Dialogue on membership issues NATO and Ukraine have, and advised themselves, and advised the Ukrainian Defence Minister Yuriy Yekhanurov to fully use all the opportunities available.

I think the Bucharest Summit will be an excellent occasion to review our relationship and I am sure that in the run-up to the Bucharest Summit we will have a few months, I should say, of interesting discussions.

It was an informal meeting to pre-empt your first question, of Defence Ministers. It was not a meeting to take decisions. That is not what happened. But I ended the meeting by commending Minister Yekhanurov for having come, and saying, and I will repeat that here now publicly, that it is absolutely necessary and a good signal and a good sign that we intensify our political dialogue. After all, we have Intensified Dialogue so we should give substance and content to that dialogue, and also that we see ever-increasing reforms in Ukraine and ever-increasing practical cooperation between Ukraine and NATO.

So I think, in short, this was a meeting conducted in a very positive spirit indeed. Let me now ask my colleague Minister Yekhanurov to take the floor.

YURIY YEKHANUROV (Defence Minister of Ukraine): (SPEAKING IN UKRAINIAN)

Q: Patrick Lyon from Reuters. It sounds like what you are saying, Secretary General, is that Ukraine cannot expect much of Bucharest, is that right?

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: No, that is not right. It sounds like nothing what I am saying, in the sense that no decision have been made. That is what I am saying, this is an informal meeting. The letter is there, the letter will be discussed, and at a certain stage the allies will come to some form of a decision, and it is premature to comment or to speculate on what that decision will be or is going to be.

Q: Okay and about this decision, what it depends on, to be taken at the Bucharest, which has the conditions for Ukraine to meet, to take the decision, to join Membership Action Plan?

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: That will first leave to the discussion between NATO and Ukraine, and secondly, to the political decisions to be taken in NATO, at a certain stage. And I repeat again, that I cannot say more about the when. I cannot say more about the where, because the where will be in Brussels and in no other city in the world, because NATO allies are used to decide themselves about who is coming through NATO's open door. And that is a decision I can be clear about the location. Let me phrase it that way.

JAMES APPATHURAI (NATO Spokesman): The next question is here.

Q: Lithuanian News Agency, ELTA. Mr. Secretary General, I would like to ask how Russian opposition could affect NATO enlargement and to Ukraine because Russia opposes NATO enlargement?

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: Have you listened carefully to the four last sentences I spoke in answering your colleague? NATO takes decision and NATO decisions are taken by the allies. Full stop.

APPATHURAI: Next question is there. Last question, I think.

Q: (Inaudible) people why NATO needs Ukraine and why the Ukraine needs NATO?

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: Ah, that is a good one. Let me first of all say that Ukraine is a big nation and an important one, in many respects. Secondly, if a nation has Euro-Atlantic aspirations that nation, also Ukraine, is by definition is taken very seriously by the allies, because otherwise the open door becomes a hollow phrase and the open door should not become a hollow phrase, and it will not become a hollow phrase, not under my watch, and not under my successor's watch.

NATO needs Ukraine, and I have given you the examples, in all its operations, basically. Where Ukraine is an active security exporter. Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, and you heard your Minister, well, of course, at a certain stage, decide if they want NATO, because as we know, in Ukrainian public opinion there's still something to be done to increase, and the Minister and I have discussed that bilaterally as well, to increase public support for NATO.

Do not forget that this process is performance-driven. It is driven by performance. It is driven by reforms, as we are discussing at the moment. Other nations knocking on NATO's door, I always say it is a performance-based process. So you can never say in advance give a definite answer about the when. But open door is not a hollow phrase. Ukraine is an important country and NATO takes the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of Ukraine very seriously indeed.

APPATHURAI: I am afraid that is all.

YEKHANUROV: (SPEAKING IN UKRAINIAN)...  

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: Thank you very much.