9 May 2001

Visit of Lord Robertson to The Hague During a one-day trip to The Hague on 9 May, Lord Robertson held a bilateral meeting with the Dutch Minister of Defence, Frank de Grave, and gave a speech at a high-level conference on civil-military relations. Both Lord Robertson and Minister de Grave were invited to the Centre for European Security Studies conference, 9-13 May, which was organised by the University of Groningen, the Centre for Security and Defence Studies, Canada, and the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces, Switzerland. Lord Robertson addressed the theme of "Perspectives on Democratic Civil-Military Relations and Reform", then later met with Minister de Grave for bilateral discussions which focused on recent developments in the Balkans, the European Security and Defence Identity and missile defence. Additional information: "Perspectives on Democratic Civil-Military Relations and Reform" - Speech by NATO Secretary General, Lord Robertson at the Centre for European Security Studies Conference "Taking Stock on Civil-Military Relations" in The Hague, The Netherlands - 9 May 2001