9 Oct 2003

Defence Ministers look at future challenges at Colorado Springs meeting News 8-9/10/2003 - NATO Informal Defence Ministers Meetings, Colorado Springs 7/10/2003 - NATO Dynamic Response 07: The 2003 Informal NATO Defense Ministerial Crisis Management Study Seminar Key links Speeches, photos and audio from the meeting NATO Ministers of Defence and the 7 invited countries expected to join NATO next year, reviewed the Alliance’s transformation in the context of the future security environment at an informal meeting held in Colorado Springs, United States, 8-9 October. The meeting began with Dynamic Response 07, a crisis management study seminar designed to provide the Ministers, Chiefs of Defence Staff, NATO Ambassadors, and senior Alliance officials with an opportunity to confront realistic scenarios depicting future threats and challenges and to consult on how NATO must transform to be able to respond to even more rapidly to these challenges. The Ministers then went on to take stock of the Alliance’s ongoing transformation, and particularly the implementation of the new NATO Response Force, new military command structure and efforts to improve capabilities. They also discussed NATO’s current operations, in Afghanistan and the Balkans. A key theme was the need to increase the deployability and usability of NATO's forces if the Alliance is to meet future threats and mission demands. Speaking at press conference Secretary General Lord Robertson stressed that “if operations such as ISAF in Afghanistan are to succeed, we must generate more usable soldiers and have the political will to deploy more of them on multinational operations.” In this context, several NATO member countries signed letters of intent to join German and Spanish-led initiatives to improve NATO’s strategic airlift capabilities and establish a multinational fleet of air-to-air-refuelling tankers. Ministers also discussed current planning in NATO on possible options to expand NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. The Ministers also met with Russian Defence Minister Ivanov. Informal meetings of NATO Defence Ministers are held each year in addition to formal meetings held twice a year. Informal meetings have no fixed agenda and no formal decisions are taken; they are an opportunity for ministers to discuss freely key issues on the Alliance's agenda.