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| Innovative Winter Academy in Ukraine |
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The first ever Winter Academy on security issues to
take place in Ukraine was held 1-5 March 2004.
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| Seven invitees on the verge of
NATO membership |
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On 2 March, the NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer invited
Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia
to become members of NATO.
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| Italian Foreign Minister visits NATO |
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Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini addressed the North Atlantic
Council, NATO’s principal decision-making body, and met for
talks with the Secretary General during a one-day visit to NATO,
3 March.
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| Progress on new NATO air command
and control system |
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This year, testing begins of NATO’s Air Command and Control
System (ACCS), which is intended to combine, and automate, at the
tactical level the planning, tasking and execution of all air
operations.
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| Secretary General visits Poland |
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In the five years since its accession, Poland has demonstrated
that it is a true Ally, “for good and bad weather”,
NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said on a visit to Warsaw
on 4 March.
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| Burial ceremony of President Trajkovski |
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NATO Secretary General de Hoop Scheffer visited
the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia1 on
5 March 2004 to attend the burial ceremony of President Trajkovski.
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| First ever NATO-Russia missile
defence exercise |
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NATO and Russia are conducting a groundbreaking computer
simulation in the United States, 8 to 12 March, to test
joint responses to missile attacks against deployed troops.
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| Secretary General visits Baltic
States |
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NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer congratulated the governments
of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania on their imminent accession to
the Alliance, during visits to the three countries, from 10 to 12 March.
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| Statement by Secretary General
on bomb attacks in Madrid |
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I wish to express
my shock and anger in response to the appalling terrorist
attacks this morning in Madrid. The terrible loss of life
and casualties makes this attack one of the worst that our
Ally, Spain, has suffered in recent times. On behalf of the
Alliance, I condemn in the strongest possible terms this
mindless act of cruelty and barbarism.
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| Force generation conference for ISAF expansion
successfully completed |
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A landmark force generation conference to man and equip the first stage
of the expansion of NATO’s role in Afghanistan took place at
NATO’s top military headquarters in Mons, Belgium, on 11 March.
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| Progress on securing heavy weapons in Afghanistan |
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A ceremony held near Kabul on 11 March marked the successful cantonment
of one-quarter of all heavy weapons in the capital city to a special,
government-controlled storage site.
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| NATO pays tribute to victims of Madrid attacks |
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Flags flew at half-mast at NATO Headquarters in Brussels today
and staff observed a minute of silence at noon in solidarity with the
victims of the terrorist attacks in Madrid.
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| NATO to expand Operation Active Endeavour
to the whole Mediterranean |
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NATO is resolved to help
deter, defend, disrupt and protect against terrorism through
maritime operations in the Area of Operations of Operation
Active Endeavour and to demonstrate Alliance resolve...
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| Making room for seven new members |
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NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer today inaugurated a
newly constructed extension to the NATO Headquarters in Brussels, which
will house the delegations of the seven new Allies.
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| NATO Parliamentarians
meet in Sarajevo |
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The NATO Parliamentary Assembly held its 56th
Rose-Roth seminar in Sarajevo, in the Parliament of Bosnia
and Herzegovina, on 18-20 March.
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| NATO resolved to help bring Kosovo violence
under control |
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The NATO Council has
met again today to assess the security situation in Kosovo.
NATO is resolved to help bring this violence under control
as quickly as possible. The Alliance is deploying additional
troops from the previously designated operational and strategic
reserve to ensure that KFOR has all the resources necessary.
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| Madrid workshop
on threats to security in the Mediterranean basin |
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A
NATO Advanced Research Workshop titled “Developing Collaboration to Assess and Respond to Threats to Security in and
around the Mediterranean Basin” took place in Madrid from 19-21 March, and brought together participants from
21 NATO, partner and Mediterranean Dialogue countries.
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| Secretary
General visits Czech Republic and Slovakia |
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NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer
paid a one-day visit to Prague on 18 March and to Bratislava
on 19 March, for an official visit and to take part in
a high-level conference on NATO and EU enlargement.
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| Secretary
General visits Hungary |
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During the five years of its NATO membership,
Hungary has proven itself to be a reliable Ally, NATO Secretary General
de Hoop Scheffer said during a visit to Budapest on 22 March.
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| Kosovo violence
unacceptable,
says NATO Secretary General |
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In Kosovo on 22 March, NATO Secretary General
de Hoop Scheffer said the recent violence was unacceptable and would
not help the Albanian majority achieve its political aims.
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| NATO-Ukraine
2004 Target Plan online |
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The NATO-Ukraine Annual Target Plan
for 2004 was approved on 22 March and has now been published
online on the NATO website in English and Ukrainian.
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| Prime Minister
of Serbia visits NATO |
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Serbian Prime Minister Kostunica visited NATO
on 23 March for talks with Secretary General de Hoop Scheffer
on the situation in Kosovo and Serbia’s desire to join
NATO’s Partnership for Peace
programme.
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| Seven
new members join NATO |
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On 29 March, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia,
Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia formally became
members of NATO by depositing their instruments of accession
with the United States Government.
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| NATO
will continue to play its part in Afghanistan, says Secretary
General |
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Speaking at the international donor’s conference on Afghanistan
in Berlin on 31 March, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop
Scheffer said NATO is determined to make its Afghanistan
mission a success.
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| Air policing
extended to the new NATO Allies |
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Copyright
Belgian Army
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With the accession of the seven new member states, NATO’s protective
umbrella, including the policing of member country airspace, has
been extended to all their territories.
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