12 July 2004

NATO and EU should expand cooperation, says De Hoop Scheffer Opinions 12/07/2004 - NATO “Beyond Istanbul” - Speech by NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer at the European Policy Centre Background EU-NATO relations Links European Union In a speech in Brussels NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said that NATO and the EU should broaden their strategic partnership beyond the Balkans and exploit its full potential. Speaking at the European Policy Centre on 12 July, the Secretary General outlined the results and decisions of NATO’s Istanbul Summit and its implications for the Alliance. The Summit decisions, he said, demonstrated that there is real momentum in transatlantic security cooperation, and that NATO remains the major instrument for that cooperation, both within and beyond the Euro-Atlantic area, in Afghanistan, and even in Iraq. Moving beyond the Balkans In this light, he described current NATO-EU relations as “too limited”, saying that the two organisations should work together across the entire spectrum of security management, including cooperation beyond the Balkans. Areas where cooperation can be expanded include peace-building and post-conflict reconstruction; combating terrorism; preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction; developing the right military capabilities, he said. “We must use this new momentum in transatlantic relations to tackle the issues that are still outstanding,” said De Hoop Scheffer, “Above all, we must broaden the NATO-EU strategic partnership and exploit its full potential. The success of Istanbul should give us the confidence that we need to succeed.”