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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.
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.
In Prague, Mr. de Hoop Scheffer met with President Vaclav Klaus, Prime Minister Vladimir Špidla, Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda, Defence Minister Miroslav Kostelka, Senate Chairman Petr Pithart and House of Representatives Chairman Lubomir Zaoralek.
The Secretary General discussed key issues on the Alliance’s agenda ahead of the upcoming Summit meeting of NATO Heads of State and Government in Istanbul this June, and outlined his priorities as Secretary General.
Celebrating five years of membership
Mr. de Hoop Scheffer also took part in events commemorating the fifth anniversary of the Czech Republic joining the Alliance.
“Having suffered from many of the ill-winds that swept the 20th century, the Czech Republic, as a member of NATO, would no longer be alone in facing the challenges of the future,” the Secretary General in his address at the commemoration, “But the Czech Republic's membership in NATO did not only benefit this country. It was also a major step forward for our Alliance.”
The Secretary General also took the opportunity to once again condemn the recent violence in Kosovo, adding that “a special duty also falls on the political leaders of all ethnic communities in Kosovo to stop the spiral of senseless violence.”
Welcoming a new member
In Bratislava, Mr. de Hoop Scheffer met with President Rudolf Schuster, Prime Minister Mikuláš Dzurinda, Foreign Minister Eduard Kukan, Defence Minister Juraj Liska, as well as Parliamentary Chairman Pavol Hrusovsky and other parliamentarians.
He congratulated Slovakia on its imminent membership in the Alliance and said that NATO membership would bring both benefits, in the form of security guarantees, and obligations.
The Secretary General also addressed the high level conference on "Towards a Wider Europe: The New Agenda”. The event brought together Heads of State, Prime Ministers, politicians, analysts and journalists for two days of discussions about the future of Europe, the twin enlargement and transformation of both, NATO and the EU.
“This is a historic period for Europe. In the next few weeks, both NATO and the EU will admit a significant number of new members – many of which are represented here today,” he said, “This will bring us a huge step closer to what has always been a strategic objective of both our organisations: a Europe whole and free, united in democracy and common values.”