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Ministers, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Bonjour. Dobriy Den’. Good afternoon. Welcome to this NATO-Russia Council in Defence Ministers’ informal session.
There are, of course, a number of important political issues on the NRC agenda; not all of them are areas of agreement.
It is no secret that NATO nations and Russia do not always see eye to eye on such issues as CFE, missile defence, Kosovo, or NATO enlargement. And we have used the NRC precisely as we should – to debate them, and to try to find common ground.
Defence Ministers do not just debate, however – they also discuss practical cooperation. And the NRC has a strong and active program.
Of particular note, an important joint NATO-Russia exercise related to Theatre Missile Defence was conducted successfully last month in Germany. This was already the fourth of its kind, and an important step in practical cooperation in this area.
In Afghanistan, where NRC nations have strong shared interests, we continue to develop our cooperation including on the NRC Pilot Project on Counter-Narcotics Training of Afghan and Central Asian Personnel, and the preparation of a framework agreement on air transport.
Preparations are underway, and the Minister and I just discussed this, for a third Russian navy deployment as part of NATO’s counter-terrorism operation in the Mediterranean, ACTIVE ENDEAVOUR, later this year; as well as for a search and rescue at sea exercise to be held this summer off Norway.
To sum up, NRC nations continue to cultivate long-term practical cooperation while engaging in constructive dialogue on the political issues of the day, even if we may not always agree on these issues.