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Press
Briefing
held
on 22 January 2003
at the NATO Press Centre in Skopje
Statement of Craig Ratcliff:
Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to today’s press conference.
Realizing that there are other things going on today, small crowd, I guess
Bureau of Statistics has theirs going on right now, you said? OK, probably
there will not be any surprising issues today. Certainly for NATO, I would
like to reiterate that the security situation in itself is calm and stable.
Certainly, it has changed a lot very the last year to year and a half
to a much-improved situation. As we have said last week, we are very pleased
with the progress of the liaison teams monitoring teams and what is going
out on in the former crisis areas. And I am certainly aware that is in
contrast with recent alarming statements from individuals attempting to
create tension and heighten the awareness of threats. So knowing fairly
well that it is fragile at times, we wanted to reiterate today that it
would be appropriate for all individuals and groups to work with transparency
and to redirect their efforts to the legitimate institutions and agencies
within the Government and the international community. If an individual
person or group has the best of interest on what is good for Macedonia
then they would take the increased steps to work with diligence within
the proper institutions vs. creating hysteria in the media. As I have
said yesterday for Radio Free Europe, there is no threat externally from
an armed force and no threat internally from an armed force but there
are factors that create a higher tension level and awareness of the fragility
of the security situation. Obviously there are criminal groups and organized
crime and there are persons or groups that continue to disagree with the
Peace Agreement and the implementation of the agreement. However, that
within itself does not pose a threat to the security and stability. And
we are working with the legitimate institutions to counter those factors.
Another note is that I know there was a comment by a trade union of a
sort that they would take action to counter threats, again, any action
that is not within the legal framework of the institutions becomes an
illegal act in itself. So those persons or groups that think that they
should take it in their own hands, we encourage them to work through the
institutions so that we all work together and not individually. I think
actually that leads into Wolfgang, they had a nice conference this week
that addressed those issues, right?
Statement of Wolfgang Greven:
That is correct. Dobar den from OSCE. What Craig was actually mentioning
was a workshop that was held in Kumanovo about community policing last
Saturday and the outcome actually proves what Craig said before maybe
another point we saw there that was very encouraging is the increase of
the image of and the trust in the police. So the theme of the workshop
was community policing and actually 6 groups out of the former crisis
areas, together with the police were working on answers to different questions
on how to solve problems and how to address each other. As I have said
before it was really encouraging to hear the “normal citizens”,
how they think today of the work of the police and they were really asking
from many regions that the police shows up more often. I think that the
authorities from Macedonia are really making progress in this area. Also
very encouraging was the word of one high-ranked police officer at the
end of the workshop who was demanding very strongly that the police work
should be separated completely from any politics. And I think that this
is an idea that everybody who knows about the system of the democracy
can only support. So, another point I have is called ‘Point’
and you know it, we are trying to have a very good timing, so actually
today, it is still fresh, the newspaper that I mentioned at the last press
conference done by students in Tetovo from all ethnicities, the first
edition is coming out today, we have it here and we have a copy for you,
afterwards after the press conference outside there, it is in Albanian
and in Macedonian language. We are still very optimistic that in the new
future also a Turkish edition will be published. Finally, again a tip
for your agenda, we will have a media briefing on 31 January at 11.00
hrs and we will present to you the annual PDU, Police Development Unit
report. It is actually only 12 hours after it will be presented to the
MoI so, again you will get it fresh from the printer. About the location,
we are not sure yet but we will let you know on time. And now, you will
need a lot of patience because I know that Irena has a long statement.
Statement of Irena Guzelova:
My statement is going to be characteristically short. Basically just to
mention the letter sent from Trajkovski to Solana in which he invites
the EU to take over the international military operation here in Macedonia,
to say that the letter was welcomed and has been well received in Brussels,
and Foreign Ministers will discuss the eventual take-over in Brussels
in Monday in their monthly meeting. Meanwhile, technical preparations
in cooperation with NATO, following the Agreement last December on Berlin
plus, are continuing.
Ratcliff: Subject to questions at this point. Just like
you all said no questions….ooh, we have got one in the centre…
Question 1: Craig, I have got one for you. You said
that NATO troops are shifting from Bunardzik, so can you provide us with
any figures on how many NATO troops will remain in the coming period because
shifting means reducing the troops, so how many troops plan to remain
in Macedonia?
Ratcliff: Ok, how many people took the trip out to the
Camp a couple of weeks ago and watched the convoys leave? Anybody from
here? Irena went…What is leaving from Camp Fox are the remains of
Task Force Fox. There is actually very few people out there. It is mostly
equipment and leftover buildings and convexes there are few people still
from the German contingent, there are two people from the Dutch contingent
that are living in the hotel, still trying to clear accounts and move
the equipment out…
Greven: If I may say, for the Germans, they are still
living in tents…
Ratcliff: Well, the Dutch are smarter then…
Greven:
The Dutch have more money…
Ratcliff:
So, now what are we supposed to say. Well… thank good we are not
German…I didn’t say that…Anyway, they hope to be out
sometime early to mid-February sometime to have everything out. I don’t
think you will ever get rid yourself from the German influence, but transparently
there will be none…As we can see, Wolfgang came back to hassle us,
so….I think we said before roughly about 450 people, with the current
mission, with NATO HQ, and that should be roughly about the same with
the EU, if and when they take over, that the component will be roughly
about the same, with the split between NATO and the EU. Certainly, a lot
of what they are discussing now are components, personnel, structures,
those things…what is required, what is not and the EU is taking
a serious look at what they think they need to do their mission, bearing
in mind that they will take over the operational, i.e. the tactical portion.
And then of course, NATO would maintain a larger component of the advisory
mission, NATO HQ, Senior Military Representative and those sorts of things,
like we have been doing now along with the advisory group. And yeah, there
will probably be Germans in that group too.
Guzelova:
Just to add on to that, the actual eventual hand-over will be smooth and
the EU and NATO share similar, the same actually, security assessment
of the situation in Macedonia, so operationally on the ground, the actual
operation will remain basically the same.
Ratcliff:
Ok, so one question, everybody happy? OK, I know you have got other things
to do, thank you for coming, we still have coffee, tea and snacks and
stuff, so feel free to stay and chat if you like.
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