Mr. Jan Petersen. Minister of Foreign Affairs, Norway

NATO-Russia: a new partnership for new challenges

NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Sofia, Bulgaria, 26 May 2002

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Mr. Chairman,

It is a great honor to be addressing such a distinguished group - members and friends of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

For almost half a century NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly has been a forum for debate and the exchange of views – for creating understanding between and within nations of NATO’s purpose and mission.

The NATO Parliamentary Assembly has been a sounding board for opinions and views, it has ensured transparency and access, and this has been vital for the widespread support NATO has enjoyed in all of our countries.

The Assembly played a major role in ensuring the necessary support for the first round of NATO enlargement five years ago, and it must do this again in the run-up to the NATO Summit in Prague later this year. The fact that this meeting is taking place in Sofia is evidence of the Parliamentary Assembly's forward-looking approach.

I have found our discussions here in the Parliamentary Assembly truly stimulating and an invaluable source of knowledge and inspiration during my 16 years as a member of the Norwegian parliamentary delegation. The frequent contacts made with other parliamentarians have provided me with better in-sights into our common security challenges, and how we should respond to them. I am glad to be back - and I look forward to hearing your views on the issues we are currently facing, and the path we should take in the time ahead.

Mr. Chairman,

We are in the midst of a major overhaul of the Atlantic Alliance. Just as the security environment in Europe has changed dramatically over the past decade, so has the Alliance.

Building new partnerships to face new threats is crucial if we are to succeed. That is why our new partnership with Russia is so important.

President Putin’s pragmatism, willingness to reform, and Western-looking foreign policy have paved the way for a new strategic relationship between NATO and Russia.

This week the heads of state and government of twenty nations will formally declare the NATO-Russia Council operational.

By doing this, we will take new steps that will help us enhance our ability to work together in areas of common interest. By doing this, we will stand together against the common threats and risks to our security. By doing this, we are opening a new page in our relations.

The NATO-Russia Council will be a new mechanism for consultation, cooperation, consensus-building, as well as joint decision and joint action. We will build on the principles of cooperative security, democracy and that the security of all states in the Euro-Atlantic region is indivisible.

The Council’s substantive agenda must be as broad and comprehensive as possible, but let me today mention five key areas:

First of all, we must intensify our cooperation in the fight against international terrorism. Together we must seek a multi-faceted approach – including joint assessments of the terrorist threat to Russia and NATO forces, to civilian aircraft, and to critical infrastructure.

Secondly, crisis management. We must seek regular exchanges of information on peacekeeping operations – including enhanced cooperation and consultations on the situation in the Balkans. We must promote better interoperability between national peacekeeping contingents - through joint and coordinated training activities.

Third, we must broaden and further strengthen cooperation against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and the means of their delivery.

Fourth, we must seek new arms control and confidence building measures.

The new arms agreement signed a few days ago in St. Petersburg, compelling both sides to reduce their arsenals of deployed nuclear warheads to levels between 1.700 – 2.200 – down from the 6.000 mandated by previous treaties – is a significant step forward.

By implementing this agreement, both the United States and Russia will reduce their nuclear arsenals by almost two/thirds – to the lowest levels in decades.

Fifth, we must enhance the military-to-military cooperation – including joint training, demonstrations and tests - as well as strengthen cooperation on defense reform. In addition, we must seek increased cooperation, transparency and confidence between NATO and Russia in the area of search and rescue at sea.

All in all - an entirely new strategic partnership is being formed between Russia and NATO - based upon converging interests and a sense of common purpose.

However, the real test of our cooperation will be in our day-to-day work. Our success will be measured in concrete results.

I firmly believe that this new partnership will benefit the entire Euro-Atlantic area. It will benefit partner nations and new members alike.

Norway - as a neighbor and friend - wants to build a new, democratic and prosperous Europe in partnership with Russia. In partnership with a stable, democratic and prosperous Russia - firmly anchored in cooperation with the West - including NATO and the EU.

At the same time, we must continue our efforts to further integrate Ukraine and other participating states in the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC). This is why we have decided to implement a special program of action for Ukraine. We will co-operate with Ukraine on a broad range of areas - including defense reform, as well as political and economic issues. We must also intensify our dialogue with our Mediterranean partners. And not least, our decision at the Summit in Prague to invite new members will do much to promote a more secure, stable and prosperous Europe.

Mr. Chairman,

Our fight against international terrorism will be high on the agenda both in the NATO-Russia Council and at the NATO-Summit in November.

We will have to live with this threat for years to come. But we do not have years to bolster our capability to root out this threat.

What we must do now is to strengthen NATO’s civilian and military apparatus. New capabilities are needed if NATO is to remain the principal security organization and the anchor for stability in Europe.

Above all, we need new capabilities specifically developed to counter international terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction.

This boils down to resources and priorities. We have set our priorities - and at the foreign ministerial in Reykjavik, we confirmed the Allies’ commitment to substantially increasing the resources needed to turn NATO into an efficient military instrument in the fight against international terrorism.

September 11 also demonstrated the need for a more focused effort. We must concentrate on the most important and immediate challenges, and on the capabilities most essential for our fight against international terrorism.

We need to show substantial progress - in all these areas - at the NATO-Summit in November.

At the same time, we must stay vigilant.

Military action was needed to root out the al-Qaida terrorists and their Taliban supporters from their hideouts in Afghanistan. But such strikes alone will not be enough. We must continue to employ all available means - political, economic, legal and diplomatic - in addition to necessary military operations.

At the same time, the broad international coalition must be maintained and further strengthened. I firmly believe our enhanced cooperation with Russia will in significant ways contribute to this end.

In addition to these efforts, we must continue to bolster the United Nations so that it can employ its broad array of legal and economic measures in the most efficient manner. We need a long-term, comprehensive and multilateral approach.

We must deliver on our promises on Afghanistan. We must be prepared to stay for the long run in rebuilding the country. As chair of the Afghanistan Support Group (ASG), I would like to once again stress the importance of honoring the pledges we have made to assist the Interim Administration in Kabul and the Afghan people during this difficult period of transition.

Whether international terrorism is aimed at New York or Moscow, Paris or Istanbul, working together to counter it is essential.

NATO has become the core of an extensive security community stretching from the Barents to the Black Sea. At the nucleus of this core are our transatlantic ties. But we must not take these ties for granted. We must maintain and strengthen them.

Those who speak of a crisis of confidence in the Alliance should not forget that we are a community of democracies, sharing the same values. Of course we are discussing the future course of the Alliance. The day our discussions cease, then we do have a problem. At the same time, our deliberations and diverging points of view are signs of our basic confidence. Confidence that the Alliance will continue to change and adapt – that it will remain the preeminent security organization in Europe and the entire trans-Atlantic region.

Mr. Chairman,

Successful adaptation to a changing security environment has become something of a trademark of this organization. Throughout the past decade consultations and practical cooperation with partner nations have been continuously enhanced and expanded. NATO’s door has now been opened to new members. The door will remain open – also after the Prague Summit.

Enlarging NATO is an integral part of adapting to the new reality.

But it is worth noting that the NATO-Russia cooperation takes a great step forward in the same year that NATO once again enlarges. This finally lays to rest the argument we heard for so many years - that we will have to choose between the two.

The candidate countries have themselves proven that enlargement is the right course for NATO. The commitment of candidate countries like Bulgaria, and its thorough preparations for the challenges ahead, is most impressive. The candidate countries’ commitment to regional cooperation and participation in joint operations, have demonstrated their tremendous will and ability to contribute to security and stability in Europe.

Troops from partner nations have fought side by side with our own troops in support of the US-led operations in Afghanistan. They have understood that membership of the Alliance is first and foremost about solidarity and contributing to our common security.

Joint exercises and cooperation on defense-related issues within the Partnership for Peace have resulted in a high level of interoperability, which has enabled partner nations to take part in operations in Afghanistan. Partners in Central Asia have made facilities available for launching operations and for logistics support that has been crucial to our success in Afghanistan. Our partners share fully in the success of our operations in Bosnia and Kosovo, and not only within the framework of the Partnership for Peace.

But the possibilities of partnership are far from exhausted. We must further strengthen both the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council and the Partnership for Peace. At the same time, we need to implement activities that are tailor made for the needs of individual countries and regions.

Mr. President,

Real and genuine burden-sharing across the Atlantic can only be achieved through a genuine partnership between the EU and NATO. The EU is heeding the call for Europe to bear a larger share of the responsibility for European security.

Norway is looking forward to participating in the first EU-led operation in Bosnia. We also stand ready to contribute to the EU’s military operation in Macedonia.

The practical and pragmatic cooperation between the EU and NATO in the Balkans has so far been a success. It underscores the great possibilities inherent in cooperation.

Unfortunately our practical cooperation has not been matched by a political will ti finalize the "Berlin Plus" agenda. A real and genuine burdensharing across the Atlantic can only be achieved through a genuine partnership between the EU and NATO. Time has now come to put our common house in order.

Mr. President,

I agree with President Vaclav Havel’s observation that "the future of the world lies in the cooperation of clearly defined regional groupings based on shared values." This is what NATO is all about.

We are gathered here in Sofia to continue on the path that will bring Europe yet another step closer to enhanced security and lasting stability. We are here to reconfirm the ties and solidarity across the Atlantic.

We are about to embark on a new chapter in NATO-Russian relations.

The establishment of the new NATO-Russia Council is an event of unprecedented proportions - and a consequence of the new strategic relationship between Russia and the NATO-countries that has emerged since September 11.

The next NATO enlargement will in significant ways enhance our common security. Our future efforts will be marked by the challenges we are facing but also by our new and enhanced relations with new members.

The invitations issued in Prague will not mark the end of a process. They will merely mark a new beginning for us all in our common effort to ensure that all of Europe can enjoy a secure, prosperous and peaceful future.