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NATO and Today’s World: Istanbul speech

English Pages, 28. 6. 2004

Secretary General, distinguished colleagues, ladies and gentlemen,

we are meeting in a rather complicated international situation, which forces us to face new challenges, to solve new tasks, to fulfil new obligations. It also brings new risks. We have to discuss them and I believe our intention is to find maximum understanding if not unity among us. Not everything is however, new. The Alliance demonstrated its readiness to cope with them and the result was a significant step forward at the Prague summit two years ago. We can, therefore, afford not to make substantial innovations here today. It, of course, does not mean that we should stay where we are, without moving ahead.

It was a very good decision to organize the present summit here, in Turkey, in the neighbourhood of the Middle East, one of the major sources of conflicts, terrorism and instability in today’s world. The choice of the place suggests that we all regard this region as a priority in the pursuit of our interests. I can assure you the Czech Republic also sees international terrorism associated with this region as one of the main security problem of the day. And although international terrorism is a relatively new, different and a highly specific threat, one that is very difficult to get rid of using traditional means of military defence, the Czech Republic firmly believes that NATO should play a key role also in this matter.

I do believe the present summit will bring us a step forward;

I believe it will help to clarify our tasks;

I do believe the present summit will result in a deeper understanding of the causes of international terrorism, and in a more accurate definition of it, because the word “terrorism” should not become a political magic formula, which could absorb anything;

I believe the summit will contribute to the re-building of unity of views among the member states of the Alliance based on a serious political dialogue which we have a chance to lead here;

I believe that the summit will result in further strengthening of the trans-Atlantic link, that NATO – as the only functional defence structure in today’s world – will continue to play that role in the future, that it will remain the base of security for Europe and that all the recent and future initiatives aiming at building a European defence will be put into harmony with NATO.

It is our obligation to make sure that NATO and the European Security and Defence Policy will be complementary, that a positive synergy will be achieved, that competition, duplication of structures, loss of unity and coherence will be avoided. Development of an alternative defence and security structure on the European continent should be prevented.

NATO must retain its traditional military-defence nature rather than be gradually transformed into a loosely defined institution of collective security, more similar to Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe or UN peace-keeping forces than to its original form. It must not happen that in crises – as it sometimes happens to those organizations - NATO enters late, without realistically prepared political solutions, without clear prospects of termination of the conflict, with the risk of a long-term engagement. The Olympic Games in Athens this summer is a good example of a mission which has a different meaning than a traditional military-defence one. I think we should think twice about such missions in the future.

I am convinced that this summit in Istanbul will give another important impetus to the Alliance and will further develop the changes initiated at the Prague summit. Looking at it from our own perspective the basis for this is the maintenance of the trans-Atlantic defence link, which was the main guarantee for Europe’s fifty years of peace. We stand firmly for its continuation.

Václav Klaus, Summit NATO, Istanbul, 28.6.2004