UM del - 2005-06 - Bilag 53: Pressemeddelelse af den 9. februar 2006 fra NATO's generelsekretær, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, efter det uformelle NATO-forsvarsministermøde i Taormina, Italien, den 9.-10. februar 2006

by NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Schefferafter the informal meeting of NATO Defence MinistersNATO Spokesman: Good evening, ladies andgentlemen. The Secretary General and the Minister willeach make brief opening statements. We'll have timefor your questions. Secretary General ...De Hoop Scheffer: Thank you very much. Goodevening, ladies and gentlemen.I can't begin, of course, without first starting to thankvery warmly Minister Martino—Antonio, thank youvery much—for hosting this meeting in this... on thisbeautiful island, in this beautiful city.EventInformal meetingsof NATO DefenceMinistersMultimediaAudio file of thestatement to thepress by NATOSecretary General,Jaap de HoopScheffer(.MP3/2377kb)

And I have a second reason to be grateful, because Iknow that when you look at NATO and when you look at NATO's operationsand missions, Italy is omni-present and Italy makes a very importantcontribution, be it in Afghanistan, be it in Kosovo, be it in the Mediterranean, beit in other operations and missions of NATO. So thank you very much, indeed,for that.Ladies and gentlemen, it will not come as a surprise to you that an important partof the discussions Ministers just had was focused on Afghanistan. Also on thebasis of the events last week in the Provincial Reconstruction Team inMeymaneh.I think I should start by saying that Ministers applauded the extremeprofessionalism and restraint shown by the Norwegian and Finnish troops in thatPRT because, of course, it was a serious demonstration. There were very manypeople outside and relatively little people inside. I think NATO also reactedprofessionally in sending in reserve forces, so it was in the end a problem whichcould be solved by NATO, although there were, of course, four casualties. Butthe professionalism was great.In this respect, and seeing the developments, it is also crystal clear, and Ministersreconfirmed and reaffirmed that this afternoon, that there is full commitment totake forward ISAF expansion into the southern provinces this summer. Allieshave made a long-term commitment to Afghanistan and that commitment willnot waver.As you know, it will take place this summer. It will bring the number of NATOforces and soldiers roughly to 16,000 and it will help the people of Afghanistanto build a better future.

On the basis of the PRT, the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Meymaneh, andwhat I just told you, it goes without saying that the reasons for thedemonstration, the violent demonstration in Meymaneh were also discussed, andif I pick up some key words from that discussion, they would be solidarity fromthe allies, with our Danish friends, Norwegians and others, who have beenvictims of violence.On the other hand, the need for dialogue, the need for respect of each other'svalues, the need for de-escalation and I think that's... if I see the declaration, thestatement made by the Secretary General of the Organization of the IslamicConference, Secretary General Kofi Annan of the UN and the HighRepresentative Solana, the atmosphere that that statement breathes is... was alsothe atmosphere here this afternoon. I say again, on the basis of solidarity withour Danish and other friends.It was clear, ladies and gentlemen, that Kosovo was also discussed and the needand the importance in this important period for the province to keep KFOR'spresence there and to see that KFOR is able to do everything it can to create aclimate of security and stability.What Ministers also discussed for the longer term was, of course, the way we'regoing to shape the ISAF expansion. There is a discussion going on, as you know,on financing NATO's operations and financing NATO's missions. In otherwords, on the relationship between the costs lie where they fall, nations paying,and the principle of common funding. We started that discussion. I tell youagain, this is an informal meeting so no decisions were made, but it is adiscussion, I think, which we need to have.That is in brief what I can tell you about the discussion this afternoon. I considerthis meeting here in Taormina as one of the building blocks for the summit inRiga.Some Ministers also started a discussion about what NATO could do more in theframework in the training, because that's what NATO is good at. Ministersdiscussed, of course, the training mission in Iraq as well and the need to continuethis important mission in Iraq. We will continue... we will continue this.And then I think I have given you an overview of the items discussed. And Ilook at my friend Antonio Martino.