The National Post Monday, May 03, 1999
NATO: UNITED TO SUCCEED
The International Monetary Fund and Group of Seven industrialized
countries stand ready to offer financial help to the countries of the
Balkans. This help should go hand in hand with necessary structural
reforms.
By Javier Solana
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization has changed too: The
new NATO that emerged from the Washington Summit is ready for
the next millennium. In all of this our core principles remain
constant: In 1949, the founding members of NATO signed the North
Atlantic Treaty to defend democracy, individual liberty, and the rule
of law. These remain directly relevant to the world of today, but
proclaiming them is not sufficient. The Kosovo crisis obliged us to
take action to defend them. This challenge is every bit as great as
those we faced 50 years ago. Our New Strategic Concept approved
in Washington helps equip NATO for such new challenges. We have
a moral responsibility to act to defend our values once the efforts of
diplomacy have failed. And we are doing so with the determination
that has become our characteristic since 1949. This has not changed.
Our action in the Balkans is the latest chapter in a long history of
standing up for these principles. Principles that will help ensure
Europe enters the next millennium a peaceful and stable place.
The Washington summit endorsed our continuing action in
Kosovo. It showed that the resolve of the international community is
getting stronger; and it encouraged us to intensify this action with
immediate effect. We will do so. And, more than ever, I am totally
confident that we will succeed. We have three key strengths: unity of
spirit; clarity of purpose, and the right strategy.
At the Washington summit, more than 40 countries stood
shoulder to shoulder: not only the 19 Allies but also our partners,
with whom deepening our co-operative relations is one of our top
priorities. And the countries neighbouring Yugoslavia asked us to
follow our efforts through to the end. They do not enjoy living next
door to the Milosevic regime. We value their help to us -- both in
the military and humanitarian effort. It is vital to the success of our
operation. And NATO will respond to any challenges made to them
by Yugoslavia.
Our aims remain clear. The Washington summit wholeheartedly
confirmed NATO's continuing commitment to them. We welcome
the continuing diplomatic efforts of the international community. I
am in close contact with Kofi Annan. I also welcome the efforts of
Viktor Chernomyrdin. Russia will be central to the lasting solution.
But let us be clear -- the aims we set out on April 12 are not
negotiable.
And our longer-term strategy remains the achievement of a
lasting political settlement, based on the Rambouillet agreement.
After that, I look forward to the day when we will be able to
welcome a democratic Yugoslavia back into the European family, as
part of a stable Balkan region.
Our strategy is working. Day by day we are gradually degrading
Milosevic's war machine, cutting off his ability to sustain his forces
in Kosovo. The air campaign has so far made a dramatic impact: The
air-defences are weak; the air force no longer takes to the air --
many aircraft have been destroyed and fuel is in short supply -- as
most of the storage capacity has been eliminated.
In Washington we had one simple message for Milosevic:
NATO's resolve is unshakeable. You have the power to end the
campaign. Meanwhile, the damage to your country's infrastructure,
and every single casualty, is your responsibility.
But our military goals must not deter us from our humanitarian
mission. Indeed we are committed to helping those who have
suffered as a result of Milosevic's actions. More than 700,000
refugees have fled Kosovo. Our troops will go on working in
support of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and
other agencies in the camps. 12,000 troops are helping with the
humanitarian effort in the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia,
5,000 in Albania. They have helped in the delivery of more than
3,000 tons of food, 800 tons of medical supplies, and 1,500 tons of
tents.
The Allies will work with the rest of the international community
to help rebuild Kosovo once the crisis is over: The International
Monetary Fund and Group of Seven industrialized countries are
among those who stand ready to offer financial help to the countries
of the region. We want to ensure proper co-ordination of aid and
help countries to respond to the effects of the crisis. This should go
hand in hand with the necessary structural reforms in the countries
affected -- helped by budget support from the international
community.
Our ultimate aim is to build lasting peace in the Balkans. Serbia
is an integral part of that effort. It must be at the centre of any
attempt to bring stability to the region. We will help the Serbian
people recover from the situation to which Mr. Milosevic's actions
have led them. The people of Serbia are not responsible for their
condition. The blame sits squarely on the shoulders of the Milosevic
regime. Thanks to a decade of Milosevic, a bankrupt Serbia is now
isolated in the world.
This is another tragedy of this crisis. What right does one man
have to doom a nation to this fate? His slaughter in Kosovo is
mirrored by his systematic destruction of his country and people.
I must stress once again to the Serbian people: Our quarrel is not
with you, it is with your leader. Milosevic has brought you to
economic ruin; and has made your country an outcast in the
international community. NATO is determined to reverse that. To
help achieve this we agreed in Washington to pursue an initiative
targeted at South-Eastern Europe. We are determined to play our
full part in building a secure and co-operative relationship with and
between the countries of the region.
To this end, the Alliance will establish a consultative forum to
consider security issues with the countries of the region, building on
the Euro Atlantic Partnership Council and the Partnership for Peace.
This will include full consultations between the North Atlantic
Council and each of the countries of the region; the promotion of
regional co-operation; targeted security co-operation programs,
regionally focused activities, and exercises; and better targeting and
co-ordination of allies' and partners' bilateral assistance to the region.
And we welcome the efforts of the European Union and other
international organizations. In particular, we look forward to the EU
Conference on a Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe on May
27. We must all work together to achieve our common aim.
The Washington summit showed that NATO is ready for the
next millennium. The values we agreed in 1949 are also the values of
the next millennium. We now have a framework to move forward;
and to play our part in ensuring a safe and stable Europe for
tomorrow.
In this context the Kosovo crisis is a challenge to us to turn
words into deeds. We are determined to succeed. Our unity and
tenacity will help enable the Balkan region to play a full part in the
peaceful and stable Europe we are building for the next century.
_______
Javier Solana is Secretary-General of NATO.
