ISTANBUL - Heads of state and government of 26 allied countries and 20 partner countries convened at Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) meeting under the 17th NATO Summit in Istanbul, and decided to underlie cooperation to strengthen peace and stability in Euro-Atlantic area.
At the first session of the meeting, EAPC heads of state and government met with President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan to discuss progress in that country.
All recognized that much remains to be done for Afghanistan to become a peaceful and stable country, fully integrated into the international community.
EAPC leaders welcomed the decisions taken by the Alliance to expand International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and provide support to the Afghan authorities for the upcoming elections. Allies and partners alike recognized that their common security was at stake in the success of Afghanistan, and agreed upon the importance of accepting risks and facing responsibilities together.
EAPC leaders urged Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro, which attended the meeting as observers, to meet the outstanding conditions set for Partnership for Peace (PfP) membership by Allies.
The allied and partner countries reaffirmed the resolve of their states to fight the scourge of terrorism in facing up to new common threats to security.
They took stock of initiatives aimed at increasing the EAPC's contribution to the fight against terrorism and broadly endorsed the further implementation of the Partnership Action Plan against Terrorism, developed by Allies and Partners.
They welcomed NATO's intention to place a special focus on relations with the states of the Caucasus and Central Asia. The Alliance decided to appoint one liaison officer for each region.
During the meeting, Albania, Macedonia and Croatia, which were waiting for a date for participation in the Alliance, were given an encouraging message that NATO's doors were open for them.
Meanwhile, foreign ministers of Albania, Croatia and Macedonia, which formed the Adriatic Group to adjust to NATO criteria, released a statement at the end of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council saying, ''we reaffirm the readiness of our countries to keep providing and extending whenever it is feasible, all our effective contribution to NATO's policies, initiatives, missions and operations. We reiterate our commitment to achieve full membership in NATO at the earliest possible date on our individual merits.''
NATO has engaged in partnerships with non-allied countries since 1991 to help often newly independent states build a solid democratic environment, maintain political stability and modernize their armed forces.
Besides 26 allied countries, 20 cooperation partners - Albania, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Croatia, Finland, Georgia, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Ukraine - formed the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council.
NATO and partner countries meet on a regular basis to discuss a multitude of political and security-related issues including joint fight against terrorism, arms control, peace-keeping operations, defense economy and nuclear safety.
(UK-AÖ) 29.06.2004