Statement

Today, Foreign Ministers of the NATO-Russia Council:

• met to carry forward the work begun by their Heads of State and Government at the Rome Summit, and to take stock of the first six months of work in the framework of the NATO-Russia Council;
• expressed deep satisfaction at the substantial progress that has been made in implementing the Rome Declaration in all of the areas of cooperation contained therein;
• welcomed in particular progress achieved in intensifying cooperation in the following areas:
• in crisis management, where NRC Ambassadors agreed on a political framework to take work forward on future NATO-Russia peacekeeping operations, and where progress was made in the dialogue on ways to enhance border security in the Balkans;
• in the struggle against terrorism, where work is progressing on a number of assessments of specific terrorist threats to the Euro-Atlantic Area; looked forward to the NATO-Russia Conference on "The Role of the Military in Combating Terrorism" on 9 December in Moscow; and welcomed steps to meet more effectively contemporary security challenges, in particular terrorism and the proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction;
• in defence reform, where the October 2002 Rome Seminar has paved the way for a more fruitful dialogue within the NRC and increased cooperation in adapting military forces to meet shared security threats;
• in theatre missile defence, where an ambitious work programme has set forth a road to interoperability of Allied and Russian systems;
• in civil emergencies, where the September 2002 exercise hosted by Russia at Bogorodsk has provided an impetus for increased cooperation; and
• in non-proliferation, where work is underway for a joint assessment of global trends in the proliferation of NBC agents and their means of delivery;
• noted the assurance of NATO member states that decisions taken by the Alliance at its Summit meeting in Prague are not directed against the security interests of Russia or any other Partner state;
• reiterated the goals, principles and commitments contained in the Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security, and in the Rome Declaration. Reaffirming adherence to the CFE Treaty as a cornerstone of European security, they agreed to continue to work cooperatively toward ratification by all the States Parties and entry into force of the Agreement on Adaptation of the CFE Treaty, which would permit accession by non-CFE states;
• welcomed the approach of those non-CFE countries who have stated their intention to request accession to the adapted CFE Treaty upon its entry into force, and agreed that their accession would provide an important additional contribution to European stability and security;
• agreed that in the current security environment, where NATO Allies and Russia increasingly face common threats and challenges, continued intensification of cooperation in the framework of the NRC will further enhance security throughout the Euro-Atlantic area, and to this end tasked NRC Ambassadors to develop a robust work programme for 2003, building upon the progress achieved in 2002.

As NRC Chairman I am looking forward to my visit to Moscow on 8-10 December 2002 for further discussions with the Russian leadership as an opportunity to further develop NATO-Russia cooperation.