Press Release S-APHSG- 1(97)84 Meeting of Allied and Partner Heads of State and Government under the Aegis of the Euro- Atlantic Partnership Council Madrid 9 July 1997

Summary The Heads of State and Government, or their representatives, of NATO and Cooperation Partner countries, today held a meeting and a working lunch under the aegis of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC). This was the first gathering of Allied and Partner Heads of State and Government. Discussion at the meeting and working lunch focussed on the broad subject of security risks and challenges as well as opportunities for effective co-operative security in the Euro-Atlantic area. Attention was devoted to how the new Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, which was established by Allied and Partner Foreign Ministers at their meeting in Sintra, Portugal, on 30 May, 1997, can most effectively be used to serve the interests of its members and to contribute to security and stability. The EAPC was founded as a new cooperative mechanism that will allow Partner countries to build a stronger political relationship with the Alliance and provide a framework for practical cooperation under the Partnership for Peace. It will also give Partners opportunities for greater involvement in decision-making on activities in which they participate. There was also discussion about how to improve crisis prevention and crisis management, particularly peace-keeping, through the Partnership; and how practical regional cooperation could contribute both to strengthening stability and security in the respective region concerned and in the Euro-Atlantic area as a whole. A number of contributions highlighted the need to complement the work of the OSCE and other relevant institutions in these fields. The discussion underlined once again our awareness that the security of all our countries - Allies and Partners - is inseparably linked. Participants stressed the fundamental importance of the EAPC as the vehicle through which Partners can develop their relationship with NATO, in the interests of security and stability across the Euro-Atlantic area.